Read part 1 of this interview.

The recent closure of Mallard Press caught our eye. While I don’t know Bob Gay or the company personally, a review of its web site revealed a company that appeared to be on the right track and making the right investments for the future.  Bob Gay was kind enough to speak frankly with us about the factors that led to the demise of the company.  Perhaps there are lessons here for others in the industry who are teetering on the edge or worried about the future. Mallard Press was an independently owned and operated commercial printing business that had been in operation in the Chicago area for 30 years.  At its peak, it brought in revenues of over $5 million.  Here’s what Bob had to say. In Part One of the article, he discussed what happened; in Part Two, we move to what perhaps should have happened.

WTT:  We recently reported on the top ten technologies that the 2009 Must See ‘ems technology panel identified as critical for survival in the coming year, and I wonder where you stood relative to those.  As you may know, IT competency, MIS and web-to-print tied for first place in 2009.  Did you have an IT competency?