Generations of print
Established in 1881 by Methodist lay preacher, William Bailey,
Baileys Printers has spanned five generations. The company is now
believed to be the oldest printers in Derbyshire, producing a wide range
of print and wide-format print products including print for
fairgrounds.
Chris Brandon is the current managing director of the company
having taken over the business in 1991. He is also the great, great
grandson of Bailey. Brandon explains how a preacher came to establish
what would go on to become a successful 140-year-old printing company.
“He was a Methodist lay preacher and started out printing hymn
sheets and service sheets. The demand grew and a hobby became a
business. He had a small hand-fed press and a few cases of type. His
sons William and Thomas were the next to run the business, followed by
Thomas’ children George, Fred, and Evelyn (my grandma), then Fred’s son
Gordon, and now me.”
Until the late 1970s, all staff members at Baileys were family
members. At its largest, the team was made up of 13 members of staff
around 20 years ago. Today, Baileys is made up of seven staff members.
Small beginnings
Bailey set up the business from a spare bedroom and in 1914 he
moved into a house in Somercotes, Derbyshire. “He built a shed at the
back. Then we built another one, and a factory behind that,” Brandon
explains.
The company remained here for over a century and this year, the
team made the decision to move into new premises due to difficulties
operating at the site and getting vehicles in and out of the premises.
“Our new site is around 2,500 square foot and is a purpose-built unit.
The old place, although it had more square feet, was a bit of a
labyrinth behind a house. Everyone said it was like the Tardis – much
bigger inside than it looks.”
As most people will well know, moving house is difficult enough,
let alone moving an entire business after 100 years, during a global
pandemic. “The old place was up for sale before the pandemic struck and
we were very close to getting a buyer. Had that have gone through we
would then have had a year to move, nice and easy, nice and steady. It
didn’t work like that.
After 100 years, Baileys moved into new premises
“The original buyer had to drop out because they couldn’t get the
funding and pretty much out of the blue, we managed to sell the place.
Then we looked for a new one and it took a while to find the right
location and size.”
Brandon adds: “It’s great if you want one that’s one million square
foot. You can find plenty of places. But for something small and in the
right place, we needed to get something right. By the time that
happened, the fair and other places started to open up, so we were busy.
Trying to operate normally and move factories was extremely difficult.”
For Brandon, the move is one of the biggest challenges the company
has had to face in recent times for logistical and sentimental reasons.
As you can imagine, after over 100 years we had lots of old treasures which I had to part with, which for me was tough”
“As you can imagine, after over 100 years we had lots of old treasures
which I had to part with, which for me was tough. Moving was the end of
an era, but also the start of a new one. We all love our new place, it’s
exciting and feels like a fresh start.”
Changing times
Print technology continues to develop every day, and this is
something that Baileys has had to keep up with over the decades.
Initially the business grew from hymn sheets to the more traditional
printed products such as letterheads, invoices, and compliment slips. As
demand changed, so did the options Baileys offered as it moved into
letterpress posters.
The company produced letterpress posters for boxing and wrestling
Brandon says: “When I started, we did an awful lot of posters for
British Rail, also for wrestling and boxing that was on TV, and a few
fairgrounds. As the demand for the other posters dropped, the wrestling
became a minority thing and British Rail used these new-fangled things
called large-format and inkjet.
“We were, at that stage, only letterpress printers with no litho or
anything when I started in 1978/79. So, we’ve tried to move with the
times and just improve what we do.”
To do this, the company started to offer screen-printing on the
posters and later went on to offer large-format printing. On the
commercial side, Baileys added litho and is now a digital printer.
One aspect of Baileys’ offering that is somewhat unusual compared
to other print companies in the market is its show print work for the
fairground industry. Explaining how this came about, Brandon says: “When
I took over the business in 1991, the wrestling and boxing posters had
started to decline. We were letterpress printers so were limited to what
you could do, so I looked at a market that still used an awful lot of
posters, which we were able to produce using a letterpress.
“We did already have a few funfair customers, but we went into it
in a big way through their trade newspaper and word of mouth which is
great in that industry. Once you’ve worked for one customer, it all
grows. It’s now more than 50% of what we do which is unusual but it’s a
fantastic area to work in.”
In terms of diversifying into the wide-format printed signage
sector, Baileys first invested in a Mimaki wide-format machine six years
ago. Its main customer base uses basic panels and signs which is
something Brandon says he is seeing grow. He also describes the Canon
Océ Colorado large-format printer which the company has had for a couple
of years, as “superb”.
Baileys has also added a laminator and applicator to improve
production and produces increasingly more advertising boards using
correx for events such as fairs. Over the years, the company has grown a
strong base of loyal repeat customers with some customers now the third
generation.
In terms of a typical day at Baileys, Brandon says there is no such
thing. He says: “We receive orders by phone, email, WhatsApp, text,
walk-ins, and occasionally by post. For most jobs, we produce the
artwork ourselves, proof, print, finish, and despatch which simplifies
it enormously, but we do turn jobs round quickly in typically two to
three days on most orders.
“I order materials, take orders and many other things but try to
stay out of production. The team here are experienced and know what to
do.”
Whilst the company has grown and evolved, the traditional posters
still have a special place in Brandon’s heart. He says: “I love posters,
some of the iconic letterpress boxing posters of the 80s take some
beating for me. But in style, quality and speed we produce the best ones
now.”
A lasting impression
With over 140 years of business comes over a century of hard work,
passion, and teamwork. For Brandon, this company is very much part of
his DNA. Reflecting on the lasting impression Baileys has made on the
team running the show and the loyal customers that have kept business
going, Brandon says: “Quite simply, we are very proud we have been going
140 years as a viable company. There cannot be many companies out there
that old, especially run by the same family. We have seen countless
good businesses go due to various reasons, often due to not modernising.
We have survived because we have kept up-to-date.
“I worked alongside my dad for 20 years, he started out at 14 and
finally retired in his 70s. We lost him before Christmas aged 93. He
would have loved to see us move on. He marvelled at the new technology
and was fascinated to see the large-format machine printing. I have
loved being at Baileys, it has never felt like work to me.”
Once retired, the family line will end with Brandon. Looking forward, he
adds: “My next project needs to be working on my golf handicap.”
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