Armor strengthens its position on the printing consumables market with the acquisition of Wecare4.

The Armor Group has signed an agreement for the acquisition of the Company Wecare4, a European leader in the collection, manufacture and sales of "remanufactured" inkjet cartridges.

Following the announcement on February 4th of a strong recovery in results for its new-generation compatible laser and inkjet cartridge business, Armor continues its process of growth and innovation dynamic and confirms its commitment to transforming its Armor Office Printing activity into a pillar of the Group’s profitability. This very significant investment will position Armor as one of the leading European manufacturers for new-generation (formerly called "compatible") inkjet cartridges.  

Wecare4 headquarters is near Breda in the Netherlands. Its manufacturing unit is located in Moravský Písek in the Czech Republic. The company was created in 1993 and employs almost 200 staff.  Its activity as a remanufactured inkjet cartridge producer is complementary with Armor’s. Armor thus becomes European leader on the three main product ranges for new generation cartridges (laser, new-built inkjet, "remanufactured" inkjet). Wecare’s strong brand presence in Northern Europe opens up new opportunities for Armor, notably in the Netherlands where Wecare4 products will continue to be promoted under the Wecare brand.

"Wecare4’s acquisition strengthens Armor’s commitment in sustainable development. We become one of the very rare players possessing mastery of the industrial process for all three key ranges of the new generation consumables market: laser, new-built inkjet and remanufactured inkjet. Armor will thus offer its customers a complete in-house manufactured range, ensuring both a high quality process and total product traceability”, explains Hubert de Boisredon, Armor Group CEO.  
For Frank van Meenen, current CEO at Wecare4, “Merging the Wecare4 and Armor Office Printing businesses will create the only complete platform in Europe to provide the whole range of new generation printing consumables to customers from one single source.”
This new activity will be managed by Pierre-Yves Léger, Managing Director for Armor Office Printing activity, who will be able to rely on Frank van Meenen's expert support.

A acquisition which meets the requirements of both Armor and Wecare4
Sustainable development is at the heart of Armor's overall strategy, and is built in to the very nature of the Wecare4 activity - which consists of recycling empty cartridges into brand new remanufactured cartridges. In addition, the teams and management at both companies share the values of humanism, innovation, commitment and customer service – which includes meticulous quality control.  
All jobs linked with this acquisition will be kept both at Wecare4 and Armor.
After including the growth synergies resulting from the Wecare4 acquisition, Armor Group forecasts turnover of €170M in 2010 - €70M of which will be generated by the Office Printing, thus pursuing its growth and profitability targets.

May 2010 : "We care 4"