Is it real? Image Specialists is sold

[mikling]

I'd like to know where you heard that from because their labs are in Boca Raton...as well as their manufacturing of IS inks. My samples to and from them come from Boca Raton and so do all their inks that I receive from them multiple times since the acquisition. Logistically, if you look at where Boca Raton is located, then you'd see it is terrible if your goods are coming from Mexico to move into Florida and then reship to North America.. So I think that Blarney might just be that it is just that actually. Well I know it is blarney. Inks made the previous day are shipped from Florida to me the following day. You could not do that from Mexico.

Now some of their staff speaks Spanish and if you're an exporter of any type to South America, you'll need to have staff that speaks spanish. Lots of the population in Miami are bilingual in English and Spanish and chances are probably a very large population in Florida speaks spanish fluently. South America is a huge growing market for goods and the fact that STS targets their exports there is in fact a good sign that the owner is on the ball and the company will be around for some time.

 

[mikling]

At least two things are important to consider:

1) Why did STS acquire IS?

2) If IS does not financially perform over time then it will be sold off or disappear as a distinct entity.

All the answers to those questions can only be answered by the principals of STS. Any answer that is proffered by anyone else will be just speculation. When you amalgamate facilities and staff, the divestiture of it is difficult.

The desktop ink market is not a growing one...it is mature and in the sunset years. In that phase consolidations, acquisitions and mergers etc. will occur as it has. In the end, there will only be a handful of players left. As the one of the famous executives in GE said once, either you're number one or number two or you're not going to exist or cannot afford to exist. In that phase typically, the first two will have 80% or more market share and the other players will share the remaining market.

Networking, Social media as well as mobile devices are finally having an effect on the paperless office that had been predicted decades ago. It is finally happening.

 

[stratman]

All the answers to those questions can only be answered by the principals of STS. Any answer that is proffered by anyone else will be just speculation.

Did not expect an answer to point #1 here, however, the balance of your post aligns speculatively with my point #2.

 

[websnail]

Just to be clear I'm only posting for myself and basing this solely on direct discussions with Image Specialists.

There's a few reasons why I chose to respond to this thread.

1. This is not simply a case of Image Specialists moving to a new location. They've been subsumed into a wide format focused supplier which does beg questions as to the long term viability and availability of desktop inks, particularly the dyes. Specific assurances have been sought but there's no guarantees in any business and indeed the market is shrinking so all bets are off.


2. STS have considerable R&D resources that dwarf those of what was Image Specialists so, it's possible that new and/or improved inks will be available, that have some relevance to the printers discussed in this forum. Of course that harps back to point 1. as to whether that will be by accident or perceived value in the desktop market.


3. There have been some substantial changes in terms of product lines/availability. Specifically, Epson pigment inks have now been replaced with the STS lines developed for the wide format market. This makes sense from a financial/production point of view as the STS inks are alleged to be a better product which makes sense given their R&D resources but manufacturing dual lines that compete wasn't particularly logical.

Aside from the obvious substitution of a different ink formulation this is worthy of end-user notice as the STS inks are specific formulations for each series/type of printer. Image Specialists approach turned out to be more generalist with some inks being used across a breadth of systems. To use the WJ7031 Yellow, provided in Durabrite, Durabrite Ultra, and other compatible inksets. STS have reportedly tailored inksets to each series/type so whereas the R2400 and D88 were originally spec'd to use the same Yellow, they now they have distinct ink blends. Doubtless most, if not all, will withhold judgement on such promises until some proper results and comparisons are in, but that's the information received today as being policy "now and going forward".

This leaves the retailer deciding whether to continue with a one-size fits all options (which is available) or adopt the specific blends. For the end-user it opens up the possibility of fresh testing to see if these new inks resolve "features" that were previously a problem or a quirk, or introduces new ones (eg: complete reworking of profiles, etc..). More importantly it means that the end-user needs to know what they're getting. After all, it's easy to brand an ink as "OctoFlapJocks Supreme Yellow the third" and carp on about extensive testing while quietly providing a generic blend. Who bar @pharmacist would be any the wiser?...


So, personally I think it's more than relevant that end-users know about the changes, and consider what ramifications they have. This is especially true of this forum, because of the level of technical knowledge, interest and engagement this community continually invest and share in printers and inks.

With that I'll clear out as I still have things to sort, but I'll certainly continue to feedback on any developments and update as appropriate. For now at least OctoInkjet will continue to supply Image Specialists inks as we have in the past and adjust listings, stock, etc.. as appropriate so that customers aren't getting unexpected or, heaven forbid, nasty surprises in their orders.

If anyone has any specific questions about availability of some of the really old inks (eg: Canon i9900, iP4000, Epson old style dyes, etc..) then please drop me a PM (Conversation) or contact via OctoInkjet and I'll respond as and when...

Peace out

 

[stratman]

"OctoFlapJocks Supreme Yellow the third"

So, personally I think it's more than relevant that end-users know about the changes, and consider what ramifications they have.

The sale of IS to STS is big news to me as it most likely heralds changes to the ink I use. What these changes are, good or bad, remain to be seen. According to Mikling, better constituents are being used. While some may think that exposure of changes may spook customers and lose business, I believe honest disclosure as you have done, webby, enhances my trust and respect. Either way, with or without the behind the scene knowledge, i would be purchasing IS inks. The difference is that when the shite hits the fan I won't feel betrayed by my supplier for keeping mum on the significant changes that occurred that caused my printed images to begin to look different.

 

[CakeHole]

"OctoFlapJocks Supreme Yellow the third" sounds more and probably looks more like the custard i had as pudding with school dinners than any ink id shove in my printer hehe

 

[Roy Sletcher]

To the end user, there are no changes except that the quality of the dye ink bumps UP with an even higher grade of glycol being used by STS the best available actually.. leveraging the benefits of larger purchasing capabilities.

STS is owned by a young engineer and there are no compromises on quality in their products. The increased cost partly reflects the added costs of the best raw ingredients being used. As an engineer myself I do understand the angle of the new owners.

My prices already were adjusted to the changes a good while back as I receive shipments at least once a month.

To the end user nothing is changed so it was not worth a lengthy discussion at the user level.

Well that is some consolation, although it is obvious the shots are being called by a new, and to us unknown, entity called STSINKS.

The small resellers that we re-fillers deal with because of our small consumption will have to dance to their tune.

I visited their website stsinks.com and was not impressed. If it is a professionally run company and production facility their website does not inspire confidence. (Nuff said about that for now)

That said, MIKLING has always come through for me in spades whenever I have needed supplies or help and support, so will stay the course and hope things do not change for the worst.

Final comment. This appears to be a privately held company without the need for public disclosure to shareholders. Basically they can do what the like provided they avoid contravening criminal statutes. I don't think our interests rate very prominently on their radar


Roy Sletcher

 

[stratman]

STSINKS

I'm not dyslexic but that first looked to me like "STINKS". Let's hope that's not a portent of things to come. If it is then it's Roy's fault!

 

[pharmacist]

Hi Websnail,

I have just contacted another happy user of the Inktec Powerchrome K3 printer for an Epson R3000 user and he is really impressed by the printing quality (gloss, color rendition, neutral ABW-mode) .

 

[mikling]

STS initially catered to the refillers stores and remanufacturers. They had remained and was a customer of IS until growth in a different segment allowed them to grow rapidly. That same growth was not experienced in the desktop market as that market as I had already concluded was mature. You always see acquisitions and consolidations occur in mature markets. The reason is simple, in mature markets, the lack of growth requires that companies operate as efficiently as possible in order to secure a proper return on capital, whether that be a public or private company. If their website catered to the end retail customer.....I would no longer be in existence.

If no one noticed, Procter and Gamble intends to sell off a large portion of their brands that are not generating the returns that shareholders require. What will happen to those brands? Should consumers be notified that their sugar is coming from the west rather than the east? I think as long as the product performs the way it used to then everything remains.

I had for over two years alluded to the maturation of the market and the cost pressures on aftermarket ink mfrs. No one was paying attention. I had expected this to occur for over a year. I am relieved that the purchaser is an engineer and an astute business person. STS website does not cater to the consumer. Most of their business are to resellers and large end users. Had it been sold to another entity that was not likely going to do good, I would be concerned myself as my livelihood is more at stake than just printing for less money than OEM like end users.

Let's review the purchaser. A technical person... an engineer who introduced automated refilling machines with GUI to the industry. A person who built up his company over less than two decades. A prior customer of IS for the same reasons many end users chose IS. A customer who eventually formed his own company to develop and market inks AND to the last days of an independent IS, was a customer of IS. A manufacturer who has a staff of pHD chemists in his R&D labs. A company who proudly markets the quality of their inks and is not afraid to raise prices when needed to survive. A company that openly states in large bold, that their inks are MADE in USA...on each container that they ship. Contrary to the Hat statements. A company that goes to Japan to source some of their pigments when it was required. A company that uses medical grade components when most others use industrial grade. If anything this should inspire confidence of the end product. I can tell you I was actually relieved when I learned of the transition and who had purchased it.

Now what if an offshore company from the Far East purchased it and then proceeded to stock it with imported inks of inferior quality that cost less? Would we have been relieved? I suspect not, quite the opposite in fact. So you see, what has occurred should please everyone in reality and end users still purchase from the same dealers that still carry the same ink. Expecting that a smaller company or an independent acquire IS is totally unrealistic in a mature market. If anyone has studied business, they will know that. It happened recently in the CPU, Hard drive, SSD and is currently happening in the mobile market. These things are expected to occur.

I can't find a negative to the end user. Now what is the concern?....that they will not develop inks for the desktop?

If they did and it did not make economic sense then I would be concerned. It only means that they were not likely to be around for much longer. Now that is where the reseller comes in and puts in their added value. The reseller is now forced to offer something that will be satisfactory to the end user given the resources available. In the past long ago, IS made tailored inksets and that made the job easy for the reseller, I was the benefactor of that initially. Within IS stocks lurks all kinds of colors etc and formulations that are available. That is my value add where I have used my knowledge and experience to offer something that is workable and tested it with my own machines for verification. This is unlike a reseller who just resells. I even went so far to offer prime ICC profiles to make the user experience even better than a close product. Some other resellers are incapable of what I have offered. At some point I have to protect the investment in time and IP that is in my offering. As a result, I won't disclose what IS inks are used and in the future it may not be IS or it could be STS. This is disturbing to some other resellers of IS and unfortunately, if I am to remain a viable entity I must do this. IP is the real value of any entity today. This is exactly where STS started when they were not able to get something offered by suppliers. They used what they could get their hands on and made a good product. It is the very essence of capitalism. This is exactly what I had done with the Pro-100 inkset that I came up with. IS was not interested in pursuing to create a specific inkset so I had to cook one up myself with some of their assistance. To date over 2500 users are using that inkset. Had I not done so, what would 2500 users be using today and not taking advantage of the Canon deals of getting a superb printer for little funds.

Now, I still order the same formulation numbers I had used before the sale but I am more confident that the product is of a higher standard than before not that it really needed to be. I am totally relieved since I have a lot more skin in the game than the end user. I will add though that I have begun to search out wider for better products and when I come across them and they are superior in a meaningful way I will offer them. One IS dealer in the UK has begun selling dye and pigment inks from Prodinks I am told. To survive, I must innovate and become creative and diversify. IS did not do that. STS did and was able to acquire IS as a result.

Yes, some will moan and groan because we all hate change. I saw a major increase in my costs but also relieved that the same inks of potentially superior quality will now be still there. Was there a major increase in the end costs to the user? No. Has the inks changed? Yes, they are now made with superior medical grade chemicals...with more purity.