Features

Over the course of 2021, Richard Clark of Raccoon has been providing this diary on how his business has coped. Here’s his end of year report and HOPES for the NEW YEAR.

It is 14 years since we conducted the first Widthwise survey of the UK/ Northern Ireland’s large-format printers. We’ve probably seen more disruption in the marketplace in the last year than we did in all of those previous ones put together, and 2021 is proving to be ‘the great reset’.  What that means for PSPs in this sector is where we hope to shed some light IN our 2021 Widthwise Report, published alongside this issue. You can download it at https://imagereportsmag.co.uk/widthwise, but here’s a précis of the key findings to whet your appetite.

Greens Signmakers in Hull has been around a while - it was founded as a traditional sign writing operation by Reg Green back in 1963. When his grandson Lawrence Green took over the helm in 2018 his first focus was to refurbish the printroom and extend the company’s wide-format offering. The newest addition is a HP R2000 Latex printer. I talked with Lawrence about that investment, and what it means for the company’s development. 

This has been the year of the ‘great reset’ for so many UK businesses, and the majority of those in the large-format sector are looking towards 2022 with optimism. Aren’t they? This autumn we ran two Round Table discussions - one with print chiefs, and one with suppliers - to find out if much had changed since the Widthwise 2021 poll at the start of the year, and before we kick-off the next one in January. This was the upshot…

Returning to the workplace - business as usual or a new normal?

From Menzies Law

What technical developments will most impact large-format digital inkjet in 2022 and beyond? That’s the question we asked a number of industry software and hardware developers to help you get ahead of the game. Will these responses help you do that?

It’s been a tough year, with many PSPs diversifying to cushion the fall in work from traditional markets. So could textile printing for the likes of the décor market be worth considering? Robin East, CMYUK group sales and marketing director, argues the case for doing so. 

The Netherlands may be flat, but organisers are hoping Fespa Global Print Expo - in Amsterdam, 12-15 October - won’t be. travel restrictions may have been eased, but how can we expect to see what is normally a ‘must attend’ event pan out this time around?

Decisions are the lifeblood of a business, which makes it all the more remarkable that we make so many of them in a disjointed, ad hoc and impulsive fashion. The good news, as American billionaire Warren Buffett likes to point out, is that you only have to get a few of them right, as long as you don’t get too many of them wrong. This guidance might help you improve your success rate.

Earlier this year MacroArt appointed a non-executive chairman to help it realign and grow its business. The Covid pandemic having caused so many PSPs to reassess their operations, I talked with MD Michael Green about the value of bringing in non-executive directors.