Tokyo-based Ricoh Company Ltd., a manufacturer of commercial inkjet printheads and office imaging equipment, announces that it has reached an agreement to acquire direct-to-garment printer maker AnaJet of Costa Mesa, California.

Negotiations, which were finalized between the two companies on Jan. 6, began approximately six months ago.

“(Ricoh has) been wanting to continue to grow the inkjet division and is always looking for new technologies and opportunities,” AnaJet marketing director Paul Crocker tells Sign & Digital Graphics magazine. “Being a leader in the industry—this was a natural fit.”

Ricoh inkjet business division general manager Junichi Matsuno says, “Ricoh has a long history of successful, strategic acquisitions that have helped our customers and partners around the world find new, effective ways to better serve their end users.”

“With the addition of AnaJet, our collective customers benefit from a larger support team, added innovation and access to a services-led portfolio of solutions to ultimately help them grow their business. AnaJet already possesses a proven reputation as a leader in DTG printing and as such, is a great complement to Ricoh’s broad portfolio,” Matsuno explains.

Crocker assures customers that there will be few changes to operations at AnaJet, which will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ricoh Printing Systems America Inc. The company will continue to operate under its current name, management team and capabilities, including its more than 50 employees. The only change at this time, Crocker says, is the promotion of former AnaJet national sales manager Karl Tipre to the role of CEO.

“Otherwise the team is intact at least for the immediate future,” Crocker says. “We are still defining how we will integrate. As a wholly-owned subsidiary, it does appear we will be working somewhat independently. Even before the deal, we began working on localized onsite support and training and we fully expect that to expand throughout the country and worldwide. We’re in the early stages, obviously, but we’re all very excited about it. It can only mean good things for AnaJet and the industry as a whole.”