The acquisition was completed last Friday (29 November) and came about following “a longstanding relationship of mutual respect” according to GF Smith, which said there was no approach made by either party, “more an evolution of an idea”.

The deal enables both businesses to mutually benefit from combined expertise, warehousing and skilled staff.

GF Smith joint managing director John Haslam said: “We are continually challenging ourselves to expand our creative reach and secure our valuable independence.

“The fine art material sector has always been of interest to GF Smith and we have admired the market leader RK Burt for many years. With this acquisition we are further enhancing our ability to supply the creative world with remarkable products and unsurpassed service.”

RK Burt & Co managing director Clifford Burt added: “The similarity of corporate culture of these two family-run businesses, dating back to the 1800s, along with the high degree of mutual respect with which each company holds the other, made it a straightforward decision.

“GF Smith is the most successful UK paper merchant in the field of high-quality specialist papers for graphic printing, with almost every graphic designer looking to GF Smith for the inspiration to use paper in print.

“With GF Smith being at the cutting edge of creativity in the design and printing industry, it has been clear for many years that the fine art specialisation of RK Burt & Co was a natural fit with their own activities.”

Founded in 1892, London-based RK Burt is an importer and wholesale distributor of fine art and digital inkjet papers that works with both retail and wholesale customers.

The 16-staff firm will continue to operate at its current location as an independent business within GF Smith, which was established in 1885.

Clifford Burt will remain as managing director of RK Burt while his brother, director Richard Burt, will also retain his position. Charlotte Couchman will also be promoted to become a director of RK Burt and will additionally join the existing GF Smith senior leadership team. All other RK Burt staff will remain in their existing positions.

“We are excited to work closely with the team at GF Smith in order to exchange expertise and, whilst our focus remains on nurturing our much valued customers, we look forward to exploring opportunities within the fine art material sector,” said Couchman.