Toronto - Print World, the only printing trade show in North America with an exclusive focus on shorter-run printing, wrapped up a successful 2010 edition on November 22 with many "Sold" signs appearing on the show floor by closing day.

The booths sporting "Sold" signs included Agfa, KBR Graphics, Konica Minolta, NuStream Graphic, Océ, Robert E. Thistle, Sydney Stone, Scancorp, 3DeltaE, Zund, TEC Lighting, and many others.

"The show was fantastic for us," said Michael Steele, partner and sales director at distributor Sydney Stone. "It was the most we've ever sold off the show floor in signed orders. It far exceeded anything we've ever done before. The show was very well attended with very good quality leads. We're still closing deals as we speak."

Print World, the largest Canadian print-industry event of 2010, attracted large crowds from Canada, but also drew an international contingent. Attendees exceeded 8,000 and included visitors from the U.S. and 15 other countries, including Italy, India, Columbia and Mexico.

Taking centre stage at the show were several national and international equipment unveilings. Shown for the first time outside China was the Hans Gronhi GH6664B, a 20" x 26" four-colour press. Hans Gronhi also showed the GH525 14" x 20" five-colour press for the first time in North America. Other equipment having their Canadian debuts included the Ricoh C901 digital press, the Xerox 550/560 printers, the Konica Minolta C8000 digital press, the Agfa Anapurna, the Agfa Jeti 1224 UV, the Océ Arizona 550 XT, among a large selection of other graphic arts equipment.

In addition, the conference agenda tripled in size. Hundreds of attendees took in two keynote speakers: industry expert Frank Romano on "Where is Print Headed?" and lulu.com founder Bob Young, on "How to Make Print Valuable in a Digital Age." A sold-out crowd also turned out for a special panel discussion, "How to Win the War on Print," with an A-list panel that included John Williams, CEO of Domtar; Brian Reid, president of Transcontinental Printing; Perry Nixdorf, VP of operations at The Globe and Mail; and Frank Romano.

Print World 2012 takes place November 17-19, at the Direct Energy Centre in downtown Toronto. The city, Canada's largest metropolitan area (5 million+), is the heart of the Canadian printing market.

Toronto is a 90-minute drive from the U.S.-Canada border and Toronto Pearson International Airport features direct flights to all major cities. Porter Airlines, one of the official carriers for Print World, operates direct flights between downtown Toronto (five minutes from the Print World venue) and major centres in the Eastern U.S.