The latest edition of County Business Patterns was just released, which includes 2022 data.
As 2023 began, there were 21,354 establishments in NAICS 32311 (Printing). This represents a decline of 21% since 2010. The biggest declines were in the early years of the decade, thanks to the Great Recession—from 2010 to 2011, establishments declined by 4%; from 2014 to 2015, the decline was only 2%. Consolidation picked up toward the end of the decade, with establishments declining 5% from 2018 to 2020. And then the pandemic hit, although the impact was not as bad as we had been expecting. As we remarked in our Printing Outlook 2023 report, based on our Fall 2022 survey, 2022 was the “back in the black” year for the industry, with print buyers racing to replenish the printed materials they had cut back on during the pandemic year(s). It is not surprising that an increase in demand saw an increase in printing establishments.
NAICS 32311 is defined by the Census as:
This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in printing on apparel and textile products, paper, metal, glass, plastics, and other materials, except fabric (grey goods). The printing processes employed include, but are not limited to, lithographic, gravure, screen, flexographic, digital, and letterpress. Establishments in this industry do not manufacture the stock that they print, but may perform postprinting activities, such as folding, cutting, or laminating the materials they print, and mailing.
Basically, this NAICS is all “printing” companies, excluding prepress and postpress establishments, which are included in NAICS 323.
Small shops (1 to 9 employees) still comprise the bulk of the industry, accounting for 71% of all establishments. The largest shops account for only 7% of industry establishments with mid-size shops accounting for 22% of establishments. These percentages have not varied substantially since at least as far back as 2010.
These counts are based on data from the Census Bureau’s County Business Patterns. Throughout this year, we will be updating these data series with the latest CBP figures. County Business Patterns includes other data, such as number of employees, payroll, etc. These counts are broken down by commercial printing business classification (based on NAICS, the North American Industrial Classification System):
- 323111 (Commercial Printing, except Screen and Books)
- 323113 (Commercial Screen Printing)
- 323117 (Books Printing)
- 32312 (Support Activities for Printing—aka prepress and postpress services)
These data, and the overarching year-to-year trends, like other demographic data, can be used not only for business planning and forecasting, but also sales and marketing resource allocation.
This Macro Moment…
Said the Bureau of Economic Analysis on March 12:
Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 0.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 (October, November, and December), according to the second estimate released today by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the third quarter, real GDP increased 4.4 percent.
This was a dramatic revision of the initial estimate of 1.4% Q4 growth.
Bureau of Economic Analysis
The contributors to the increase in real GDP in the fourth quarter were increases in consumer spending and investment. These movements were partly offset by decreases in government spending and exports. Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, decreased.
Real GDP was revised down 0.7 percentage point from the advance estimate, reflecting downward revisions to exports, consumer spending, government spending, and investment. Imports decreased less than previously estimated.
