Regarded as a visionary in print, owner Mal McGowan could see how digital print could revolutionise every aspect of print, not least in his investment in large format flatbed technology which all but killed off traditional screen print.

From a modest start in a small docklands shop, selling, at first, photocopies and dye-line prints of architectural plans to a burgeoning construction industry, McGowan took a punt - his first of many - on colour. He invested in two-colour photocopiers, including a large-format A1 machine, said to be one of only two in the country at that time.

His first foray into true large-format print and finishing required a larger venue, so a move to Adelaide Road coincided with the acquisition of not one but two roll-to-roll printers. Having learnt with his colour copiers that two ensured there was always a backup on site which was vital in the early days as machinery was not as reliable as it has become recently.

Then Mal bought his first HP Indigo press, the digital alternative to litho print, and his journey towards dominance in digital print in Ireland began in earnest. The Celtic Tiger was roaring its loudest during these years, and McGowans quickly thrived and grew, opening a shop specialising in photography on George’s Street, Dublin, quickly followed by a larger facility on Cork Street.

Screen print became McGowans’s next target, and again, through meticulous research, McGowans thrived each time taking advantage of the advances being made by providers such as long-time partners Hewlett Packard and Durst.

The purchase of the first production Nozomi, a single-pass machine put McGowans on the world map of print, and McGowans began to be known as a world leader in print, a title that the company continues to hold and nurture with the recent purchase of a Landa, a Highcon, and a Scodix, all revolutionary game-changing equipment and all housed in McGowans headquarters in north Dublin.