Four fab years for Essential Print Services’ Print Angels, Derby.
Left to Right; Print Angel – Laura Etheridge, Artwork Angel – Kat Towler, Print Evangelist & Owner – Yvonne Gorman, The Printcess – Rebekah Lord.
Pride Park-based business Essential Print Services is celebrating its fourth birthday this month – by continuing to grow from strength to strength.
The brainchild of “print evangelist” Yvonne Gorman, Essential Print Services already boasts an impressive business record for so young a company, with a staff of four plus 25% client growth and 33% sales growth in its short life.
Not only that, but Yvonne herself is already a renowned business figurehead with an appearance on ITV Central News, a visit to Downing Street and a recent national appointment as Small Business Saturday Champion to her name.
It’s been a roller-coaster ride for the past four years, but, according to Yvonne, she wouldn’t have it any other way.
Yvonne says: “I can’t believe the business is four years old already, although I do feel we’ve achieved a lot in a relatively short amount of time.
“I have represented Derby’s SME (Small to Medium Enterprise) business community at No 10, my business has grown by more than a third, we’ve moved into larger offices and I’ve been honoured to be invited to participate in prestigious events, such as being a part of a panel for Marketing Derby.
“I was recently chosen as one of only four local business experts to talk about the current pre-election economy on ITV Central News, which was a great honour.
“The Essential Team’s hard work is really paying off. People keep telling me that print is dead, but I’ve seen no evidence of this – we just keep continuing to grow and I can’t see it stopping anytime soon.”
Yvonne counts one of her biggest successes in the past year of trading as the appointment of her fourth “print angel”: Kat Towler. Since the beginning of this year Kat has been part of Essential Print’s Studio Team, responsible for checking the hundreds of client files a month to ensure the best possible end, for which the company is becoming renowned.
Yvonne also continues to work hard in her role as part of the Small Business Saturday campaign, for which she was recently appointed one of only 20 “champions” in the country.
The campaign aims to put the spotlight on the UK’s 5.2 million small businesses by getting consumers to “think small”, and part of Yvonne’s remit is to promote this year’s campaign event on December 5. Yvonne was a member of the first Small Business Saturday 100 in 2013.
Her business ethos isn’t just about financial growth: she is also a driving force behind several not-for-profit business groups in Derbyshire, including Derby Hub and the Hallmark Group, as well as being a trustee of the Maria Hanson Foundation (formerly Me & Dee), which supports children and adults with life-limiting illnesses.
She says: “I feel both privileged and proud to have created a sustainable business that not only employs local people but that supports many other East Midlands firms, as well as my local community.
“I’m also thrilled to be able to prove that, despite setting up in the middle of a recession and with the strong digital competition that the print industry now faces, printers can thrive and that Essential Print Services is one of them.”
