Singh will join the main board of the Sutton-in-Ashfield direct response specialist in March. He is currently on gardening leave having left Blackburns last August after just eight months with the firm. Prior to that Singh was at Communisis Chorleys for more than a decade.

Howitt chief executive Nick Dixon said Singh's ambitions "matched those of the resurgent Howitt" and the appointment formed part of a plan to achieve market leadership in key sectors.

"I've known Gurdev for about 16 years, and he's got a lot to offer," he said. "I remember joking with him ages ago about how it would be great to get all the top people   the crme de la crme together. That's what we're doing now at Howitt. We've got a very strong team at board level and throughout the business and it bodes well for the future."

Singh's role will involve developing new product ranges for the business, and Dixon is particularly keen to see him expand Howitt's financial services offering into areas such as compliance mailings.

Separately, Howitt has gained FSC Chain of Custody accreditation, joining an elite band of UK printing companies to achieve the standard.

"It's something customers want and we set our sites on doing it and achieved it in a short space of time," Dixon added.

Howitt is nearing the end of its first financial year under new ownership, and is expected to post sales of around 36m.

Story by Jo Francis