I have to start this editorial with a massive thank you. That 343 large-format print providers from across the UK and Ireland took the trouble to complete the 2014 Widthwise Survey was astounding. It means the newly published seventh annual Widthwise Report, based on the data from that survey, is truly representative of the sector and its issues.
If you were at Sign and Digital UK last week you may well have grabbed a hard copy of the Widthwise 2014 Report. Given that it makes interesting reading in terms of investment plans and business diversification, we made sure it was out in time for the key show season, which of course continues this month with Fespa Digital.
At the back of this issue, I’ve used the Zeitgeist slot to flag up the key findings from the latest survey, so if you want to know how wide-format margins are doing, where the investment is going, which niche markets are catching printers’ attention and which aren’t, you’ll get a heads-up there, but the full report obviously goes into detail and contains all findings in graph form as well as providing analysis and comment. You can get hold of a digital version of this year’s report for free at www.imagereportsmag.co.uk/widthwise and read it as a standalone piece of research into the current shape of the market, or in conjunction with previous Widthwise Reports for a year-on-year analysis.
If your company is breaking the mould and not conforming to the general findings of the Widthwise Survey, please get in touch – I’d love to hear your story. And if you would like to see the 2015 survey expanded in any way, please drop me a line too – it won’t be long before summer’s been and gone and planning starts all over again!
Editor, Lesley Simpson
lesley.simpson@imagereportsmag.co.uk
Tel. 01932 707173
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