The British love an underdog, the maverick, the outsider. It has provided some of the great engineering and athletic feats of the last couple of centuries. As a consequence artisan businesses, print included, are the heart of the UK economy. They have produced results equivalent to punching far above their weight. The question is now whether this is suitable to the current century. This is, of course, too big a question to be addressed in three paragraphs.
It is, however, becoming a problem. The structure of the UK printing industry, with very few large businesses and a vast number of companies below £10 million of turnover. Lifestyle businesses will always be around, but these are no longer lifestyle enterprises. They have responsibilities to staff, to suppliers, to customers and to their future. However, if that future requires reinvestment, there are going to be challenges. The price tag for most new technology has passed what most can afford. Very few printers will be able to afford a Landa, however much they covet one. And the same applies to many of the inkjet technologies: investment simply cannot be justified.
Without investment the future is at risk, the more so as the impact of the last 18 months has been to accelerate the transition towards digital thinking as much as towards digital printing. That investment is going to have to encompass the internet of things, sustainability, big data. New skills as much as new technology are required. It is going to be increasingly difficult for mid-sized companies to stay in the game. More and more owners need to consider mergers, the sorts of combinations that brought Prime, Proco and Precision together last year, that has led to CS Labels joining Asteria, that must logically lead to further national and transnational deals. These are professional, process driven and increasingly automated operations. The days when mavericks can make a greater impression than their size would suggest are passing. Those making decisions about the future of their businesses should remember this.
Perspiration is winning over inspiration
The British love an underdog, the maverick, the outsider. It has provided some of the great engineering and athletic feats of the last couple of centuries. As a consequence artisan businesses, print included, are the heart of the UK economy. They have produced results equivalent to punching far above their weight. The question is now whether this is suitable to the current century. This is, of course, too big a question to be addressed in three paragraphs.
It is, however, becoming a problem. The structure of the UK printing industry, with very few large businesses and a vast number of companies below £10 million of turnover. Lifestyle businesses will always be around, but these are no longer lifestyle enterprises. They have responsibilities to staff, to suppliers, to customers and to their future. However, if that future requires reinvestment, there are going to be challenges. The price tag for most new technology has passed what most can afford. Very few printers will be able to afford a Landa, however much they covet one. And the same applies to many of the inkjet technologies: investment simply cannot be justified.
Without investment the future is at risk, the more so as the impact of the last 18 months has been to accelerate the transition towards digital thinking as much as towards digital printing. That investment is going to have to encompass the internet of things, sustainability, big data. New skills as much as new technology are required. It is going to be increasingly difficult for mid-sized companies to stay in the game. More and more owners need to consider mergers, the sorts of combinations that brought Prime, Proco and Precision together last year, that has led to CS Labels joining Asteria, that must logically lead to further national and transnational deals. These are professional, process driven and increasingly automated operations. The days when mavericks can make a greater impression than their size would suggest are passing. Those making decisions about the future of their businesses should remember this.
Gareth Ward
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