Catapult: built on a culture that is focused on the customer not the bottom line…

Pioneering a new way of working with a focus on setting new standards, print specialist Catapult emerges from stealth mode today. Set to disrupt the print and packaging industry, Catapult is bringing a groundbreaking under-one-roof solution to the market that combines a seamless end-to-end service, with unrivalled production capabilities.

With a 25-year heritage in design and print. The Catapult team are bringing their expertise to pioneer a completely new way of working, setting new standards around quality, lead times, price, service and innovation.

Specialising in three specific areas: self-adhesive, narrow web film and linerless labelling, Catapult has been launched with the customer at the forefront. Overhauling the habits of past generations, to eradicate the pain points felt by retailers, brand guardians and manufacturers across the US.

The company is led by a proven serial entrepreneur and pioneer in the sector. From his early career as a professional footballer to his recent successes as a partner in a $37 million international packaging design agency, founder and CEO Mark Cook has always been goaloriented, focused, dynamic and creative.

His determination to get the job done and do it to the highest possible standards dates back to the injury that brought his professional footballing career to an end when he was just 21, setting him on a journey towards a high achieving businesscareer in the process.

Working 16-hour days and seven-day weeks to progress rapidly through the ranks with his label printing employer in the UK, he learned about the industry from the print floor up. From initially packing boxes to mastering a wide range of machinery, Mark moved into sales. His hard work paid off, enabling him to secure a director and shareholder role at Paragon Print and Packaging, which he helped grow from a $2.5 million to a $240 million turnover business.

Mark was also instrumental in the rapid growth of Equator, a packaging design agency that spans the US, UK and European markets, increasing sales from $5m to $35m in just four years. As Group Sales Director and a partner in the business he was instrumental in the company’s global expansion, ensuring Equator’s business model and proven processes were applied consistently across all sites and bringing in major food and retail brand customers in the US and the UK, including Walmart, Sam’s Club, Save-Mart, SEG and Kraft.

After helping Equator towards a successful acquisition deal that saw the company become part of the £1.5 billion SGK global marketing group in 2017, Mark decided it was time to invest in his next challenge. The result is Catapult, a creatively inspired printing business that redefines a new print sector model for the US.

He comments: “We have a vision to create a unique, customer-focused business that will force change across the US print industry. Our team are aligned with this vision and will go out of their way to understand and deliver on our clients’ needs. We understand the pace of the FMCG market, as well as its specific demands. It’s called ‘fast-moving’ for a reason, and so as a business, our service has to be equally agile and responsive to match the requirements of our customers.”

Leading edge technology is at the heart of the offer, setting Catapult even further apart from its competitors. The business has invested in a host of technologies including Esko’s XPS Crystal CDI, Hamillroad Software’s Bellissima Digitally Modulated Screening (DMS) as well as the most advanced photopolymer plate technology from MacDermid. Two of the latest FA Nilpeter presses, as well as patented GTT anilox from Apex are also housed in the 56,000 sq foot Florida site. The combination of these state-of-the-art technologies will ensure a transformative solution, currently unmatched by the wider industry.

“Our commitment to innovation runs throughout our entire product offering, something that sets us apart from the competition,” Mark continues. “Our family of technologies has been invested in with the customer in mind, to drive efficiencies and enable us to deliver at higher speed and lower cost than other vendors without ever compromising on quality.”

Things are changing in the US retail food space. Amazon’sentry to the sector along with the explosion of the private-brand model has made it a very competitive marketplace. Online shopping has forced a step change in the bricks and mortar offer, forcing a rethink by the industry in terms of driving footfall to stores. Catapult can offer retailers, brands and manufacturers a print solution that allows them to best showcase their own-label products on the shelf. It’s a vision that’s anchored in our experience of the US and UK design and print industries and is focused on leveraging that understanding to answer our clients’ needs with a creative printing business unlike anything the US market has seen before.”

Catapult launches today. To learn more and to register your interest, please visit: www.wearecatapultprint.com.