Reflecting on the journey so far
It’s hard to believe that it’s seven years since Bluepoint Tags first rolled up its shutters and began trading. This week we welcomed our 500th new customer! How on earth did we get here?
Well, life’s road forks many times and the journey which seemed to have begun in 2017 in fact started many years before. Iain Pringle was a slim, fresh-faced 23 year old with a mullet haircut when he opened the door to an industrial unit in Totnes on a dark evening in February 1991. In the doorway stood Andrew Dean, a 6’5” hunk, trying to start a manufacturing business making horticultural labels.
The company, soon to become Longcombe Labels, had started as Longcombe Gardens Software in 1985 when Andrew had seen his wife (the owner of a small nursery called Longcombe Gardens) handwriting labels. He knew something about computers and so the business began. Iain, with a blend of fear, suspicion and the knowledge that his current salary was barely meeting his mortgage commitments, joined the new company. Rob Burton joined some three years later and over the next twenty years, he and Iain were responsible for growing the tiny company into a dominant position as the UK’s leading specialist tag manufacturer.
Iain and Rob met every technical challenge in that period, bringing their growing expertise into food manufacture, the steel and construction industries, leisure and travel. By the time Longcombe labels was sold to a conglomerate in 2013, the duo had become the General Manager and Production Manager.
After years working at the forefront of continual growth and development, it wasn’t easy adjusting to being a smaller part of a larger organisation. Sure enough, it wasn’t long before the pair had moved on, and soon after, plans for Bluepoint Tags & Labels took shape.
The long-established success of Longcombe Labels was built on the solid foundation of high quality products and first class customer service. It’s these same values that Rob and Iain have used to build Bluepoint Tags, maintaining that passion for quality and service every day they come to work. They know that product labelling is at the hassle end of any business: the product must work, be durable and be delivered to schedule. 30 plus years of experience and 500 customers seem to make a good fit.
Bluepoint’s catalogue of products includes label printers and consumables together with servicing contracts. With a nod to our long history we also provide label printing software and support. We want to provide our customers with a comprehensive and convenient service.
The story of growth continues. Later this summer we're installing some major new machinery, significantly increasing our production capacity. More product, produced more quickly and more economically.
For our 500 customers, thanks for coming with us on the journey so far! There have been many forks in the road but only one destination: tough labels for tough conditions made by a happy workforce for satisfied customers. If you haven’t met us yet, try us out, you won’t be disappointed!
If you'd like to learn more, see some samples or get a quote, please contact James on 01392 927 030 or james@bluepointags.co.uk
