Business Conditions on Rise for Some Printers
Staff -- graphic arts online, 6/1/2002
Business conditions for printers in the United States are on the up once again, according to data released in the new Spring 2002 TrendWatch Graphic Arts Printing survey. But while things are turning around for printing firms overall—and for commercial printers in particular—the numbers, while certainly appearing to get better, still aren't abundantly heartening.
Turning to specific business conditions, only 14% of firms responding to the survey report excellent circumstances, while 37% cite poor conditions; another 37% report moderate conditions, while just 12% reveal very bad conditions. Indeed, the number of firms reporting that they have been experiencing generally good business conditions (excellent as well as OK) is roughly equal to that of companies reporting overall bad conditions (poor as well as very bad).
This all may sound dismal, but comparatively speaking, the TrendWatch Graphic Arts Business Conditions Index (BCI) couldn't have gone much lower than it did for printers in Fall 2001 (see chart). Worse still was the BCI rating for prepress firms during this period, which was down to -28.50—a record low for any market that TrendWatch Graphic Arts ever has surveyed.
It's still tempting to blame the economy for these situations, as the top business challenge cited in this latest TrendWatch survey still is "economic conditions" (51% of respondents reported it as such), while "improving economic conditions" remains the number-one sales opportunity (56%).
However, despite what many may think, the economy has not been the biggest singular problem all along. Looking at the BCI chart, printers hit a high point in Fall 1997—it's been a downward trend ever since this period, even during the economic boom experienced between 1998 and 2000.
In other words, printers' business conditions are not inextricably linked to overall economic health. Regardless, printing businesses looking to stay in the game for the long haul still need to look beyond the press toward value-added services that can complement and supplement their core printing activities.
