Edge Imaging, Walter Capital Partners appoints James Aziz at new CEO

GaryPageau
James Aziz is the new CEO of Edge Imaging

Edge Imaging and Walter Capital Partners announce the appointment of James Aziz as CEO of Edge Imaging effective March 16, 2020. Aziz joins Edge, the award-winning Canadian-owned school photography company from Transcontinental’s Premedia services for Printing and Packaging.

Aziz’s expertise in finance, operational reporting, continuous improvement, manufacturing systems, cost-containment, restructuring, mergers and acquisitions, as well as strategic planning will continue to successfully drive the Edge brand across Canada, the company said.

“We are thrilled to welcome James to the Edge Imaging family,” says Dave Pond, outgoing president and CEO, and co-founder. “This is the first time that Edge has a CEO with a true blend of finance, sales, manufacturing, and strategy experience and we are excited to see how he shapes the future of Edge and the school photography industry as a whole.”

Pond will remain actively involved in the business in the capacity of co-founder and executive vice president, business development. In this role, he will oversee sales, mergers, and acquisitions and will offer ongoing strategic counsel to support the successful transition of Aziz into the CEO seat.

Prior to his appointment Aziz spent 20 years at Transcontinental Printing and Packaging and was most recently senior vice-president, Premedia Operations, where he was responsible for an $80 million annual business and achieved improved profitability through the implementation of a customer-first sales approach resulting in increased organic year-over-year growth.

“As someone who has experienced school photography as a parent and an end consumer, I am looking forward to understanding the business and industry end to end and identifying how we can capitalize on opportunities to grow revenues in addition to driving continuous improvement initiatives, thus creating value for both our internal and external stakeholders,” says Aziz.

“James has a long-standing, proven track record,” states Éric Phaneuf, President and CEO of Walter Capital Partners and Chairman of the Edge Imaging Board of Directors. “We are confident that the combination of this with his strong work ethic and ability to deliver results through empowerment, teamwork and change management will not only shape the future success of Edge but the school photography industry as well.”

Based in Burlington, Ontario, Edge Imaging is the largest Canadian owned school photography company, employing more than 400 people in Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta and British Columbia, during peak season. The fully integrated business has been In business since 2005.

Walter Capital Partners, based in Montreal, is a private equity firm and part of Walter Financial and the Walter Group of Companies. Walter Capital invests capital and know-how in established small and medium-sized businesses to help accelerate their growth.