Lindsey Pearson, Whitmar Publications’ managing director, commented, ‘I’d like to thank Michael for his hard work and dedication on Digital Printer over these years. He has been responsible for taking the title to new levels, and I’m sure all our readers and partners would wish him well for the next stage in his career.

‘At the same time, I am delighted to welcome Paul to the business. He is a highly experienced publishing and editorial professional, who has successfully run his own media agency for more than a decade. I know that Paul will be a huge asset to the magazine, applying his skills and personality to represent Digital Printer and keep it at the forefront of the industry.’

Mr Sander has more than 20 years of experience in the publishing industry and since 2009 was the proprietor of Panda Media, managing a wealth of content, production and design across a range of B2B publications.

‘I look forward to taking over from where Michael has positioned the magazine, and will continue to deliver the high-quality editorial our readers have become accustomed to. Of course, with all new tenures there will be an element of cross-over, but also a fresh set of eyes and ideas. Getting out and meeting many of you is high on my agenda,’ commented Mr Sander.

You can contact Paul Sander regarding digital printing industry news, Digital Printer magazine, or the Digital Printer Awards at Paul.S@whitmar.co.uk.

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Ms Hodgson has joined Signbox after 14 years at Octink. During her time there, she project managed signage contracts whilst running a small team of junior project managers. She then became head of project management, looking after a team of over 20 project managers before taking on the role of general manager at the company in 2020.

Ms Hodgson commented, ‘I have known about Signbox for a long time, and I know they are a forward-thinking company with a fantastic culture for innovation and excellence in sign-making. I am also keen to get more involved in new sectors and products, there is great potential to do this with Signbox.’

Mark Bartlett, managing director of Signbox, said, ‘Hayley brings a wealth of experience and a proven track record of success in the industry. She has delivered and overseen some truly incredible projects, as well as having an extensive background in account management, business strategy and senior leadership. She will play a pivotal role in taking Signbox into a new and positive era of innovation and success for our company.’

The post Signbox appoints new general manager appeared first on Digital Printer.

Mr Edmundowicz will lead Gelato’s sales, commercial partnerships, customer success, and acquisition teams, while aiming to grow the company’s US network and partner ecosystem. The new CRO joins Gelato with prior experience as a revenue leader of software companies such as Xactly, Conga, Cloud Elements, UpKeep, and think-cell.

Henrik Müller-Hansen, founder and CEO of Gelato, said, ‘By offering global e-commerce players local production of art, apparel, books, and drinkware, across 32 countries, Gelato supports the rapidly expanding creator economy. Bobby’s unique experience within sales operations and growing SaaS companies, will help us accelerate our growth.’

Over the past year, Gelato has more than doubled its US customer base and sales, acquired 12 new US production partners, and named Atlanta, Georgia, its US headquarters. In 2024, Gelato will aim to continue adding to its US team, planning to triple the headcount by the end of the year.

Despite being refined over the last 15 years, the company’s production software is an area of focus. Mr Edmundowicz’s software development and B2B knowledge will be ‘invaluable’ in its further growth and evolution.

Mr Edmundowicz commented on the reason behind joining the company stating, ‘The organisations where you make the biggest difference are the ones where you believe in the mission. As soon as I learned about Gelato and met the team, I was all in. I look forward to working with our customers to identify opportunities to grow their businesses.’

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InkTec Europe says it has grown over the last year as a manufacturer and supplier of large format printers, media and inks and that Ms Thirlby’s promotion reflects InkTec’s expanding operations in the UK, Europe and at its headquarters in South Korea.

Joey Kim, managing director of InkTec Europe, commented, ‘As InkTec continues to grow with new product developments being launched and more in the pipeline, it’s an ideal time for Michelle to assume the role of operations director. Her leadership will be key in further building our business and maintaining high-quality, uninterrupted customer support.’

Ms Thirlby said, ‘I’ve faced a variety of challenges during my time so far at InkTec so far, and this promotion allows me to continue building and developing the operations side of the business to push the company forwards. My core focus will be to ensure continuous operational development and support for our customers, while also working closely with the team.’

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As part of an experienced team, Mr Bladon will help organisations in the print and packaging sectors to harness Konica Minolta’s portfolio of digital print solutions. 

Mr Bladon has been working in the product and industrial print industry since 1987, where he began his career in the print room as an equipment operator. During a career in print spanning more than 35 years, he has held senior sales, business development and account management roles in the UK and Australia, specialising in delivering hardware and software that meet the changing needs of print businesses. Between 2012 and 2014 he was a senior account manager at Konica Minolta in Australia. 

Mr Bladon commented on the importance of selling products which he is knowledgeable in. ‘I am a printer by trade, so having confidence in the product I sell to print businesses is extremely important to me,’ he said.

‘Konica Minolta has a strong reputation for delivering innovative and reliable equipment that do their jobs effortlessly. The company offers commercial print companies a truly impressive portfolio whether they are looking for creative embellishment techniques, high-quality short-run label production, or high-volume digital inkjet print runs.’

Jon Hiscock head of production and industrial print at Konica Minolta stated, ‘Mark brings a wealth of experience from across the industry to our specialist team. His appointment is a sign of our commitment to the sector, as well as a response to the strong interest we are experiencing for our product portfolio, support, and services, as organisations recognise how truly transformative our digital solutions can be for their business.’

The post Konica Minolta appoints Mark Bladon as major accounts sales specialist appeared first on Digital Printer.

Finishing specialist, Polar has around 350 employees worldwide at its sites in Hofheim, Germany and Shanghai, China, and develops systems for the automation of industrial cutting and die-cutting processes. 

Mr Becker, who holds a degree in mechanical engineering, was recently the head of professional printing Germany at Konica Minolta Deutschland where he was responsible for the corresponding business unit. With more than 20 years of management and leadership experience in the printing industry, he has a broad range knowledge of the sector and expertise in national and international sales.

In his new role, Mr Becker will report directly to the Polar Group management. He commented, ‘I am looking forward to the new challenge and the exciting tasks that await me at a traditional global market leader.’

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Mr Kaziewicz joins the company with over 30 years’ experience in the wide-format printing industry, having held senior positions at reseller and distributor level, as well as being one of the founders of former Mimaki authorised reseller partner GPT in 2008.

Hybrid’s technical manager Chris Adams commented, ‘Rob’s appointment is a key strategic move for Hybrid, and his decades of customer-facing, technical Mimaki experience will be a major asset to our business.’

Speaking on the factors that attracted him to the role Mr Kaziewicz stated, ‘Mimaki’s heritage, breadth of product portfolio and innovative approach to bringing new products to market are all important to me and were key considerations in making this move.

‘Having worked with Hybrid for a large part of my career, it really feels good to join back up with a team of friends and colleagues in my new role.’

Mr Adams concluded, ‘Rob’s professional approach and extensive knowledge of Mimaki products and our wider industry are already having a significant impact.’

The post Hybrid Services appoints Rob Kaziewicz as assistant technical manager appeared first on Digital Printer.

Baroness Morgan is a former Conservative MP and minister, and is now a member of the House of Lords. Her portfolio career has encompassed roles across the private and public sectors. She served in the cabinets of David Cameron and Boris Johnson as, respectively, Minister for Women & Equalities, Education Secretary and Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Secretary. She also chaired the House of Commons Treasury Select Committee for two years and was the Member of Parliament for Loughborough between 2010 and 2019. Prior to her political career she worked as a solicitor specialising in mergers and acquisitions.

Baroness Morgan said, ‘During my time as Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Secretary I saw first-hand how print, publishing and graphic arts, and the trades allied to them, such as packaging and paper, continue to shape and define UK culture. The importance of these industries to our economy as well as our society cannot be understated, so I am delighted to be involved with the Printing Charity, whose work provides crucial practical, emotional and financial support to people working in these sectors, whose skills are what drive success, and continued innovation, within them.’

Printing Charity CEO Neil Lovell commented, ‘It is great news for the charity that Baroness Morgan has agreed to support us in this important role, as our President and as the 2024 keynote speaker at our Annual Luncheon in November. She joins an illustrious group of charity presidents,’

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Co-CEO Adam Carnell explained, ‘Over the last 18 months the focus of the business has increasingly moved to print as demand for masks dropped and the opportunities in print grew stronger. Recently we have made the decision to put all of our energy and resources behind the area of the business that we have seen growing fastest, books and booklet printing.’

This decision also follows on from the October 2021 acquisition of book printer Kingsbury Press, which brought a wealth of experience in book production and specialised finishing techniques. In May 2023 Bluetree decided to relocate all Kingsbury operations from Doncaster to its main site. Binding and finishing operations now take place in Unit B, which previously housed the medical division and is adjacent to the main production facility.

Mark Young, managing director of the print division, commented, ‘The acquisition of Kingsbury Press brings new skills into the group that will enable Route1Print to broaden the range of products that we offer as standard but also to handle much more complex projects that might present as an opportunity.’

The most significant part of the reshuffle has been with the Group’s senior management team. Jon Smith, who was the managing director of the medical business, has taken the role of production director. He joined the business in 2015 and previously ran the Instantprint brand.

Phil Tasker will be taking over as head of Kingsbury Press,  having joined Bluetree in 2022 to run the Route1Print trade offering; Jack Parks moves from sales director for the medical business to head of Route1Print; he joined the business in 2019 and originally ran the Instantprint Direct brand.

Bluetree also said it will be announcing further investments over the next two months to further support the businesses focus on books and booklet printing.

The post Bluetree restructures to focus on books and booklets appeared first on Digital Printer.

Mr Phillips and Ms Cole replace respectively Jon Wright and James Povery who had both reached the 10-year maximum tenure for trustees. Mr Phillips has worked at Paragon in various senior operational roles since 2006 and became chief operating officer  for the Paragon Customer Communications business in April 2023.

Ms Cole has worked with and for a variety of print-related companies including Xerox, Oki and HP, where she was heavily involved with the development of Dscoop EMEA. She has worked in a global role with brands, agencies, programmes and training courses, particularly in sales and sales training, and is currently a non-executive strategy consultant for the BPIF.

The new trustees are Catherine Cook, a qualified solicitor admitted in England, Wales and Scotland with over 26 years’ experience advising on corporate real estate transactions, including a period with Clifford Chance; Sam Hay, who has worked in health and social care for 30 years, and currently head of social care for specialist charity Mental Health Matters; and Si Mathavan, currently a partner at Johnston Carmichael, leading on risk assurance and internal audit. He is also involved in ESG and chairs the risk advisory working group for the international firm.

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