Robert Wendt and Greg Mierow, owners of Brookfield-based Heritage Printing, will purchase Graphics Factory Inc., a Waukesha-based specialty printer on May 30. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
The two companies will be combined when the purchase is finalized. Graphics Factory’s facility at 1918 MacArthur Road, Waukesha, will be closed, and the company’s operations will be folded into Heritage Printing’s operations at 3575 N. 124th St. in Brookfield, Wendt said. Almost all of Graphics Factory’s 22 employees will work for Heritage. "We’ll take some space and renovate it for our staff," Wendt said. "We’ll also re-lay (the floor plan) out for some of their new equipment."
Heritage Printing has 32 employees and had $4.5 million in revenues for 2007, Wendt said. With the acquisition, Heritage will have 52 employees and almost $8 million in revenues. "This is a big leap for us – it almost doubles our size," Wendt said. "A lot of businesses are concerned about the softening in the economy, and we feel like we can take advantage of that. This (economy) will expose other printing businesses that aren’t run as efficiently. And that will help us grow. We’ll take advantage of other acquisitions or expand our employment base."
Wendt and Mierow purchased Heritage Printing in January 2007, and the acquisition helps them meet some of their growth goals for the company. "We’re strategically committed to growing in both our geographic (footprint) and production capabilities," Wendt said. "Heritage has (historically) been mostly a short run commercial printing company with some innovations in technology services. Graphics Factory has primarily been in medium run commercial printing, and they have six-color press capabilities that we don’t have. This gives us a more robust product offering for our clients."
Wendt and Mierow did not use an investment banker or attorney to negotiate the purchase, instead talking directly with Mike Wilson and Todd Klug, owners of Graphics Factory. After the purchase, Wilson and Klug will be employees of Heritage Printing, working in business development and operations, respectively. "All of the key sales and production people come with the deal," Wendt said. "We’re picking up people with 20-plus years experience." For more information, visit www.clickheritage.com.
