Bottomline Ink acquires Bolt From The Blue

Bottomline Ink, a Perrysburg, OH-based printer, acquired its in-state peer Bolt From The Blue on March 4. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Bottomline's goal is to add direct mail marketing to its transactional printing service-focused business, said David Tulk, company spokesman.

“Bolt From The Blue was dealing in a lot of niche marketing concepts, and we were looking to expand our mail capabilities and expert marketing capabilities rather than just automating," he said.

Bolt From The Blue's operations will be rebranded as a part of Bottomline. Asked if there would be staff changes as a result of the acquisition, Tulk said, “Some people have moved on.”

Tom Richard, Bolt From The Blue's owner, will serve as a consultant on creative issues but will not join the company, Tulk added.

Bottomline hopes to add clients that use various kinds of direct mail, said Tulk. Bolt From The Blue's capabilities included variable data tear sheets and hand-written personalization.

"The market share we are after is the people that appreciate these specialty marketing tactics," Tulk said.