ALTKIN
ALTKIN is the alternative and circular printing solutions division of French conglomerate ARMOR Group, producing remanufactured printer cartridges and industrial water-based inks covering 95% of the inkjet, laser, and copier printer market for enterprise B2B customers seeking OEM alternatives.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded-
- HeadquartersNantes, France
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What ALTKIN does
ALTKIN operates as the alternative and circular printing solutions division of ARMOR Group, a French industrial conglomerate with over 100 years of history and global leadership in thermal transfer technology. The operating entity is ARMOR Print Solutions S.A.S., registered in Nantes, France (RCS 892 312 067, share capital €11,600,000). ALTKIN produces remanufactured printing cartridges and industrial water-based inks designed to provide an alternative to OEM printer consumables, with a product footprint covering 95% of the inkjet, laser, and copier printer market. The portfolio is organized across five sub-brands: OWA (certified circular print solutions with eco-labels), WECARE (value consumables across inkjet, laser, copier, impact ribbons, label tape, thermal ribbons, and large format), THS (consumables, spare parts, and software for copiers and MPS devices), Dyalog (managed print services software), and A2I (Altkin Industrial Inks Lab for water-based inks).
The company's core technology rests on a circular production model in which cartridges are rebuilt from recycled units and 100% tested to European standards, paired with proprietary water-based ink formulations developed in-house for porous and non-porous substrates across multiple printheads. Production is supported by an in-house single-pass printer for production-environment simulation, high-tech laboratory equipment, and a fully automated food-compliant ink factory. ALTKIN monetizes through unit sales of remanufactured consumables (OWA, WECARE, THS), subscription/recurring revenue from MPS software (Dyalog), industrial ink sales (A2I), and private-label manufacturing for tailored customer needs. Its go-to-market is B2B enterprise sales with a stated value proposition of minimum 30% cost savings versus OEM products, OEM-equivalent or superior print quality, hardware lifetime extension, and circular-economy compliance.
ALTKIN serves enterprises seeking alternatives to OEM consumables and sustainability-focused organizations across a horizontal segmentation. Operational scale includes 5 logistics and distribution centers, 18,300 m² of logistics area, 2M+ cartridges reused annually, and 80 tonnes of ink produced per month. The company operates globally with a particularly visible EMEA presence, maintains a multi-language digital presence (English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Dutch), and holds ISO 14001, GDPR, WEEE, ROHS, REACH, CLP, and RFAR certifications, alongside Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) status.
ALTKIN firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- ALTKIN
- Legal name
- Armor Print Solutions S.A.S.
- Website
- https://altkin-group.com
- Company type
- Private
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- ALTKIN is the alternative and circular printing solutions division of French conglomerate ARMOR Group, producing remanufactured printer cartridges and industrial water-based inks covering 95% of the inkjet, laser, and copier printer market for enterprise B2B customers seeking OEM alternatives.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
ALTKIN industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Printing Consumables
- NAICS
- Printing Ink Manufacturing (325910), Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers (42342), Support Activities for Printing (32312)
- SIC
- Wholesale-Professional & Commercial Equipment & Supplies (5040), Service Industries For The Printing Trade (2790)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Inkjet Printers (HDACAEAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Packaging Inks (IMAEAHAH), Printer, Copier & Imaging Equipment Recycling (MPS Returns) (BPALAIAJ)
Keywords
Where ALTKIN is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Nantes
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
ALTKIN business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Remanufactured Printing Consumables: Sale of refurbished/remanufactured printing cartridges (OWA, WECARE, THS brands) covering 95% of Inkjet, Laser and Copier printers. Products offer OEM quality at best price with environmental benefits.
- MPS Solutions: Managed Print Services including software and solutions (Dyalog brand) that simplify printer fleet management and free customers from OEM constraints.
- Industrial Inks: Water-based industrial inks for porous and non-porous substrates produced at the Altkin Industrial Inks Lab (A2I) with food-compliant automated production.
- Private Label/Tailored Solutions: Made-to-measure private label versions of all products for unique customer requirements.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Alternative printing consumables with OEM quality at reduced cost |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels2 records
ALTKIN product offering
Product offeringCore offering
ALTKIN manufactures and sells remanufactured printer cartridges and industrial water-based inks as alternatives to OEM consumables, distributed through sub-brands OWA (certified circular), WECARE (best value), and THS (comprehensive range), covering 95% of Inkjet, Laser, and Copier printers. The company also provides Dyalog MPS software for printer fleet management and offers private label/tailored print solutions to enterprise customers seeking to break free from OEM constraints while saving a minimum of 30% versus original products.
Product overview
ALTKIN is an expert in responsible and circular printing solutions, offering a portfolio of alternative printing consumables and services that liberate digital printing from OEM constraints. The portfolio consists of multiple sub-brands: OWA (certified circular print solution with eco-labels for recycled cartridges), WECARE (best value consumables), THS (spare parts and software), Dyalog (MPS fleet management software), and A2I (industrial water-based inks lab). Additionally, the company offers private label/tailored solutions for custom needs. All products are produced in ISO-certified factories with a focus on remanufactured consumables to combat planned obsolescence.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- OWA: THE certified circular print solution for responsible businesses. Offers eco-labels for a wide range of references. All products are rebuilt from recycled cartridges and 100% tested to European standards. Consumables cover 95% of Inkjet, Laser and Copier printers in the market.
- WECARE
- THS
- Dyalog
- Altkin Industrial Inks Lab (A2I)
Products and services
- OWA Circular Print Solution Certified circular print solution offering ecolabeled remanufactured cartridges rebuilt from recycled materials and 100% tested to European standards. Covers 95% of Inkjet, Laser, and Copier printers in the market, delivering OEM quality at lower cost with environmental benefits for responsible businesses.
- WECARE Printing Consumables Value-focused printing consumables line combining print quality, guarantee, and savings for inkjet, laser, copier, impact ribbons, label tape, thermal ribbons, and large format printers. Positioned as the best value for money alternative to OEM consumables.
- THS Printer and MPS Solutions Comprehensive range of consumables, spare parts, and software solutions for copiers, printers, and MPS devices, targeting customers with mixed fleet environments.
- Dyalog MPS (Managed Print Services) Managed Print Services solution that simplifies printer fleet management software, freeing customers from the constraints of managing a printer fleet while maintaining independence from OEM printer manufacturers without having to change their existing fleet.
- Altkin Industrial Inks Lab (A2I) - Water-Based Industrial Inks Industrial inks laboratory designing water-based inks for porous and non-porous substrates for different printheads. Features an in-house developed single-pass printer to simulate production environments, high-tech laboratory equipment, and a fully automated food-compliant ink production factory producing 80 tonnes of ink per month.
- Private Label / Tailored Printing Solutions Made-to-measure private label versions of all Altkin products offering tailored alternative print solutions for unique customer requirements, enabling customers to source custom-branded remanufactured consumables and MPS offerings.
Quantifiable outcome
- Minimum 30% savings versus original products
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use ALTKIN
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
ALTKIN technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
ALTKIN partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- OWA SolutionscoreCertified circular print solution brand for responsible businesses. Offers ecolabels for wide range of references, all products rebuilt from recycled cartridges and 100% tested to European standards. Covers 95% of Inkjet, Laser and Copier printers.
- WECAREcoreBest value for money printing consumables brand combining print quality, guarantee and savings for inkjet, laser, copier, impact ribbons, label tape, thermal ribbons, large format.
- THScoreRange of consumables, spare parts and software solutions for copiers, printers and MPS devices.
- DyalogcoreMPS solutions that simplify printer fleet management, freeing customers from constraints of managing printer fleet while maintaining independence from OEMs.
- Altkin Industrial Inks Lab (A2I)coreIndustrial inks laboratory designing water-based inks for porous and non-porous substrates for different printheads. Features in-house developed single-pass printer simulation, high-tech lab equipment, and fully automated food-compliant production.
- OVHminorWebsite hosting provider for altkin-group.com domain.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
ALTKIN competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Ricoh: Ricoh is a major OEM for office printing hardware, toner, and managed print services. ALTKIN competes against Ricoh's consumables franchise with remanufactured alternatives and offers competing MPS capabilities through Dyalog, making Ricoh a broad incumbent peer.
- HP Inc. HP Inc. is the dominant OEM for Inkjet and Laser printers and their branded consumables. It is a broad incumbent because ALTKIN's core business — remanufactured cartridges for HP-compatible printers — directly competes with HP's OEM cartridge franchise, though HP operates at much greater scale across the full hardware-plus-consumables stack.
- Brother Industries: Brother is a major printer OEM with a strong footprint in laser and inkjet segments. ALTKIN's WECARE and OWA product lines include remanufactured consumables compatible with Brother devices, making Brother a relevant broad incumbent in the same downstream printer market.
- Canon Inc. Canon is a leading OEM of inkjet and laser printers and proprietary cartridges. ALTKIN competes against Canon's OEM consumables with remanufactured and compatible alternatives for Canon printer models, making Canon a broad incumbent that is the upstream target of ALTKIN's alternative-consumables strategy.
- Lexmark International: Lexmark is a printer and consumables OEM with a strong managed print services offering. ALTKIN's Dyalog MPS business and remanufactured cartridges for Lexmark-compatible devices make it a relevant broad incumbent in the same enterprise print market.
- Kyocera Document Solutions: Kyocera Document Solutions is an OEM of printers and multifunction devices with a long-life consumables model. ALTKIN's WECARE and THS product lines include compatible and remanufactured consumables for Kyocera-style devices, making it a relevant broad incumbent in enterprise printing.
Direct peers
- Static Control Components: Static Control is a major supplier of components and remanufacturing solutions for printer cartridges and imaging systems, including chips and toners. It is a direct peer in the alternative printing consumables ecosystem, supporting both remanufacturers and competing as one itself.
- Katun Corporation: Katun is a leading independent supplier of compatible and remanufactured printer consumables, imaging components, and MPS solutions. It is a direct peer to ALTKIN given parallel business models around alternative cartridges, MPS software, and channel-based distribution to dealers and resellers.
- Clover Imaging Group: Clover Imaging is one of the largest independent remanufacturers of printer cartridges (inkjet and laser) globally, with remanufacturing, MPS, and private-label offerings. It is a direct peer to ALTKIN because both compete head-to-head as third-party alternatives to OEM consumables across similar customer segments and product categories.
Emerging players
- EcoPrint Center / Sustainable printing brands (e.g., PrintReleaf): PrintReleaf and similar sustainability-focused printing ecosystem players are emerging participants in the circular printing narrative. They are an emerging player peer because they address overlapping sustainability-conscious customers that ALTKIN targets, though they operate via forest-offset models rather than remanufactured consumables.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
ALTKIN social profiles
Digital presenceALTKIN compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance7 records
ALTKIN financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
ALTKIN leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
ALTKIN subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries5 records
ALTKIN funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
ALTKIN M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about ALTKIN
What does ALTKIN do?
ALTKIN manufactures and sells remanufactured printer cartridges and industrial water-based inks as alternatives to OEM consumables, distributed through sub-brands OWA (certified circular), WECARE (best value), and THS (comprehensive range), covering 95% of Inkjet, Laser, and Copier printers. The company also provides Dyalog MPS software for printer fleet management and offers private label/tailored print solutions to enterprise customers seeking to break free from OEM constraints while saving a minimum of 30% versus original products.
Is ALTKIN a public or private company?
ALTKIN is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was ALTKIN founded?
ALTKIN was founded in -1. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is ALTKIN based?
ALTKIN is headquartered in Nantes, France, in the Europe region.
How does ALTKIN make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Remanufactured Printing Consumables are the primary driver. The others are MPS Solutions, industrial Inks and private Label/Tailored Solutions.
Who are ALTKIN's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Ricoh, HP Inc., Brother Industries, Canon Inc., Lexmark International and Kyocera Document Solutions. Direct peers are Static Control Components, Katun Corporation and Clover Imaging Group. EcoPrint Center / Sustainable printing brands (e.g., PrintReleaf) is listed as an emerging player.
Does ALTKIN have an API?
No public API is recorded for ALTKIN.
What industry is ALTKIN in?
ALTKIN's product category is Printing Consumables. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDACAEAA, Inkjet Printers, with a secondary code of IMAEAHAH, Packaging Inks. Its NAICS code is 325910 and its SIC code is 5040.