1988 was notable for many reasons. The Iron Curtain began to fall and took with it the Soviet Union. In sport, Ayrton Senna won his first Formula 1 title. Edwina Currie made a speech about salmonella that suggested she did not have shares in any egg production companies.
Less well documented is that 1988 also marked the inception of Datum. Clearly hipsters ahead of their time, the company founders, Alan Willis and Eddie Allum chose Shoreditch to set up business offering trade lithographic planning and platemaking services to local printers. They also showed a keen eye for talent spotting by recruiting the then relatively-unknown Mark Gamble as their first employee.
Datum opens it’s doors for business on 1st February 1988, booking in a grand total of 2 jobs on it’s first day trading… we have since booked in a further 75,468 projects. (Jan 1st 2018)
Fast forward 30 years and plenty has changed. Mark is now Managing Partner alongside Scott Pearce – himself a 29-year veteran of the organisation. Like most businesses of such longevity, it’s safe to say it’s been a journey. From the launch of our design studio, to the install of our first ever Mac (a Power Mac 8100 for the nerdier amongst you), the introduction of Large Format Printing, all the way through to a complete digital service offering – we even managed to fit in a couple of moves including the one to the current offices in Hatfield, Hertfordshire.
Plenty of changes – from technologies through to haircuts. But, also some constancies. Not least the dedication to treating every client as an individual, taking time to understand their challenges and objectives and crafting bespoke solutions that consistently go above and beyond their expectations.
Whether you need a helping hand with print or digital production, design and artwork support or assistance with creating attention-grabbing point of sale, we’ve got all that covered and much more.
Cool Timeline
The beginning…
Datum opens it’s doors for business on 1st February 1988 by founders Alan Willis and Eddie Allum offering a trade lithographic reproduction, platemaking and proofing service in EC2, London
Datum Devils
‘Datum Devils’ take part in the 1990 Print Regatta Boat Race and come second, left to right Mike Willis, Scott Pearce, Tony Pattenden, Mark Gamble
24 Hour Service
We offer a 24 hour service for the first time, offering prepress production for regular report and accounts in the financial sector.
Desktop Publishing Revolution
The desktop publishing revolution is in full swing and we install our first Mac’s, PowerMac 8100’s along with a Crossfield Drum Scanner offering a film output bureau service.
Datum becomes prepress provider to Charterhouse
Charterhouse move into the Print Management sector and appoint Datum as there sole prepress supplier, a relationship that has evolved and lasted over twenty years.
Datum move…
At the turn of the millennium, Datum move from their roots of Shoreditch to new larger premises in Hatfield, Hertfordshire.
A3 Litho Printing
We install our first A3 litho presses back in 2001 (2 colour and 4 colour machines), this was to print high end stationery for a number of fashion brands including Ellesse, Lacoste and Fila.
A2 Litho Printing
After the success of our entry into the A3 market, we install a A2 press in E3 London for commercial trade work.
One2One rebrand as T-Mobile
Datum manage all the studio work for the rebrand from One2One to T-Mobile, the project involved hundred’s of different items that needed to be reproduced within a 90 day period.
Large Format Printing
Large Format Printing is introduced at Datum to offer a poster printing service, this quickly evolves into offering a whole raft of products from Pull Up’s and Pop Up’s to full scale event stands and installations.
Datum launch online services
Datum launch their first website which includes online soft proofing and digital asset management for clients to access their assets
Digital Printing
Datum install their first HP Indigo Press offering a fast same day turnaround service.
Website design and build
Due to a increase in client demand, we offer a website design and build service for SME clients along with HTML emails.
Datum MBO
Scott Pearce & Mark Gamble complete the MBO of Datum in the Summer of 2008.
Waitrose
Datum win the Waitrose contract to produce local POS for all their stores throughout the UK
9001 & 14001 Accreditation
In 2011 we achieved both ISO9001 and ISO14001 accreditations for our working processes and commitment to the environment
Design Services
In 2011 we introduce studio facilities at Datum to cover a growing need for affordable design for SME’s. This quickly grew to cover design for cross-media campaigns as well as print.
FSC Accreditation
We gain the FSC accreditation in 2014 for our commitment to the environment.
Datum rebrands
Due to our growing range of services and transition into online and digital campaigns, we decide to rebrand to emphasise our cross-media and creative services.
Print Week Awards
Datum are finalists for marketing campaign of the year at the Print Week awards as well as being a finalist in three categories at the Print, Design and Marketing Awards for Cross-Media, Social Media and Best Website.
We’re are already looking forward to the next 30 years of delivering innovative solutions for our amazing clients and have been investing heavily to insure we are well-placed to do so. If you’d like to find out about the breadth and depth of our services and solutions, or just want to reminisce about Wimbledon beating Liverpool in the 1988 FA Cup final, then give us a call on 01707 251222 or drop us a note at [email protected]