“I decided that the time had come to step down as CEO of ASG because I think I have come to the age and stage in my career when I need to take things a little easier, rather than flying around the world,” said Garnish.

“I thought now was a good time for me to start thinking about anything else I wanted to do as I’m not getting any younger.”

While he is not being directly replaced, his duties in relation to ASG’s print operations will be taken on by Jamie Tinsley, who has added managing director of ASG Print to his current role of managing director of ASG sister company Amaray Europe, a plastic injection molding specialist.

Garnish officially stepped down on 30 September, but he will continue to have an advisory role with the group.

“I won’t be heavily involved with the business, but I’ll still be around wherever and whenever I’m needed. I’m still connected,” said Garnish.

He added that while he wasn’t looking to take on any additional roles in the short term, in the future he might consider non-exec roles.

“I know myself and I’m sure I’ll be looking for something, probably in a non-exec type capacity, to keep my brain cells ticking over and hopefully help other businesses,” he said.

ASG's print operation has around 700 staff across sites in the UK, Ireland, France, the Netherlands and Poland. Its global creative and production agency ASG Spark employs around 500 staff.

Garnish joined the business in 1993, when it was Tinsley Robor, becoming European chairman in 2002, before becoming chief executive in 2008, leading on the business’s sale to Atlas Holdings in 2010 - which preempted its merger with Shorewood Packaging in 2012 to create ASG.

During his tenure, he was also president of the BPIF from 2012 to 2014.