Stockport-based Vista Labels, one of the UK’s top independent users of narrow web flexo technology, is celebrating 50 years in business and reflecting on a longstanding cooperative partnership with US press manufacturer Mark Andy.

Established back in 1974 at the Royal Oak Mills in Stockport by its late chairman Don Grice, Vista Labels, which is still family-owned and managed, has grown into one of the UK’s most expert converters of high-quality labels and packaging. Central to the company’s success and a fundamental business ethic at Vista is its capacity to build and develop long-term relationships, both with its extensive portfolio of  brand customers and the technology suppliers on which its production capability is based.

“This was and remains a strongpoint from my Father’s time and my late brother, Tim, who took over as managing director in 2004,” says Rachel Clarke, who is company secretary and director.

Sadly, neither Don nor Tim lived to celebrate the 50 th anniversary, but their legacy is the firm foundation on which the current management team of Rachel, production director Stuart Mellish, production manager Mark Allman, and finance manager Pete Cash, is aiming to take the company into the next decade and build on its success with a raft of innovative ideas and products.

Vista’s relationship with Mark Andy dates back to the company’s beginning with the American manufacturer’s then current 2200 and 4150 flexo presses. Both 10” eight-color models described as “great workhorses,” Vista developed its business from blank labels into those with added value by including reverse-side printing, delam/relam and cold foil, among other finishing options, which with the Mark Andy’s broad range of substrate capabilities tapped into a rich seam of new business.

Major expansion followed in 2013 with an additional 50% of production floorspace, a new warehouse, and the installation of one of Mark Andy’s Performance Series P5 flexo lines, which proved to be a revelation in terms of make-ready times and waste reduction. Described at the time as “at least as productive as one and a half conventional presses and maybe more,” the Performance Series P5, also a 10” eight-color press with full UV, was intended to handle the high volume of short-run work that typifies Vista’s portfolio but turned into a highly profitable asset on any job with any substrate.

Mellish sums up his impressions of the Performance Series P5, “It’s a real operator’s press that makes difficult jobs easy to run. The servo drive reduces downtime and the chill drums and motorized laminating unit give us added flexibility in the marketplace.”

Most of all, the Performance Series P5 allowed Vista to build on its ethos of continual improvement and bring a new level of flexo quality to its label customers. In 2015, the company installed another eight-color 10” Performance Series P3, and then fast forward to 2023 for the next Mark Andy installation and a break with tradition at Vista. The newest Performance Series P3 has a 13” web width and is described by Mellish as “our latest fantastic workhorse.”

“It has allowed us to adapt our production capability to the changes in market demand that are a reflection of today’s consumer buying habits. One thing you need to be these days is agile, and our investment strategy has always been based on this principle,” he states.

Vista’s investment over recent years includes £1 million in digital inkjet and toner print capabilities, as well as complementary digital finishing lines, enabling Vista to competitively offer small to medium print runs. A massive investment in upgrading the company’s MIS capabilities has also taken place, which will allow improved production planning and job quotations, along with a greater degree of performance analysis. “We see this as part of our commitment to quality, like the PS 9000 and ISO 9001 we already hold, and ISO 14001 that we expect to attain later this year – internationally acknowledged standards that verify the ongoing effort and investment we are committed to,” explains Rachel, alluding to the recent funds allocated to new hardware in the company’s well-equipped studio.

Those who know the company appreciate the high level of teamwork that continues to yield rewards for Vista and appreciate the continuity that a stable and experienced workforce brings. “We see adding more automation down the line to build a bigger market share from our existing customer base. It will also allow us to develop exciting new products of a bespoke nature that we will be launching soon, and which we believe will captivate a new sector of the market – so watch this space,” she concludes.

Fifty years on from Don Grice’s vision and son Tim’s development, Vista Labels remains a dynamic force in the UK label market and has invested wisely to allow its continued growth into the next decade and beyond – and it’s all been based on building relationships, none better than that with Mark Andy, which has installed more than 10 flexo presses over the years at the Stockport company. “It’s not just the machines, it’s the advice, support, and friendship with Mark Andy that we value, and we look forward to continuing a close working partnership with them as we grow the business further,” says Mellish.