Printing business finance for commercial, digital and label printers

Yes. Buying a competitor or a retiring owner's firm is a well used way for printers to add customers, work and equipment, and acquisition finance can fund part of the price, with the rest from the buyer's own funds, deferred payments to the seller or a loan secured on the target's assets. Lenders look at both sets of accounts, how much of the target's work comes from a few customers, whether those customers will stay after the sale, the age of the presses and the combined debt. Asset refinancing can release cash from paid off presses in either business towards the deal. We arrange acquisition finance for printers and can bring the property, equipment and working capital pieces together.

Can the seller's equipment finance be taken over by the buyer?

Sometimes. In a share purchase the company keeps its existing agreements, but they may contain change of control terms, so the finance company should be told and may need to consent. In an asset purchase the agreements stay with the seller, so the buyer either asks the finance company to transfer them, which needs its approval and fresh credit checks on the buyer, or the seller settles them from the sale price so the presses pass across clear. A buyer should check every press, folder and finishing line for outstanding finance before completion, and review click charge and service contracts in the same way.

• Customer concentration. A target that relies on one large customer is harder to fund than one with a broad base.
• Ownership. Confirm who owns each machine before agreeing the price, since some may be leased.
• Staff. In an asset purchase, employees move to the buyer under TUPE on their existing terms.
• Deferred price. Paying part of the price to the seller over time reduces the borrowing needed on day one.

GOV.UK explains business transfers, takeovers and TUPE. Our acquisition finance page covers buying a company, asset refinancing explains raising cash from owned equipment, and acquisition working capital covers the months after completion. Instant Quotes gives an early view of panel lenders for a print acquisition.

Yes. Moving to LED UV curing, water based inks or digital presses can cut drying time, energy use and the solvent a print works handles, and asset finance spreads the cost of a new press, an LED UV retrofit or new finishing kit over its working life. Lenders look at the order book the new press will serve, the trade in or sale value of the old one, the energy saving built into the forecast and the service contract. We source finance for presses and retrofits and can include installation and operator training in the agreement.

Does a printing business need an environmental permit?

It can. Printing is a Part B activity under local authority pollution control, so a print works that uses organic solvents above set yearly thresholds needs a permit, issued by the district or unitary council in England and Wales, by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency in Scotland, and by the district council or the Northern Ireland Environment Agency in Northern Ireland. Thresholds depend on the process, for example 15 tonnes of solvent a year for heatset web offset and 25 tonnes for publication rotogravure, and a printer below the threshold for its process does not need a permit for it. Cutting solvent use can bring a works under a threshold or ease the conditions on its permit.

• Energy figures. Supplier data on power use helps a lender see how savings support the repayments.
• Retrofits. Fitting LED UV lamps to an existing press can cost far less than a new machine and can be financed on its own.
• Permit changes. A works holding a permit should tell the council before changing its process.
• Old press. Selling or trading in the old machine can provide the deposit on the new one.

GOV.UK publishes the process guidance note for printing that councils use when issuing permits. Our asset finance page covers new presses, used equipment finance covers second hand machines, and asset refinancing explains raising cash on owned kit. Instant Quotes matches a printer to panel lenders for a press.

Print is capital heavy and margins are thin, so lenders look harder at affordability than in many trades. Much litho and short-run work has moved to digital, which changes the equipment calculation: a digital press costs less upfront but dates faster, and the running cost sits in a click charge per impression under a service contract with the manufacturer. Used litho presses from leading makers still have an export market, which supports their value as security, while older digital engines have very little resale. Paper prices can rise sharply and customers do not always accept increases quickly. Demand is seasonal for many printers, with peaks around Christmas, the academic year and, for some, elections, and quieter summers. The British Printing Industries Federation publishes research on trading conditions that lenders and printers both use.

• Over-borrowing. Base the amount on realistic volumes, not best-case forecasts, and allow for the months it takes to install a press and move work onto it.
• Idle capacity. A new press only pays for itself if there is enough work. Check volume commitments from customers first.
• Paper price swings. A sharp rise can squeeze margins and repayment capacity on fixed-price work.
• Customer concentration. Losing one large account can remove the work that justified the press.
• Missed payments. Financed equipment can be repossessed. If you foresee difficulty, speak to the lender early.

Alternatives to borrowing include grants for efficiency investment, which appear from time to time and can be searched through the GOV.UK finance and support finder, equity from an investor for a fast-growing business, and outsourcing specialist finishing until volumes justify buying. Companies buying new equipment may qualify for full expensing; ask your accountant how that compares across hire purchase and leasing.