SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA – Artisan Colour, founded by a trio of print professionals in 1998, is positioning itself for expansion with the recent addition of Director of Digital Printing Alan Ludington.
To complement Ludington’s hiring, Artisan Colour is also investing in key areas to provide specialty print solutions for mid-size companies to Fortune 500 organizations. The decision to add to the leadership team was, in part, due to the demand of the expanding business.
A native of Salt Lake City, Utah, Ludington has held leadership positions in professional printing operations throughout the West and Pacific Northwest. Most recently he led Premier Press in Portland, Oregon, as the Wide Format Manager. He brings more than 35 years of print industry experience to Artisan, specifically across large format, small format, and offset printing. Ludington possesses a legacy of print history; his father was also a printer.
“As owners, we take the responsibility for running Artisan very seriously,” said CEO Doug Bondon. “My partner, John Passante and I, believe the addition of Alan will enhance the company. We are excited to begin a new journey to grow the operation and success of our business, and more importantly, to continue to provide top notch printing services to our loyal customers.”
Artisan Colour is also pursuing HIPPA compliance. It is a rigorous process to become compliant and Artisan has done so (within the last year). Through Artisan’s association with hospitals and the health care industry, it became evident that this was a real opportunity.
Artisan Colour has also recognized a growing opportunity in the print-on-demand market for franchisee concepts. Franchise businesses require an efficient streamlined web-to-print ordering platform for multiple locations/people. Artisan is now creating custom portals/websites as a solution for franchisees who need ongoing print solutions.
On the e-commerce side of the business, rapid expansion of that division has driven the need to invest in dye-sublimation printing and a new Epson F-series printer. The F-series provides the sharpest and widest printing gamut for the sublimation to aluminum process creating stunning ChromaLuxe prints. Artisan Colour also plans to add a new Print MIS platform and recently purchased UV coating equipment from Tec Lighting.
Located in a 36,000-square-foot North Scottsdale building, Artisan Colour was founded by Doug Bondon, Joe Vallone, and John Passante. They represent more than 80 years of color separation and printing experience. The company employs more than 65 professionals who provide diversified printing services including design, photography, color management and digital printing from large to small.
Artisan Colour began as a catalog production company in 1998. For its first five years, it built a reputation as one of the top catalog production and color management companies in the nation, winning clients such as Neiman Marcus, Sundance Catalog and Patagonia. Artisan has since added other highly recognized brands including Pottery Barn, Johnston & Murphy, Filson and JOHNNY WAS.
In 2005 Artisan Colour moved to its current location near Westworld in North Scottsdale. The company absorbed a large format printing company, expanding into a state-of-the-art production facility. For more information, visit www.artisancolour.com.