Sterling Colours hires Jeff Hulston as part of expansion plans

Sterling Colours, based in Knowsley, Merseyside, UK, manufactures flexographic and photogravure, solvent, water-based and UV inks used in an array of packaging. The company counts leading confectionery, consumer goods and tobacco brands amongst its worldwide customer base.

The company also makes a range of invisible security inks and has recently secured a contract for inks to be used to prevent counterfeit of high value goods.

Sterling Colours was founded by managing director Paul Boulger in 1988. The company has a current turnover of 3.6 million and employs 28 staff. Boulger said: ‘We have grown steadily over the years but now have some exciting opportunities to significantly expand the business. We have taken on an extra 8,000 square feet of warehousing and production space and installed new state-of-the-art machinery which will increase production capacity by more than 50 percent.’

‘We have raised a funding package of 240k to make this happen and as part of this we are also pleased to announce the arrival of Jeff Hulston as business director after taking equity in the business,’ Boulger continued. 

Hulston was founder of Tri-Colour Printing Inks and later joined Gibbon and subsequently Sun Chemical. He brings with him 25 years experience in printing inks and a total of 32 years in the printing trade. He founded Tri-Colour in 1991 and sold to Gibbon Inks and Coatings in 1996, a year later becoming a director of Gibbon Inks and Coatings Ltd. He eventually became MD of the liquid inks and narrow web division of Sun Chemical Gibbon when it was purchased by Sun Chemical.

Sterling Colours expects its turnover to reach 5 million over the next two years and will take on around eight new staff in the same period.