TheTyneside-based large-format printer was rumoured to be facing around 40 job cuts after it set up a consultation group with its staff.

However, following a spate of new contracts from point-of-sale (PoS) sector clients, the damage has reportedly been minimised.

Bill McNally, managing director at Simpson Group, said: "We initially expected high volumes of staff to be cut but we have made some business gains with companies to improve our PoS market exposure."

The Sainsbury's contract made up a significant proportion of the group's work and will still be passed over to St Ives in September this year.

Executive chairman Mark Simpson told  in June that the company would do all that it could to protect jobs and said the future of the business was" secure", thanks to other contracts.

Communisis, which used Simpson Group to produce PoS work, was outbid in a competitive tender for the supermarket's print management in June. The tender is said to have been worth £20m a year to the print management giant.

Simpson Group has also made two new appointments in its sales team and expects to hit its annual sales targets next month.