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Gloucester company score top ten marks in DTI survey

Gloucester print specialists Alpha Colour Printers have been given a massive ‘thumbs up’ by the Department of Trade and Industry in a recent business performance benchmark carried out by BusinessLink Gloucestershire.

Alpha Colour Printers were measured against print firms with between 10-100 employees and an annual turnover of between £1-£10million – a group of about 80 companies in a tightly competitive field.

The Quedgeley-based firm received an excellent report, particularly in areas of financial management, customer care, people skills and came out top in the group for:

• Profitability
• New business growth
• Business support
• Product innovation
• Commitment to improve business processes
• Product lead times
• Adding value to end product

The company also figured in the top 20 for capital investment, lack of absenteeism, total turnover growth, sales expenditure and operating efficiency (ROTA).

Jeff Williams, the company MD, says, “This is a fantastic endorsement of Alpha Colour Printers, and highlights the quality of our work and the commitment of the whole team here. It’s a wonderful achievement that we can all be proud of.

“Although we are a well recognised company in the South West we are still very much a family-run business and I think this is reflected in the results of this survey.

Alex Moreton, business adviser for BusinessLink Gloucestershire, says, “It is great to see a local company come top in so many categories in such a difficult and competitive industry. This is really quite a rare achievement.”

Alpha Colour Printers has earned an excellent reputation in Gloucester and across the UK, winning them some huge clients, including regional and international blue chip companies and government organisations. They use Alpha to print greetings cards, brochures, leaflets, posters, and stationery, annual and financial reports.

Founded 26 years ago in the centre of Gloucester, the company has seen exceptional growth, settling into its current purpose-built Quedgeley site in 2001. The company recently invested £600,000 in a new 10,000-sq.ft distribution and storage facility, enabling Alpha to store over 3,200 pallets of printed materials.

“Our current site in Waterwells Business Park enables us to be more efficient than ever before - it’s important to keep up with technology, invest in high quality, purpose-built buildings and continually strive to improve and refine the operation,” says Jeff Williams. “We’re always looking to improve and we never rest on our laurels.”