What Mercian Labels does

Mercian Labels Limited is a UK-based designer and manufacturer of custom self-adhesive labels, headquartered in Burntwood, Staffordshire, with a secondary manufacturing facility in Measham and operations running 24/7 across a 24,000 ft² modern factory. Founded in 1969, the company serves more than 10,000 customers across at least thirteen verticals, with primary focus on food and drink, pharmaceuticals and chemicals, healthcare, automotive, security, warehouse and logistics, and blood transfusion services. Its technical capabilities span flexographic, digital, screen-print, and inkjet printing — including industry-leading 8-colour UV flexo and inline 100% barcode verification at full press speeds.

The product portfolio is anchored by two core offerings (custom self-adhesive labels and variable data / barcode labels) and extended through proprietary sub-brands: LabelLock® (tamper-evident security labels, the only tamper-evident brand worldwide accredited to ISO 17712:2013), Gammatex™ (gamma sterilisation indicator labels), Mercian Zero (sustainability initiative with closed-loop liner recycling), Mercian Gold (premium embellishments), and the FlexPack Range for flexible packaging. The company is differentiated by industry-beating 3-working-day lead times, comprehensive certifications (BRCGS AA Grade, ISO 9001, ISO 14001, Cyber Essentials Plus), and a multi-award winning reputation including PrintWeek, Digital Labels & Packaging, Label Industry Global, and consecutive RoSPA Gold Awards.

The business operates a sales-led, quote-based B2B model with dedicated Business Development Managers covering UK regions, complemented by trade show presence at UK Food & Drink Shows, GS1 Healthcare Conference, and International Security Expo. Pricing is determined per quote based on quantity, material, and customisation requirements, with revenue generated from one-off orders across a fragmented customer base. As of June 2026, Mercian Labels was acquired by Asteria Group as its 41st production location, while continuing to operate its Burntwood facility under its established brand.

Name

Mercian Labels

Legal name

Mercian Labels Limited

Website

https://mercianlabels.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Mercian Labels is a UK-based designer and manufacturer of custom self-adhesive labels serving 10,000+ businesses across food and drink, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, automotive, and security verticals since 1969, with proprietary brands including LabelLock® and Gammatex™ and a 24/7 manufacturing facility in Burntwood.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Self-Adhesive Label Manufacturing

NAICS

Converted Paper Product Manufacturing (3222), Printing and Related Support Activities (3231), Packaging and Labeling Services (56191)

SIC

Coating, Engraving & Allied Services (3470)

akta.pro primary industry

Pressure-Sensitive Labels (PSL) (IMALAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Specialty & Functional Labels (Linerless, RFID/NFC, Braille, Smart) (IMALAKAK), Sustainable Labels, Adhesives & Inks (Wash-Off Labels, De-inkable Inks, Low-VOC) (IMALAMAJ)

Keywords

• Self-adhesive labels
• Variable data labels
• Security labels
• Barcode labels
• Label manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

Burntwood

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Self-Adhesive Label Manufacturing and Sales: Design, manufacture and sale of custom self-adhesive labels for various industry verticals including food, drinks, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, automotive, and security applications. Products include standard labels, variable data labels, barcodes, security labels, and specialised labels such as LabelLock® and Gammatex™.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Mercian Labels designs and manufactures custom printed self-adhesive labels for UK businesses of all sizes using flexographic (including 8-colour UV flexo), digital, screen-print, and inkjet printing technologies from its 24,000 ft2 Burntwood facility. Its portfolio spans standard self-adhesive labels, variable data and serialised barcode labels with 100% inline verification, and proprietary specialty products including LabelLock® tamper-evident security labels and Gammatex™ gamma sterilisation indicator labels, serving food & drink, pharmaceutical, chemical, automotive, healthcare, security, logistics, and personal care verticals.

Product overview

Mercian Labels is a multi-award winning designer and manufacturer of self-adhesive labels operating as a single unified product portfolio. The core offering consists of self-adhesive labels and variable data barcode labels, supplemented by proprietary sub-brands including LabelLock™ (tamper evident security labels) and Gammatex™ (gamma sterilisation indicators). Additional value-added services include Peel & Reveal Labels for promotional and compliance applications, Mercian Zero for sustainable packaging solutions, Mercian Gold for premium embellishments, and the FlexPack Range for flexible packaging. Supporting services encompass label design, pre-press and colour management, and various print technologies (flexographic, digital, screen-print, and inkjet). The company operates a 24/7 manufacturing facility in Burntwood, Staffordshire, UK, serving diverse markets including food and drink, pharmaceuticals, automotive, healthcare, and security.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• LabelLock®: Premium brand of tamper evident security labels and seals
• Gammatex™

Products and services

• Custom Self-Adhesive Labels Multi-award winning designer and manufacturer of self-adhesive labels produced on flexographic, digital, screen-print, and inkjet presses, supplied to UK food, drink, pharmaceutical, chemical, automotive, and industrial buyers. Orders are quoted based on quantity, material, and finish and dispatched within industry-beating 3 working days from artwork approval.
• Variable Data Barcode Labels Pre-printed barcode and variable data labels for traditional linear barcodes and 2D/Smart labels, with 100% barcode accuracy and 100% fulfilment guaranteed; high-volume runs handled via dedicated variable-data equipment with optional colour-coding sequences.
• LabelLock® Tamper-Evident Security Labels Globally distributed premium brand of tamper-evident security labels and seals with dual-layer construction, customisable void messaging, resistance to heat/water/chemicals, and ISO 17712:2013 certification for brand protection, authentication and anti-counterfeiting.
• Gammatex™ Gamma Sterilisation Indicator Labels Chemical sterilisation indicator labels that change colour to confirm effective gamma irradiation sterilisation, sold to medical, dental, pharmaceutical, industrial, food processing, and laboratory customers.
• Peel & Reveal Labels Multi-layer labels sold as a discrete product offering, allowing hidden on-pack promotions, secondary barcodes/QR codes, or regulatory compliance messages to be revealed when the consumer peels back the top layer.
• Serialised Barcode Labels Uniquely identifiable serialised barcode labels supplied within customer-defined number ranges, with optional colour coding and peelable adhesives for track-and-trace applications in regulated industries such as pharmaceuticals and chemicals.
• FlexPack Range Flexible Packaging Flexible packaging product line that complements the core label business, supplying primary flexible packaging formats to food, drinks, and consumer-goods manufacturers.
• Mercian Zero Sustainable Labelling Service Standalone sustainability programme offering recyclable paper substrates and a closed-loop liner recycling service to customers seeking measurable ESG outcomes from their packaging supply chain.
• Mercian Gold Premium Embellishment Service Premium embellishment finishing service (gold foil stamping and other luxury finishes) sold as a discrete add-on product for premium labels in wines, spirits, beauty, and luxury goods markets.
• Label Design Service Professional label design service supplied to customers who need on-brand, regulation-compliant artwork produced before label manufacture, contracted as a discrete workstream.
• Pre-Press and Colour Management Service Standalone pre-press and colour management service that ensures consistent, on-spec colour reproduction across the company's flexo, digital, screen, and inkjet presses for customers with strict colour-critical brands.

Quantifiable outcome

• 3 working days from artwork approval to despatch (industry-beating lead times)
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments13 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Computype Europe LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 March 2021Mercian Labels acquired a portion of business from Computype Europe Ltd as part of their strategic mission to grow through acquisition. The acquisition included customers in blood transfusion, automotive, laundries, and libraries sectors. These areas require critical specialist constructions of adhesives, inks and substrates where Mercian Labels has developed high level of technical expertise over 50 years. Computype re-strategised to focus on their core product lines for the European market. Adrian Steele, MD of Mercian Labels, stated they recently invested in state-of-the-art equipment to expand capabilities in high volumes of variable data and are pioneering development in intelligent industrial automation.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Reflex Labels: UK-based self-adhesive label manufacturer serving food & drink, pharma, and industrial customers with flexographic and digital printing, the closest like-for-like UK competitor to Mercian Labels.
• ePac Holdings: US-founded digital-only flexible packaging and label converter network competing in short-run, high-variability digital label work; comparable end-customers and digital-print capability to Mercian's digital label offering.
• WS Packaging Group: North American label converter serving consumer packaged goods with pressure-sensitive, expanded content and security labels; comparable variable-data/barcode and security-label portfolio to Mercian.
• Smith & McLaurin: Long-established UK self-adhesive label manufacturer with similar heritage, vertical specialization and direct-sales model; directly comparable mid-sized UK competitor in food, drinks and industrial label markets.

Broad incumbents

• CCL Industries: World's largest specialty label converter offering pressure-sensitive labels, security labels and healthcare labeling across 40+ countries; represents the global incumbent benchmark for Mercian's LabelLock/security and pharmaceutical lines.
• Coveris: European packaging and label manufacturer supplying self-adhesive labels, sleeve labels and flexible packaging into food, beverage and healthcare; directly comparable product set and vertical mix, but at significantly larger scale than Mercian.
• Constantia Flexibles: Austrian-headquartered flexible packaging and label group with major food & pharma exposure, competing with Mercian's FlexPack and pharmaceutical label lines through a broader European footprint.
• Multi-Color Corporation: Global pressure-sensitive label converter (now part of CCL Industries) serving wine, spirits, food and consumer brands; comparable premium embellishment and variable-data capabilities to Mercian Gold and Mercian's core PSL business.

Regional players

• Skanem Group: Nordic-headquartered self-adhesive label manufacturer with operations across Europe, comparable in vertical mix (food, beverage, personal care) but serving a different primary geography from Mercian.

Others

• Asteria Group: Mercian Labels' parent company since June 2026 and operator of a 41-location European label production network; relevant as the platform buyer that provides procurement scale, geographic reach and cross-customer leverage.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-mercian-labels-group
• Xx.com/mercianlabels
• Facebookfacebook.com/MercianLabels

Compliance14 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mercian Labels