Pureprint enjoys fruits of London location

A Bermondsey block proves perfect position for Pureprint’s creative clients.

A year after opening a London office, Pureprint Group has doubled the numbers working from the location.

The offices in an old tannery in Bermondsey close to London Bridge are now permanent home to ten staff. These are account management, estimating and sales staff. But the facility is more than a central location for the company’s own staff. It acts as an ideal library for customers, with extensive paper samples and previous jobs to spark ideas about a project.

The location, billed as a creative printing studio, includes samples of more than 12,000 papers, binding material, foils and so on. It also houses a showcase of projects that Pureprint has worked on, from digital books, litho brochures and packaging to large format displays.

The studio is manned by a team able to guide designers, agencies and publishers through the specification process. The facilities include calibrated viewing conditions that are a mirror of those at the main factory in Uckfield.

“And,” says Pureprint development director Richard Owers, “having a central London location helps us attract more staff. We used to have just two or three people permanently located in London. Now there are always about 20 people here and ten of them will call it their base. Others will come from across the group for meetings with each other or customers. It has proved to be a big success.”

One happy designer is Ana Rachel Estrougo from Pentagram. “I came to see Alan (sales director Alan Ball)l at Pureprint’s Bermondsey space about a book project. The format we wanted to have was clear, but I was keen on getting some inspiration for finishes and materials. The Pureprint library has a wide selection of very high end materials, techniques and stock which helped me to create the look and feel I was hoping for. The Pureprint team also produced very professional mock ups which helped the client to sign off the project. Overall an excellent experience.”

Printers has gradually moved away from retaining London offices. Many kept the a central location when moving factories out of the city in the 1960s and 1970s in order to retain contact with customers. But in more recent years companies have moved away, driven by digital communications and the perception that digital file transfer and online approvals would suffice. Sales staff could work out of temporary accommodation or make client visits and a factory visit was also possible for those clients wanting to pass on press.

Pureprint’s investment in expanding the space a few minutes from London Bridge station runs counter to the grain. While a thriving area of designers and agencies, it is decidedly un-hipsterish, says Pureprint. “This has been a working area for many years,” he says.

“We see print dividing into hands off print which is purchased online and hands on print where the client engages with the printer. Most agencies these days do not have the full facilities and resources that they used to be able to call on for samples and inspiration. So we want to create that in the middle of London.”

Pureprint’s decision follows on from the inspiration space that paper company Fedrigoni has opened in Clerkenwell, more recently followed by GF Smith opening a shop in the west end.