PREMIER Sayina Africa (PSA), a manufacturer and supplier of branded corporate signage (PSA), and Romano Signs have merged, creating the largest corporate signage company in sub-Saharan Africa.
Sean Rogers, managing director of PSA, said, the two companies currently have the largest and most comprehensive manufacturing footprint in the corporate signage industry in sub-Saharan Africa with manufacturing facilities in both the Gauteng and the Western Cape.
“PSA and Romano have as part of their commitment to increasing their manufacturing capacity invested in a new best-in-class manufacturing facility in the Cape into which the current Romano operations will relocate when it comes on stream in July 2018.
“The combined companies have localised service hubs in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, and co-operative manufacturing arrangements on the east and west coasts of Africa. Our footprint will fully support our customers’ expansion into new markets,” Rogers said.
Both companies deliver global and local corporate brand implementations throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Clients include VW, Hyundai, Jeep, ABSA, BP, Steers, Ford, Avis, Total, Clicks, Engen, Sasol and Honda.
PSA services SADC-region countries directly from its Gauteng hub, and the remainder of sub-Saharan Africa through companies in Lagos, Nigeria and Nairobi, Kenya with whom it has co-operative manufacturing agreements.
Both companies have completed installations in numerous sub-Saharan African countries including Tanzania, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Mozambique, Mauritius, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Swaziland.
“These successes are in partly due to our world-class compliance and quality standards. The merger will provide strong leadership, depth of experience, complementary manufacturing capabilities, state-of-the-art equipment and a long-standing client base,” Rogers said.
The board of directors of the merged business will comprise the current PSA board members together with Alexi Romano, managing director of Romano Signs, who will be a key shareholder and board member. The newly formed business is backed by Grindrod Financial Services, a division of the JSE listed Grindrod Limited.
Romano said: “The combining of the resources of PSA and Romano will see the business and our customers benefit from the enhanced expertise and industry experience embedded in our personnel in the technical, design, development, project management, manufacturing and operational teams.
“We will leverage the pedigree of each company addressing the retail petrochemical, automotive retail, food and clothing retail, banking, quick service and fast foods markets.
“We believe that the sustainability and future growth of South Africa, together with the future of the corporate signage industry, is directly linked to the successful implementation of the principles of B-BBEE,” Romano said.
The newly constituted business will be a Level 4, black-owned (72%), Black Woman Owned (15%) and Empowering Supplier under the amended Codes of Good Practice for Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE).