Freestyle, which had been based in a nearby site for the past 16 years, is moving its equipment and 15 staff into Prestige’s 800sqm premises during May.

Freestyle director Bob Liddall said the idea of the two family-owned businesses sharing premises was first raised a couple of years ago – “when things were a bit more vibrant”.

Liddall and Prestige director Merv Walker (pictured)  restarted talks last Christmas in light of the GFC.

“When he approached me the last time, I went back to work and realised it was a no-brainer,” Liddall told ProPrint.

“[Prestige] hasn’t got a platesetter here, so they have to send that work out and they have a couple of things here that I want to use. Prestige don’t have a digital press.

“We will share the costs on cleaning, security and delivery etc. I’m pretty impressed with the security Prestige has here. Some of our clients need that,” added Liddall.

“I believe that by putting both of the companies in this situation, we will both become stronger. I’ve been in the printing trade since I was 16 years old. Now in my 60s, this has really given me a lift.”

Walker said the downturn and a loss of work had forced Prestige, which was established in 1965, to reduce staff and equipment.

“At one stage we got up to 14 staff, but now we are down to the level of seven,” said Walker.

“Every now and then, say in the bindery, we need another person to come in and help, so we can pinch one of theirs.

“We had two Speedmasters out there and we sold one because our capacity dropped off. Every now and then you just need that other machine,” added Walker.

“Basically there are going to be two teams out there working together. I think it will lift our game, because we will be watching and learning from them, and hopefully they will learn from us.

“The other beauty is that some of the suppliers are going to offer us better deals, so we will have stronger buying power.”

Walker added that cohabitation had enabled a change in operating hours.

“We used to be six days a week, 12 hours a day. Now we’ve gone back to a 40-hour week over five days. The beauty is Bob’s company does two shifts, so if sometimes we need a bit of extra time, the job will just overflow to Bob or we can possibly hire his apprentice for the evening. We will now actually be able to have a day off,” added Walker.

The companies said their customer bases did not overlap. Prestige produces A2 work, brochure and posters, while Freestyle’s range including business cards through to annual reports.

Liddall said the move would cost Freestyle NZ$50,000 ($40,500), but was confident it would boost profitability in the long term.

He nodded to a saving of NZ$30,000 thanks to the floor slab being in place at Prestige from the Speedmaster it removed.

Liddall added that being able to use Prestige’s kit during the move would cover the 10 or so days that Freestyle’s main press will be out of action.

The companies have not ruled out the possibility of a full merger in time, however, both said they would let things bed in and see how it develops.

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