Charles Dunn, along with his partner Jeremy Mills, has bought the assets of Riley, Dunn and Wilson after it went into administration on 21 March.

Between 1976 and 1998, Dunn worked for the company, which was founded as Dunn and Wilson in 1909 by his grandfather Hugh. However, he was made redundant following a management buyout, but continued to work in print with another binder.

The sale means that the company has returned to family hands for the first time since 1989, when it was acquired by Johnston Press.

Dunn said: “Obviously, I have an emotional attachment to the company having worked there for more than 20 years.
“But it has been a sound company for 100 years and has a large number of loyal blue-chip customers. It has a lot of strings to its bow, but we are planning to diversify the business.”

The company, which has sites in Falkirk and Hud­dersfield, is predominantly a bindery and works largely with academic organisations.

This week, Dunn re-employed five of the almost 80 staff who were made redundant when administrators were called in, bringing the firm’s headcount up to 62.

He said he plans to rehire other former employees once he has stabilised the firm and is aiming for turnover of around £2m this year.

Although, at this stage, Dunn is merely hoping to ensure his grandfather’s business is kept alive, he said he may look into digital printing as a way of moving forward.

Dunn added that he had come to an agreement with the former directors to enable him to take the old name.

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TIMELINE
1909 Founded by Hugh Dunn
1989 Acquired by Johnston Press
1998 Sold to an MBO team
March 2007 Taken into administration
May 2007 Assets purchased by Charles Dunn