Graphic Arts Industry Enterprises in Spain

The graphic arts industry includes graphic arts print, often also termed commercial print (although including publication and specialty print in this overview), as well as newspaper print, prepress and postpress companies. Since 2012, the number of printing establishments in Europe shows a steady decline—the effect of ongoing consolidation in the industry.

Also in Spain, the number of establishments declined, on average by 2% annually from 2012 to 2022, slightly lower than the average decline rate in Europe. Numbers declined strongly in the aftermath of the euro crisis, which affected Spain as well. After a further, small drop at the onset of the pandemic, the number of companies remained stable. Still, Spain has a relatively large number of printing companies compared to the rest of Europe.

However, the recent pressure on print costs and volumes will lead to higher rates of shutdowns in the next few years. Also, rising operating costs will take their toll on companies that are not prepared to handle the cost and interest rate increases, leading to more consolidation. Accordingly, the forecast expects the decline to continue at a similar pace despite the recent pause. Consolidation will take its toll, with a further average decline of 2.2% per year. Overall, the number of graphic arts establishments is likely to drop from close to 10,000 in 2012, to almost 6,800 by 2030.

Source: digitalprintexpert.de / 2024

As in all countries, the majority of companies in the graphic arts industry in Spain are small. About 87% have less than 10 employees (even after adjusting for dormant or non-productive companies), noticeably more than the European average. Only 1.5% of all enterprises have more than 50 employees, which is below the European average.

There are other important print producers that are, statistically speaking, not part of the graphic arts industry. Those are folding carton, flexible packaging, corrugated, and label printing, plus photocopy services and in-house printing. This adds another 3,310 print enterprises in 2022—equating to about 30% of the total number of graphic arts industry enterprises in Spain.

Further Industry Data

This article is part of a bi-weekly series of pieces looking at print industry data in 24 European countries. The next article will feature Sweden. A European overview can be found here.

A breakout of all segments by country and timelines for the number of establishments, revenue, and employment in the graphic arts industry and other print segments can be found in the 2024 European Print Industry Sizing report. The report also features the number of companies by size class and country. The report can be purchased from the WhatTheyThink store.

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