Celebrating 80 years of unparalleled printing excellence

• Gunaratne Offset defies pandemic and lockdowns to reach milestone

The year 1942 saw the birth of a simple letter press under the Gunaratne Group. Over the last eight decades the company has evolved into one of the pioneering and trusted names in the printing business in Sri Lanka. Gunaratne Offset Ltd. (GOL) celebrates its 80th year in operation in 2022 and is today a state-of-the-art printing press.

The company is today run by the third generation of the Gunaratne family, together with Shehan De Silva who functions as the Managing Director and Rohana Nawaratne as its Chief Operations Officer.

Commenting on the company’s longstanding success story Director and Chief Executive Officer Ruwani Seelanatha said: “Gunaratne Offset was a company with small beginnings that my grandfather founded. Over the years my father and now my generation has steered it to becoming an award-winning company that is well-recognised for the quality of work we do and exceptional service we provide.”

GOL has also evolved with the times and technology and is able to carry out printing requirements of any magnitude. Their printing services include soft and hard cover books, annual reports, periodicals and magazines, marketing collateral, labels and tags, calendars, diaries and planners. Depending on the requirement, printing is handled either traditionally on offset printers or digitally. The latest addition to GOL’s offering is interactive printing, where augmented reality is used to allow customers to engage and interact with their print products.

The quality of work done by GOL has been highlighted over the years through the numerous awards and accolades that it has won. Over the years, GOL has consistently been among the top three printers in Sri Lanka having won the prestigious ‘Master Printer’ Award for the eight year and sweeping the boards in many Commercial Print categories at the annual Print Competition organised by the Sri Lanka Association of Printers. GOL has also won over 120 local and international awards for books (both hard and soft cover), periodicals, newspaper-tabloids, annual reports, brochures, posters, greeting and invitation cards, diaries and calendars, and new innovations. The awards also include the first-ever award for Sri Lanka at the Asia Print Awards in 2012.

Several of the largest corporates in the country have trusted GOL as their go-to printing partner for many years including the Macksons Paints Lanka Ltd., Nippon Paint Lanka Ltd., Atlas Axillia Co. Ltd., Emagewise Ltd., Reebonn Lanka Ltd., Rhino Roofing Products Ltd., Jetwing Hotels, Dimo Lanka and Cinnamon Life, among others.

“Despite the recent global pandemic and the ensuing lockdowns, we have been consistent in our business and navigated through the barriers to produce quality work for our clients. GOL is known for our excellent work ethic and our staff of more than 100 are dedicated to always providing the best. We also constantly upgrade ourselves with technological advancements in the printing industry, which allows us to always stay ahead of the competition,” she added.