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CJK Group Acquires Allen Press

CJK Group Acquires Allen Press

January 2023

Information Industry News

Brainerd, MN | January 9, 2023

CJK Group, Inc. is pleased to announce that it has completed an agreement to acquire the assets of venerable print and publishing services company Allen Press, located in Lawrence, Kansas. This acquisition is unique for CJK Group in that it will supplement and expand services and capabilities to both the Sheridan print operations in addition to its KnowledgeWorks Global Ltd. (KGL) content solutions company.

Allen Press originated in 1935 as a family-owned company serving a local print market and grew to incorporate a wide variety of editorial, production, marketing, and digital services tailored to the needs of independent society and association publishers.

The print facility will be renamed Sheridan Kansas, bringing the number of Sheridan’s print locations across the country to a total of ten. Work is produced offset and digitally, with a full complement of finishing equipment; back issue fulfillment, warehousing, and ancillary graphics services also offered. The plant’s central US location affords Sheridan a strategic production option for both Midwest and West Coast publishing communities with more efficient mailing and distribution. The addition of this location further broadens Sheridan’s job-share abilities and raw material procurement strength.

On the content side, Allen Press’s extensive suite of publishing services and technology solutions will be incorporated into the KnowledgeWorks Global Ltd. operation, further bolstering KGL’s one-stop content proposition, which includes peer review and editorial office management, business consulting, AI-powered language analysis and copyediting, XML composition and proofing, digital and print production, and online hosting. The addition of Allen Press to the KGL portfolio will add marketing services, advertising sales, and association management to the spectrum of specialized services for scholarly publishers.

CEO of CJK Group Chris Kurtzman remarked, “Allen Press has long held a unique and highly respected place in the print and publishing market, offering exceptional front-end capabilities as well as creative and marketing solutions, in addition to high-quality print and distribution. We see this as a perfect fit for both our Sheridan and KGL families. The entrepreneurial customer-centric culture at Allen Press is a mirror reflection of our own, something we look for and place a very high value on when we bring companies such as Allen Press into the fold. We are looking forward to bringing streamlined performance and additional capabilities to both our existing and new customers.”

CJK Group, Inc. represents one of the largest printing and publishing services organizations in the country, continuing to grow both organically and through acquisitions. At the core of the CJK Group strategy is investment in employees, equipment, technologies, and thoughtful acquisitions that mirror the same principles and values that all CJK Group companies possess.