Blackford Capital Announces Aaron Day as CEO and John Ruther as CFO of Dickinson

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Sept. 26, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Blackford Capital is excited to announce Aaron Day as Chief Executive Officer of Dickinson and its parent company, "Printing Consolidation Company" (PCC). Dickinson is the first company within PCC, specializing in the religious book printing services industry.

After acquiring Dickinson in 2015, Blackford Capital realized it would need an industry seasoned CEO to run the company and continue its acquisitions efforts. "With the addition of Aaron Day as CEO of Dickinson and PCC, we are poised to recruit industry leading talent and complete acquisitions in our core Book Printing segment," said Stephen Parker, Chairman of Dickinson. "We are pursuing companies with a focus in the book industry and with Aaron's leadership background over the past 25 years, we now have the experience to accelerate our M&A growth strategy," said James Cook, Associate at Blackford Capital.

Before joining the company, Day served as CEO of Trend Offset Printing, a commercial printing company, headquartered in Los Alamitos, California. After securing Aaron Day as CEO, Blackford Capital hired John Ruther as Chief Financial Officer. Ruther joins after leading The Ruther Group, an international management consulting firm based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Ruther brings decades of experience leading large manufacturing companies in a financial and operational capacity. 

"We have all been impressed with John's leadership thus far and are confident that he is the ideal fit for this position," said Chairman Steve Parker. "Aaron and John will elevate Dickinson as the company enters its next chapter and we are excited to see their passion as the new leadership team of Dickinson and PCC."

Blackford Capital, a national private equity firm based in Grand Rapids, Michigan invested in Dickinson in August of 2015, the fifth investment in the firm's Michigan Prosperity Fund. The fund is focused on investing in lower middle-market businesses in Michigan.

"Aaron has spent decades as a leader and innovator in the printing industry, leading and growing businesses, while increasing profitability. His impressive track record is bringing a wave of development and progress to Dickinson," said Martin Stein, Blackford Capital's Founder and Managing Director. "We are excited to welcome Aaron, and know that he is the right person to lead this great company."

Further Background Information

Prior to leading Trend Offset Printing, Day held major roles as Vice President of Sales at Creel Printing LLC and Director of Technology at Creo Products Inc. revitalizing both companies through technological improvements and sales development. While at Creel Printing, Day reorganized underperforming groups, focusing on innovation and key markets. As the Director of Technology at Creo Products, Day targeted the development of disruptive technologies, leading to its acquisition by Kodak. Day holds Bachelor Degrees in International Relations and Political Science from Wake Forest University.

Before forming The Ruther Group, John Ruther held positions including Director of Finance for Motus Integrated Technologies, a portfolio company of Atlas Holdings, leading ERP transitions and consolidations between international locations. Ruther developed his skill set through his tenure at Univar USA (formerly CHEMCENTRAL Corp.) as he guided strategic planning in a multitude of roles, culminating in his position as CIO, prior to the company's acquisition by Univar in 2007. Ruther holds an MBA from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a Bachelor Degree in Business Administration from Central Michigan University.

About Dickinson

Founded in 1884, Dickinson is a leading full-service book manufacturer and printing service provider offering a variety of capabilities including sheet-fed lithographic printing, heat-set web lithographic printing, digital printing, and services such as warehouse and fulfillment services, and perfect binding. The company produces various books and printed materials such as Bibles, dictionaries, reference books, children's books, and a variety of other printed literature for the religious, business, education, and other end markets. For more information, visit www.dickinsonpress.com.

About Blackford Capital

Blackford Capital is a private equity firm based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, that acquires, manages and builds family-owned, lower middle-market manufacturing, distribution, and service companies. Founded by Martin Stein, the 2016 M&A Advisor Private Equity Professional of the Year, Blackford currently has 11 portfolio companies located across the United States and has been recognized with numerous awards, including the M&A Advisor Deal of the Year in 2015 and as one of America's fastest growing private companies by Inc. 5000 in 2016 and 2017. For more information, visit www.blackfordcapital.com.

Contact:
Eric Kamstra
Blackford Capital
616.233.3160
[email protected]

SOURCE Blackford Capital

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