An engineering graduate, James Butcher has spent the last 20 years in the packaging industry – specializing in the design, development and manufacturing of coding, labeling and packaging inspection solutions.  

Following a successful stint as Global Product Manager for the market leader in thermal transfer coding equipment, James then became a founding director of Claricom Limited in 1999. The independent company was launched for the sole purpose of developing enterprise-wide solutions to eliminate coding errors and improve accuracy and efficiency in the food manufacturing operations and supply chain.  Claricom introduced the Package Coding Management Systems to the market and is now recognized as the market leader in the field.

In 2006 Claricom launched a separate Brand Protection division – CounterFight – using proven Claricom printer driver technology. CounterFight, with the world's largest portfolio of connectivity software ('drivers') for in-plant coding and labeling equipment, is unique in its ability to use pre-existing date/lot coding equipment. This avoids capital expenditure while providing high-speed (up to 1,500 ppm) mass-serialization and security coding and ensures a simple, low-cost implementation without compromising production performance or efficiency.