James Haggas is used to mates in the pub asking him how his printing business is doing.

Little do they know that this extrovert 40-something heads up a company that is harnessing the latest digital technology and revolutionising retailing.

James is the great grandson of the founder of the Valley Printing Company, which started life in Cleckheaton but for 40 years or so has operated from Harden Beck, near Bingley.

His forefather wouldn’t recognise it today- except perhaps for the printing business that now accounts for only 20 per cent of this £30 million plus turnover operation, also now known as the Valley Group.

It’s activities now range far beyond print, including high-end shopfitting, retail point of sale development, design and installation for many of the world’s leading brands; analysis of consumer trends and shopping habits and now a new ‘app’ that will influence shoppers’ buying choices.

James believes the latter is a game changer and puts Valley in a world-leading position in this cut-throat sector.

The Desire smartphone app has been developed in conjunction with IT giant Apple of which Valley is an affiliate company. It enables consumers to research and store their favourite items – and share their likes on social media – and an in-store brainbox, developed by Valley, will prompt them to buy it when they go to a store.

James said: “Two and a half years ago I was lucky to be involved in something then called bluetooth low energy which was in its embryonic stage. This has since evolved into the Apple product called iBeacon which is going to be the biggest mobile technology available.

“The estimated value of this market is more than $4 billion and we are leading that field.

“We’re playing an international game but the product has developed in Cambridge and here in Yorkshire .

“The Desire app means that I could see an advert in the T&A, store it as a ‘ like’ on my app and next time I’m in a store with the technology it will remind me so I can decide whether to buy it. By sharing their likes on Facebook and other sites it will also act as a prompt to friends and family when deciding what to buy as a gift for someone.

“It will also tell me how many times I’ve visited that store; when I engaged with it in the T&A; how long it took me from reading the advert to going into the store, how many times I’ve been in the store; and even how long I was near the product in the store, did I test it, did I research it online.

“This is invaluable information to retailers while providing a convenient digital product for shoppers. It maps the whole purchasing journey.

“Valley has developed the whole thing – the electronics; the interface between the electronic board and the product display and the app which talks to it.

“We’re looking for outside investment to enable us to take these new developments further but it’s looking very good.”

James said the US would be the biggest market for the kit initially and Valley would be promoting it through its offices in New York and Chicago, just part of the group’ network of sites which now extend to China, India, Europe and Scandinavia.

Valley is working closely with the likes of McDonalds, JD Sports and Nike as well as retailers such as Tesco and Sainsbury’s about being on the Desire platform .

This involvement in revolutionary retail strategies is part of a plan to transform the old Valley Printing business taken at a family meeting a decade ago.

“It was clear back then that remaining only in print was not a good place to be going forward. We got together as a family to consider the options which were to sell up and go our separate ways or reshape the whole business, which is what we agreed to do.

“We’d done our research and it was clear that things were moving towards increased automation and new technologies. Business was changing and we had to look at new ideas as the print business was becoming increasingly challenged. For anyone in straight print now things are tough,” he said.

Innovation is nothing new at Valley as his late father and uncle, who were running the business in the 1960s, invented a plastic printing process which put Valley at the forefront of the industry at the time and led its initial move into retail displays, then as a sideline.

James succeeded his father Robert as managing director, but it was no shoe-in. He started at 16 and was shown no favours because he was the boss’s son. After two years as the print works ‘dogsbody’ James was given a trial in sales after a rep was convicted of drink -driving.

“My father challenged me to bring in £100,000 of new business during the three month tidal period and the incentive was that he would buy me a nice car. I struck lucky and secured two key accounts with Sealink ferries and ICI Fibres in Harrogate when Nigel Mansell’s F1 car was covered with its Tactel brand – we won the work for that. The contract was worth £500,000. Dad had to give me the job permanently and I got an Escort XR3 as well,” recalled James, whose initial ambition was to be a chef. Cooking remains a passion.

Valley’s senior management team also includes his brother Jonathan who is operation and commercial director and sister Julia Heywood, a director who is responsible for relationships with major customers.

Rather than relying on organic growth, Valley’s change programme has involved strategic acquisitions. Nearly three years ago it bought a Leicester firm which had been the world’s leading retail marketing display company but had lost its way. CPI has formed the basis of Valley’s highly successful point of sale design and development operations.

The odds are that, whether it’s posh shops or mainstream high street outlets, Valley has had a role in what you see in front of you.

The company, which now employs more than 200 people in various locations, is currently working on a £3.5 million contract for Dulux to provide in-store units which help people choose the right paint.

It recently devised systems for Levi’s in up-market stores in Paris and London and more than 130 stores. For pharmaceuticals giant Sonifa it created a point of sale system which helps customers choose the correct health product. They press a button to enter the complaint and the display illuminates the correct Nature’s World remedy.

Harrods, Selfridges, Next, Virgin, Chanel, Disney, Lancambe, Hewlett Packard, Omega, Microsoft, Tag Hauer, No 7, Chanel – the list goes on. Valley is the first port of call for numerous top brands looking to catch the consumer’s eye.

Valley has also piloted two ‘stores of the future’ for Dixons Retail at Heathrow terminal 5 and Gatwick.

Valley also has an operation in India which covers the Asian Pacific region and also acquired Leeds-based marketing specialist The Shopper Agency, which provides insights into shopping habits.

“The structure of the group now means that we are perfectly positioned for any global work, such as a global launch for Beats by Dre, a headphones company acquired by Apple for $3 billion. It’s really exciting.

“We are also probably the only company round here that can say it’s working with the world’s biggest microchip maker Intel. We’re looking at digital mobile payment systems which will mean you can pay in advance for goods, shake your mobile phone and they will know it’s paid for when you collect from the store.

“It’s all about being in on the ground floor of future retailing,” said James, whose business recently won the world’s best retail agency title.