Page 52 - Print21 Jan-Feb 2020

Business
Wayne Robinson
Focus on quality
Trade finishing house Twin Loop has pursued a steady growth over the past two decades. Print21 editor Wayne Robinson talks to owner Wayne Rubin to find out what has made the company one of the key players in the industry.
In an era where the Australian trade finishing landscape
is littered with the ruins of former leading lights, Wayne Rubin’s Sydney-based Twin
Loop business has bucked the trend by achieving continuous growth. For the past two decades, since
it came into the Rubin family as a vehicle to enable them to immigrate from their native South Africa, the Twin Loop business has provided finishing services to print businesses in NSW and ACT, and latterly in Queensland too.
Once the parents had got their feet under the table, their son joined the business. Wayne Rubin says, “My parents wanted to leave South Africa, and owning a business here and employing staff was a great way to move. I joined in 1999 for a 12 month stint – and have been here ever since.”
Being a young gun, Rubin “wanted to set the world on fire”, whereas
his parents had a different agenda, looking to the business to provide their super, so the approach to risk was naturally different. However, the family worked well together, steadily building the business based on the values of integrity, fulfilling promises, and a commitment to quality.
Then, eight years ago, the parents sold the business to the son and his wife. Rubin says, “My wife does not work in the business, although she does work on it, in the sense that I will discuss aspects of business life with her. She has a softer touch than me, which I appreciate.”
For many years Rubin was an NSW rugby referee in his spare time, and as anyone who knows the sport is aware, rugby referees have to have
a keen eye for detail, razor sharp decision making, and a high level of self-belief – all characteristics that are more than useful when running a business.
Twin Loop began its business in the wire services. When Rubin first started, he was on the retail side; however, the focus changed fairly quickly to trade finishing, with
the company gradually adding new services over the years. Rubin says, “We have invested where the need has grown. We listen closely to our customers, we are aware that the market is continually evolving.”
The company even added perfect binding eight years ago. Rubin
says, “As we watched established binders go under, we responded to the market demand for high quality reliable trade services.”
Among the majors that have fallen in the last few years are All States, Perfectly Bound, and Open Flat, and as each one sank Twin Loop invested to ensure the market needs were being met. Rubin says, “We have moved into booklet making, saddle stitching, A4 landscape, and loop stitching as the years have gone by. We have also employed skilled staff
– we took three from Open Flat when it closed.”
A key supplier during the time Rubin has owned the company has been Currie Group and its Horizon finishing portfolio, with others for different specialist equipment.
Rubin says, “The aspect of Currie Group that I like is that they are not in a hurry to push equipment on
you. I am conservative in business,
I do not want to be overexposed or overextended. I prefer to start small and work up, and Currie Group has been with me in this approach. I bought a Horizon twin tower collator for instance, and then traded it in
for a bigger three tower system down the line. I only buy equipment that will pay for itself. I bought a Horizon BQ-270 perfect binder and traded it in for a Horizon BQ-470, and then traded that up for a Horizon BQ-480.
“Currie Group’s representatives made it clear they are interested in long term relationships. Currie Group has helped us to grow,
and have made sure we have
not been overexposed, but have provided the opportunity to grow. He says, “I believe in buying the best equipment. I want the best engineering and the best support. Our customers depend on us to get their jobs back to them when we say we will. There is a saying that is penny-wise, pound-foolish – we could get cheaper equipment, but it would not meet our requirements.”
“We have invested where the need
has grown. We listen closely to our customers, we are aware the market is continually evolving.” – Wayne Rubin
Last year, Twin Loop installed celloglazing, again to meet demand and to save time. Rubin says, “It has meant that our turnaround times have been slashed, as we
are not having to send jobs out for celloglazing. We were losing hours or even days, which made meeting deadlines even more challenging.
“We aim to be a one stop shop for our customers.”
Almost all Twin Loop’s customers are print businesses. Rubin is keen
52 Print21 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2020