The CJK Group has moved ahead with the purchase of the assets of Dexter, Mich.-based printer Thomson-Shore. The asset acquisition follows the March 25 bankruptcy filing of Thomson-Shore.
At the time of the bankruptcy filing, CJK provided debtor-in-possession financing to allow Thomson-Shore to continue to operate while the company arranged to sell its assets. By providing DIP financing, CJK had the inside track on buying the assets and, according to a press release from the company, when no other bidders for Thomson came forward, the bankruptcy court approved CJK’s purchase. No purchase price was disclosed, but CJK had made a $8.2 million deposit to be the Stalking Horse Bidder in any Thomson asset sale.
With the purchase completed, most of Thomson-Shore’s operations and equipment will be transferred to CJK’s Sheridan Books facility in Chelsea, Mich. CJK bought Sheridan in July 2017 and had been expanding the Chelsea facility; originally slated for warehouse and storage, the Chelsea expansion is being converted to accommodate production operations, CJK said, and ultimately Thomson’s Dexter site will operate as a satellite warehouse for the Chelsea facility. The balance of equipment not relocating to Chelsea will move to Sheridan’s Grand Rapids, Mich., location or to CJK Group’s Bang Printing facility in Brainerd, Minn.
Thomson had about 180 employees at the time of the bankruptcy filing and a CJK spokesperson said about 100 employees had been offered positions with CJK, with the “vast majority” agreeing to join CJK. “The addition of the Thomson-Shore equipment and the experienced employees to run it will help create capacity within our organization, and ultimately put the companies of CJK Group in a better position to help book publishers produce quality materials in a timely manner,” CJK CEO Chris Kurtzman said in a statement.
The Thomson-Shore purchase is the latest in a long-string of acquisitions made by CJK. In addition to buying the Sheridan Group, other recent purchases include Dickson Press, Kingsport Book, and Webcrafters.
