Modern US Stamp Printers

Have you ever wondered who prints stamps for the United States Postal Service? See below for information on a few of the most recent printers. Currently, stamps are printed by Ashton Potter and Banknote Corporation of America.

 

US #2750-53

Ashton Potter:

  • Ashton Potter, established in 1925, began printing stamps for Canada Post in 1970.
  • After opening a facility in the United States 20 years later, they secured their first stamp-printing contract with the USPS.
  • The Circus stamps of 1993 (#2750–53) were the first US stamps Aston Potter printed.
US #2475

Avery Dennison:

  • Avery Dennison was chosen to produce the first self-adhesive stamp, the 1974 Dove Weather Vane Christmas issue (#1552), which was considered a failure.
  • The USPS asked Avery Dennison to try again, and in 1990, the company produced the 25¢ Flag stamp printed on plastic (#2475). This second attempt was more successful.
  • Avery Dennison would continue printing self-adhesive stamps for the USPS until it’s stamp-printing division was purchased by CCL Label in 2013.
US #2813

Banknote Corporation of America:

  • In 1989, US Banknote Corporation (USBC) sought to buy American Bank Note Company.
  • To avoid anti-trust laws, USBC worked with the French securities printer François-Charles Oberthur Fiduciaire (FCOF) to create Banknote Corporation of America (BCA) to act as competition.
  • The first US stamp produced by BCA was the 1994 Heart Rising Love stamp (#2813). Ownership of BCA was transferred from FCOF to Sennett Security Products, which is now owned by CCL Label.
US #4808

CCL Label:

  • CCL Label acquired the stamp-printing division of Avery Dennison in 2013
  • The first US stamps printed under CCL Label were the five non-denominated pre-sorted standard Snowflakes of 2013 (#4808-12).
  • In 2015, CCL Label bought Sennett Security Products, which owns Banknote Corporation of America. New stamps are printed by Banknote.
US #2597

Sennett Security Products:

  • Sennett Security Products (SSP) was formerly known as Stamp Venturers, Inc.
  • The first US stamp produced by Stamp Venturers was the 1992 Eagle & Shield stamp with the denomination in red (#2597).
  • In 1998, the company changed its name to Sennett Security Products.
  • SSP Acquired Banknote Corporation of America before being bought itself by CCL Label in 2015.
US #2440

US Banknote Company:

  • The first US stamp printed by US Banknote Company (USBC) was the 1990 Love stamp (#2440).
  • In 1989, after completing a merger with with the American Bank Note Company (ABNCo), all stamp printing was completed though ABNCo.
  • In 1995, the company changed its name to American Banknote Corporation.

Want to learn about historic US stamp printers? Click here!

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