Under the agreement O.R.G becomes Impress's strategic partner in the Chinese market, and will commercialise the company's range of “value-added” products via its national salesforce. The agreement also provides for the future establishment of a joint venture between Impress and O.R.G to produce packaging in China; notably 2-piece printed steel and aluminium cans.
O.R.G, whose annual turnover is around 800m RMB (€76.5m), has six factories covering all the major filling areas in China, from Beijing in the North to Hainan Island in the extreme south.
“This is a major strategic opportunity for both companies,” says Francis Labbé, Impress ceo. “As the Chinese market for convenient, high quality packaging grows, the consumer will increasingly turn to value-added products, such as printed two-piece cans and Easy Peel ends, which are Impress' particular strength. We are very pleased to have joined forces to exploit this growth opportunity with O.R.G, which has established a strong reputation for quality and service with its customers, and demonstrated a professional and dynamic approach to the market which is close to our own.”
Headquartered in Deventer in the Netherlands, Impress has pro forma worldwide sales of approximately US$1.6bn and employs 7,800 in 51 facilities in Europe, North America, Japan and the Seychelles.
