Onlineprinters last week closed its UK website, ending 20 years of providing print services from Neustadt an der Aisch, a few miles from Nuremburg. Customers will instead be encouraged to register with UK subsidiary Solopress, in Southend, with calls to customers about the change in direction taking place this month.
The conversion team will stress the benefits: faster delivery times with no international shipping hiccups made worse by Brexit; reduced environmental impact from fewer miles from print to customer; and no loss of service or product range.
Existing accounts remain accessible for viewing previous orders, for reprints and checking invoices until the end of March.
Solopress was acquired by Onlineprinters in 2017, but at that time was limited in the products it could offer – Solopress had only B2 sheetfed litho presses compared to the Heidelberg B1 presses in Germany, for example. Those differences have largely been erased and standard products can be supplied from the UK, if not to the same volume.
The move comes just months after Solopress managing director Simon Cooper also took the same role at Onlineprinters as part of an international strategic realignment. At that time Cooper promised: “We will continue to produce locally in Germany, the UK and Spain in order to be as close to our customers as possible.”
To accompany the recent change, underway since November, Cooper says: “This move represents an important step in streamlining the group’s offerings, allowing us to optimise processes and prioritise the needs of UK based customers. With our UK based production facilities and exceptional customer service team, we’re confident this transition will bring significant benefits to our new customers, helping them achieve their print goals quickly, sustainably and reliably.”
Onlineprinters has been unusual in continuing to serve UK customers from Germany following the combined blow of Brexit and Covid. FlyerAlarm and Saxoprint have almost entirely withdrawn from the UK market despite substantial investments to set up local support teams.
Cooper takes over Germany as well as UK
