Update

October 1, 2011

QP editorial director Bob Hall addresses the Minuteman Convention audience.

QUOTES

“Today tracking responses is fast and reliable when the mail piece includes a PURL or a QR code.” Nancy DeDiemar, page 40

“Sure, there are a lot of regulations, but don’t blame your poor financial performance on them.” John Stewart, page28

“Printing is no longer about the equipment. It is about how print will benefit the customer.” John Giles, page 34

“You can sell with the Internet, but you can’t sell against it.” Tom Crouser, page 38

NEWS

Minuteman Hosts World Expo 2011

Minuteman franchisees gathered at Caesar’s Palace in late July for their 2011 World Expo. The event was highlighted by a three day vendor show which offered attendees a chance to win a new Konica Minolta bizhub Press C7000 by completing a “passport” stamped by all the vendors exhibiting at the show. The conference itself featured a key note session by Bob Burg, author of the national bestsellers “The Go-Giver” and “Endless Referrals”. Educational sessions included breakout seminars on growing revenue with mail services and VDP and social media. QP columnist Dave Fellman presented a session titled “What it Really Means to be a Marketing Services Provider.” The final general session featured speaker, successful entrepreneur, and business leader Ron Baron who told attendees “You Can Sell at Higher Prices than Your Competitor.” The expo ended with a gala banquet and awards dinner where QP editorial director Bob Hall presented the QP/Minuteman Press Entrepreneurial Excellence Award to franchisee Keith Miller, whose Miller’s Minuteman shop is also in the QP Top 100 list.

(3 MMan photos)

www.myprintresource.com/10165492

Everything but Ordinary for Allegra Network

In an industry first, Allegra Network and AlphaGraphics wrapped their individual conferences around a joint trade show at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas in early August. Themed “Everything but Ordinary”, the Allegra event drew franchisees from both the Allegra Print & Imaging and Signs Now systems. Keynote speakers included former Kodak CMO Jeffrey Hayzlett, Zappos Insights product manager Robert Richman, IAPHC president Kevin Keane, and Signs Now UK master franchisor Bill Dunphy. Workshops covered social media, sales, sign laws, nonprofits, strategic marketing, Web-to-print, print brokering, diversification, and mobile applications. At the Best of the Best gala, Allegra owners Tom and Sandi Meesseman of Aiken, SC, were presented with the Allegra franchise system’s Best of the Best Award. The top honor is presented annually to one franchise location for outstanding sales volume, profitability, and other performance criteria. The Aiken, SC, team was also honored with an additional franchise system award, recognizing sales growth and excellence. “This award honors Tom and Sandi’s dedication to running a successful company that is client focused, strategically resourceful, and technologically advanced,” said Mike Marcantonio, president and CEO of Allegra Network. “They set the bar high and are a true inspiration for their peers and others in the industry as a whole.”

QP editorial director Bob Hall presented the Quick Printing Top Volume Award to Mario Grech and Bryan Tyll of Allegra in Plymouth, MI, and the Wide-Format Imaging Top Volume Award to Richard, Suzanne, Kenney & Kelley Prior of Signs Now in Clarksville, TN. The gala also included a tribute to retiring Allegra Network chairman Bill McIntyre which traced his 20 years as an integral part of building the Allegra system.

(4 Allegra Photos)

www.myprintresource.com/10003732

AlphaGraphics All In for the New Now

It was “All In” for the AlphaGraphics franchisees at their conference and joint trade show. Classes and workshops covered such areas as book publishing, self-promotion, sales management, social media, and Web-to-print. AlphaGraphics CEO Kevin Cushing presented a state of the network general session, and Mike Maddock of Idea Monkey gave the opening keynote. The other keynote speaker was Pete Goss, who appealed to attendees to “Dare to Dream.”

The event also featured the roll out of the new AlphaGraphics logo and tagline that reflect the system’s increasing movement into the marketing services area. The theme of the closing awards dinner was ’60s Glam, with attendees urged to dress for the era. Franchisees Bill and Clare Meehan were honored for having a $400,000 month, and Carlos Amorim accepted the Rising Star Award on behalf of his family’s franchise in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The Franny winners were Grant and Diana Richey of Bountiful, UT, who have recorded consistent record breaking sales since taking over the center. QP editorial director Bob Hall presented Network Builder awards to franchisees who “are role models in sharing their strengths and expertise with others.”

The 2012 AlphaGraphics conference will be held in Orlando, FL and will again feature a joint trade show with Allegra Network.

(4 AG photos)

www.myprintresource.com/10003758

Slow Growth for Print Profits

Printing industry profits were up 1.4% in 2010, compared to a loss of 1.4% in 2009, according to the recently completed 2011–2012 Printing Industries of America Ratios Survey. The sluggish economy and slowing print markets pulled down printers’ profitability in 2009, but improving economic conditions helped the print industry pick up steam and reverse the trends in 2010. The average printer’s before-tax profit on sales of 1.4% is still below the 3.0–3.4% range experienced from 1995–2001. This is the first increase in profits in the last three years; at this rate the industry earned approximately $2.1 billion in total profits in 2010.

www.myprintresource.com/10234209

Sales and Technical Skills Limit Cross-Media Growth

Of the 280 print service provider respondents to InfoTrends’ Leveraging Acquisitions to Accelerate the Pace of Cross-media Adoption survey, 119 were not currently offering cross-media services. When asked to identify the critical barriers that are hampering participation, the most common obstacles included limited sales skills and limited technical skills. Rather than building these skills internally, firms are aggressively buying expertise to strengthen their offerings and/or add services. Larger firms have begun to purchase smaller organizations that already have made the transition. These deals offer benefits to both companies. The acquiring firm buys the best practices, expertise, and a book of business, while the acquired firm has access to a larger resource pool. This trend will help accelerate the pace of participation in the cross-media space.

www.myprintresource.com/10013606

Consumer Bill Exempts Printing

The recently enacted Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) excludes children’s books and paper-based printed materials from third-party testing and certification requirements now in place for any and all products marketed to children under 12 years of age. “This is a big win for the industry!” Lisbeth Lyons, vice president of Government Affairs at Printing Industries of America said. “Even for printers who do not specialize in children’s books or printed materials geared toward children, this is still a significant industry accomplishment,” said Lyons. “Achieving an exclusion for books and paper-based printed materials from environmental and consumer regulation goes a long way to remind lawmakers that the printing and graphic communications industry’s products are sustainable, safe, and leading edge when it comes to environmentally sound manufacturing.”

www.myprintresource.com/10234209

Holiday Cards for Soldiers

For the fifth year, Pitney Bowes and the American Red Cross are teaming up to send one million cards to service members this holiday season. Each year Pitney Bowes’ employees and their customers contribute to this worthy effort by creating and sending cards to a special P.O. Box from which they are organized and distributed around the world to those who cannot be home for the holidays. The mailbox opens this month for holiday cards with heartfelt personal messages of support, gratitude and cheer from you. For a list of tips and ideas, please visit: www.redcross.org/holidaymail. You are invited to send a holiday card with your personal message to: Holiday Mail for Heroes, P.O. Box 5456, Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456. (PHOTO)

www.myprintresource.com/10007238

More Speed for Sir Speedy

Sir Speedy, Inc. recently announced it will sponsor Leslie Porterfield, “The fastest woman in the world on a motorcycle,” for a second year. Shortly after the announcement, Porterfield set two new records at Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats. First, at the mid-August Speedweek event, she rode a Honda CBR1000 to a remarkable 197mph. Then, at the BUB Speed Trials, held August 27-September 1, she broke the production 1000cc class FIM/AMA world record, taking the same bike to a blistering 200.137 mph. It was the first time a bike of this kind has had a record over 200 mph. Her next event is the Top Speed Shootout, Sept. 19-24. (PHOTO)

www.myprintresource.com/10114770

UPDATE ON PEOPLE

JAMES P. (JIM) DUNN has announced he will retire from Heidelberg USA later this year. HARALD WEIMER will take over as president of Heidelberg USA and market head for North America. Weimer is currently president of Heidelberg Mexico.

The company has also named ANDY RAE senior vice president, Equipment, Lead Market Atlanta. JOHN ROCKER will take over responsibility of leading the field sales organization as senior vice president, Sales. ED YOUNG will move to the position of vice president, National Accounts. DAN MAURER has taken on responsibility for Heidelberg’s digital portfolio as vice president, Product Management Digital Print and Postpress. (2 PHOTOS, Dunn & Weimer)

www.myprintresource.com/10005802

BERNHARD SCHREIER, chairman of the Management Board of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, is the new drupa 2012 president and chairman of the Exhibitors’ Advisory Board. He assumes this role from MARTIN WEICKENMEIER, managing director, Sales, Marketing and Service of Körber PaperLink GmbH.

www.myprintresource.com/10139840

JULES GONZALES has joined GPA as a territory sales manager in Minnesota, with a focus on the greater Twin Cities region (Minneapolis/St. Paul). (PHOTO)

www.myprintresource.com/10005603

JUANITA BIASINI has joined Unisource Worldwide as senior vice president of Global Human Resources.

www.myprintresource.com/10008455

DONEL AUTIN has been named chief financial officer of xpedx, which is a business of International Paper. He will also become a member of the xpedx Senior Lead Team and International Paper’s Finance Lead Team. (PHOTO)

www.myprintresource.com/10113742

NICK GONZALEZ has joined Mutoh a customer field service engineer. The company also promoted BRANDON WELLING to product manager and technical trainer.

www.myprintresource.com/10006791

GERALDINE CHIVERTON recently joined the Exhibitions and Events team at FESPA as business development manager.

www.myprintresource.com/10071490

AWARDS & MILESTONES

PLATT COLLEGE, Aurora, CO, won the 2011 Print and Graphics Scholarship (PGSF) College Poster design competition. The poster, titled “Get a Scholarship that makes Your Dreams a Reality,” will be given to all colleges and high schools in the U.S. that have printing and graphic communication programs for the 2011–2012 academic year. This student-designed poster is used to promote the availability of scholarships to pursue a career in the graphic communication industry. (PHOTO)

www.myprintresource.com/10013918

HOYT TUGGLE, president of Graphic Communications Corporation (GCC), was honored recently with the 2011 Printing & Imaging Association of Georgia (PIAG) Benjamin Franklin Award. The award is the highest honor presented in Georgia’s printing industry and serves to acknowledge individuals for being long-term, major contributors to the graphic arts industry.

www.myprintresource.com/10325356

BUSINESS CARD, INC. (BCI) of Tullahoma, TN, recently won nine FREDDIE awards for industry excellence from the Worldwide Printing Thermographers Association. Among the awards was the “Best of the Best” award for its first place winning entry for Excellence in Social Announcements of Invitations with an Additional Process. (PHOTO)

www.myprintresource.com/10004232

DR. JERRY WAITE, professor of technology, College of Technology, University of Houston, Houston, TX, has been named the ninth recipient of the Print and Graphics Scholarship Foundation (PGSF) Educator of the Year Award.

www.myprintresource.com/10013918

FORTY-TWO of Florida’s top printing and graphic communications firms were recognized with 223 print awards during the reception that is the traditional highlight of the 24 year-old award event produced by Printing Association of Florida. Ten Florida high schools and universities were awarded numerous Best of Category, Award of Excellence, and Honorable Mention recognitions. Six Florida companies went on to take home seven Benny Awards at the national level, where a total of 36 Florida projects were recognized in Printing Industries of America’s Premier Print Awards competition: Associated Printing Productions, Inc. (APPI); Lauderdale Graphics; National Communications, LLC; Progressive Communications; Rapid Press, Inc.; and Southeastern Printing. (PAF LOGO)

www.myprintresource.com/10118051

IDEAlliance has completed its first G7 Process Control and Conformance (G7 PCC) expert training program, certifying professionals to lead the newest extension of its G7 Master Qualification Program. Certified as G7 PCC Experts are: Bruce Bayne, Alder Technology; Ron Ellis, Ron Ellis Consulting LLC; Matt Fehn, Lacrosse Litho; David Hunter, Pilot Marketing Group; Marc Levine, The Color Management Group; Mike Ruff, Nazdar Consulting; and Son Do, Rods and Cones.

www.myprintresource.com/10140350