Claverley Group

The acquisition of a broad range of specialist content and media brands demonstrates the commitment of the Group to offer an increasingly diverse portfolio of services to our millions of customers worldwide.
Phil Inman, Claverley CEO

1882

In 1882 the Evening Star Newspaper is bought by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and a few years later merges with the Evening Express. The Midland News Association (MNA) is formed with Thomas Graham on the board.
1890s

The Express & Star becomes firmly established as Wolverhampton’s one and only source of news. Just after the turn of the century Carnegie leaves the newspaper and the Express & Star is owned by the Graham family.
1920s

The Express & Star becomes known as ‘the Bible of the Black Country’, with sales reaching around 60,000 and sport being particularly successful.
1960s

The Shropshire Star is created by the Graham family and becomes the first British newspaper to print colour pictures of the moon landing. Stars News Shops Ltd is launched in 1967 with over 200 branches.
1980s

In 1980 the Midland News Association has the first editorial computer system in the British newspaper industry. The company goes on to have the first computerised newspaper library in Britain.
2000s

By 2007 the Express & Star has become one of the most technically advanced newspapers in the world, leading the way on production. Six days a week the company produces nine editions of the newspaper and almost 200,000 copies per day. The Shropshire Star is also growing and production reaches 100,000 copies per night.
2010s

Following the dotcom boom sales of newspapers start to decline. As part of their plan to create a future-ready business, Claverley Group buys Kennedy Publishing, Cubiquity and Bigkid and enhances the MNA’s digital offering.
2020s

As newspaper sales continue to decline Claverley Group sells the Midland News Association (MNA), Press Computer Systems (PCS) and Precision Colour Printing (PCP). The company buys HPCi Media, Lyonsdown and Extreme Group as it aims to enhance and expand its service offerings.

Exceptional as standard.

In every facet of the business, Claverley Group strives to go beyond aspirations for excellence, making exceptional service and integrity the minimum standard. Each business in its portfolio understands the importance of quality, and prides itself on meeting and exceeding customer demands.