New Direction Partners

As the former president of a Printing Industries of America regional affiliate, I had the good fortune to work with many smart and successful owners of thriving printing businesses. I had the greatest respect for their abilities, but then as now, there is one thing that I would never have recommended that they attempt: selling their companies without professional representation and advisement.

If, as the owner of a printing company, you suddenly decided to stop showing up for work, could the business carry on without you?

If, as the owner of a printing company, you suddenly decided to stop showing up for work, could the business carry on without you? It’s a serious question, and the answer speaks volumes about how well prepared you will be for the decision that every owner eventually has to make.

Do you, as the owner of a printing business, have a plan for no longer being the owner of that business? If it’s a question that you have put off dealing with, you have company. Sixty-nine percent of those who attended our recent webinar on succession planning told us that they hadn’t yet taken their first steps toward what we like to call “the walk on the beach:” the point where owners put ownership behind them and move on to whatever life holds in store for them next.

Do you, as the owner of a printing business, have a plan for no longer being the owner of that business?

Congratulations — having carefully planned and executed the acquisition of a printing company to complement the one you already own, you’re finally prepared to sit down with the seller to close the deal. Naturally, you’re feeling good about what you’ve accomplished and what the future holds for the merged entity that your effort has created. This is the point at which we always urge our buying clients to pause.

You've finally made it to the point in an acquisition where you can sit down with the seller and close the deal. This is the point at which we always urge our buying clients to pause, take a breath, and circle back to the essentials of the transaction.

In diplomacy, the motto for negotiators and peacemakers is “Trust, but verify.” The advice applies to M&A transactions between printing companies as well. Get the facts, confirm the understandings and be open about everything that the process discloses.

Negotiation is the most critical step in our six-stage journey toward a deal — the phase in which the transaction either comes together as the negotiators want it to or falls apart because their efforts have worn them out.

Negotiation is the most critical step in our six-stage journey toward a deal — the phase in which the transaction either comes together as the negotiators want it to or falls apart because their efforts have worn them out.

"I may not know everything, but I know what I like." We base many personal decisions on this bit of homespun wisdom, and more often than not, it leads us to the right choice.

"I may not know everything, but I know what I like." We base many personal decisions on this bit of homespun wisdom, and more often than not, it leads us to the right choice. It’s also not a bad starting point for a preliminary review of printing companies identified as candidates for acquisition.

As businesspeople, we always try to base our decisions on facts, numbers and logic. But, as ordinary humans, we also operate on emotion and instinct. In the year we’ve just entered, we should have plenty of opportunity to display both kinds of behavior.

Identifying a target for an M&A transaction is a mostly straightforward exercise. Buyers pick companies to acquire by first defining what they want the acquisition to accomplish. For sellers, finding appropriate buyers can be a bit more open-ended — but still achievable with the help of sound professional advice.

Identifying a target for an M&A transaction is a mostly straightforward exercise. Buyers pick companies to acquire by first defining what they want the acquisition to accomplish. For sellers, finding appropriate buyers can be a bit more open-ended — but still achievable with the help of sound professional advice

The tenor of M&A activity in our industry reflects the upbeat general mood. A good indicator not only of how the industry feels about itself, but also of how it is perceived by outsiders, is the continued participation of private equity investors as buyers of printing and packaging companies.

Whether a private equity investment, a strategic merger or acquisition, or even a tuck-in deal just to acquire a printer’s book of business, merger and acquisition activity in the graphic arts industry remains strong for both sellers and buyers.

Probably no subject gets more attention from business writers and management gurus than strategy. That’s not surprising. Without a coherent set of objectives — a precisely defined goal to work towards — everything else is just going through the motions without actually getting anywhere.

Probably no subject gets more attention from business writers and management gurus than strategy. That’s not surprising. Without a coherent set of objectives — a precisely defined goal to work towards — everything else is just going through the motions without actually getting anywhere.

The fast pace of transactions in 2016 tells us that the market is sound and many that are looking for opportunities to buy or sell have had little difficulty in locating them.