The sale, which completed yesterday after shareholders gave the go ahead at St Ives' EGM, makes Wyndeham Press Group the largest web offset printer in the UK, with 1,525 staff across 11 manufacturing operations and an annual turnover in excess of £170m.

Combined output across the group following the acquisition, which was financed by RBS, totals 72 weekly and 700 monthly magazine and periodical titles for clients including Condé Nast, Financial Times, Bauer Consumer Media, Centaur and The Economist Group.

St Ives Web's facilities in Peterborough, Plymouth and Roche will be rebranded and operate as part of Wyndeham's web division alongside Wyndeham Apple, Wyndeham Heron, Wyndeham Impact and Wyndeham Southernprint.

Mark Scanlon, Walstead chairman, said: "This is an important deal for us and for St Ives. I hope and believe that the UK web offset sector will have a better future from today."

St Ives Web's central sales, estimating and customer service teams will relocate to a new Wyndeham Group office located in the City, at 8-12 New Bridge Street.