PRIMIR (Print Industries Market Information and Research Organization), the research unit of NPES, has released a new video that brings to life the key findings and new business strategies from the landmark study, The Future of Print in the U.S. – Landscape, Implications and Opportunities. The fascinating, informative and revealing 40-minute discussion explores the unprecedented and major drivers of change, dramatic implications for the entire print community, and real-world examples of adaptation strategies and successful business models that leverage new market paradigms. Since 2000, the U.S. print industry has weathered tumultuous changes. Shipments have declined over 40% and more than 30% of businesses have consolidated or disappeared, said the organization. This evolution continues, as potentially another 7,000 to 8,000 businesses will be lost over the next five years. For the next decade, the U.S. commercial printing industry will continue to grapple with a rapidly changing environment as outside forces dampen the demand for print.
Recognizing the impacts – which include changing consumer preferences and the direction of both the U.S. economy and print-related industries such as technology, advertising, publishing and packaging – is critical. The video features in-depth dialogue between study author David Humphreys of The Economist Intelligence Unit, two Delphi members from the original research panel – Steve Mattingly of Southern Lithoplate and Bryan Hall of Graphic Visual Solutions; and PRIMIR staff. It provides compelling and objective insights into the challenges confronting the printing industry today.
According to the study, successful printers in the future will shift their businesses away from the traditional print-based model and embrace concepts such as differentiation and specialization in a particular niche, providing new services, and improving human capital. Printers that fail to adapt will likely be acquired by larger and more progressive printers, the study revealed. Similarly, vendors will need to quickly adapt their business models and products to support these successful commercial printers. They’ll need to innovate, both in terms of products and forging collaborative partnerships, to provide new business solutions.
The Future of Print in the U.S. – Landscape, Implications and Opportunities video is available at: http://tinyurl.com/zeped2y. To obtain a copy of the full study, contact Rekha Ratnam, Senior Director, PRIMIR Market Research, at rratnam@npes.org, or visit www.npes.org.
