Printing Industry Commentary & Analysis

Around the Web: Chameleonic Kicks. Twisted Twister. Fooling Facial Recognition. Plastic Priests. Kaput Cameras.

Published September 13, 2019

Sneakers that put on a light show. An inflatable Twister mat may be just what your next party needs. Adversarial fashion takes on face recognition systems. A.I. priests. A.I. passes an 8th-grade science test. An animation tracks the rise and fall of web browsers. Camera sales fall off a cliff. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Irvine, Calif.’s Sir Speedy Relies on Automation

Published September 9, 2019

Kelley Holmes talks to Kathy Morgan, President of Sir Speedy Printing & Signs in Irvine, Calif., about the changes she has seen in commercial printing over her 30+ years in the industry, such as the transition from offset to digital printing and an increased emphasis on automation.

Around the Web: AI vs. WTT Round 2. Temporary Text. Fast Food. Siri-ous Sneaker. Dim Bulbs. Forest Bathing. Plastic People. Erse Erudition.

Published September 6, 2019

Artificial intelligence attempts to write a wide-format story. “The World’s Most Dangerous Writing App.” Digital signage is too fast. Editor & Publisher sold. Nike’s Self-Lacing Sneakers. How to keep Slack from driving you crazy. All about “forest bathing.” Hide and seek in IKEA. Are we in a true “Age of Plastic”? A revised online dictionary of Medieval Irish. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

From the Classroom to the Pressroom

Published September 4, 2019

Kelley Holmes talks to Adam Pelzek of Pip Printing New England about his transition from teaching to the family printing business, founded by his father and uncle more than 40 years ago. He also shares his perspective on Millennials’ perceptions of print and the printing industry.

Printing Establishment Births and Deaths

Published August 30, 2019

From 2015 to 2016, there was an increase of +1,586 printing establishments and a decrease of -1,881 establishments, for a net loss of -295 establishments.

Around the Web: Fashion Pact. Bug Barrier. Book Sales. Caption Contretemps. Capital Ideas. AI vs. WTT. 80s iPhones. Elemental.

Published August 30, 2019

G7 takes on fashion sustainability. Graphene vs. mosquitoes. AAP’s latest book sales figures for January to June 2019. Is captioning audiobooks illegal? How to capitalize headlines. Can AI write for WhatTheyThink? What would a 1980s-era iPhone have looked like? Whither the Periodic Table? All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Thin LED Panels Are Good for Plastic or Fabric Signage

Published August 29, 2019

Aleksandr Karasyk, President of Elephant US, talks about the company's thin, double-sided, LED panels and its journey from the Ukraine to the U.S.

Around the Web: Bogus Books. Letterpress Lovecraft. Online Occultiana. Crazy Cards. Bothersome Billboards. Migrating Mattresses. Farewell, FogCam.

Published August 23, 2019

Amazon sells fake Orwell titles. An experiential letterpress-printed book inspired by H.P. Lovecraft. Amsterdam’s occult library digitizes its collection. Memorable baseball card photos. The Apple Card: Leave home without it? New York’s continued war on digital offshore billboards. “Popeyes Chicken Sandwich Is an Economic Indicator.” The longest-running webcam is going dark. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

For Pip Printing New England, Mailing Services Are on the Rise

Published August 20, 2019

Bob Pelzek, President of Pip Printing New England, talks about his 43 years in the business, and how he has navigated the industry’s changing trends. Lately, Pip Printing New England has branched into signage, and Pelzek comments on the rise, fall, and resurgence of the mailing services business.

June Printing Shipments: The Dog Days of Summer Begin

Published August 16, 2019

Printing shipments for June 2019 were—as expected—down from May, and came in slightly below June 2018.

Around the Web: Graphene Gown. Adversarial Fashion. Smart Ovens, Dumb Choices. Amazon Airbnb. Big Apple Retail Apocalypse. Crazy Train. Implantables.

Published August 16, 2019

A fashion line designed to mess with surveillance cameras. The smart device invasion. A Seattle Airbnb that offers a mock Amazon job interview. High-profile shopping meccas in NYC shut down. Ozzy Osbourne is an actual genetic mutant (as we all suspected). You can now store your data—and your car keys—inside your body. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Quick Printing at its Finest

Published August 13, 2019

Kelley Holmes talks with Eileen Rosenzweig, President of Sir Speedy Sarasota in Florida. Rosenzweig is a second-generation Sir Speedy owner and has been in the business 33 years. Sir Speedy Sarasota is “a very big small printer” and offers full-service commercial printing and signage.

Corrugated and Solid Fiber Box Manufacturing Establishments—2016

Published August 9, 2019

in 2016, there were 1,200 establishments in NAICS 322211 (Corrugated and Solid Fiber Box Manufacturing). About half of these establishments (49%) have 50 or more employees and more than two-thirds (71%) have 20 or more employees.

Around the Web: Mobile Medals. Human Tails. Reviving Bookshops. Ugly Gerry. Dog Mode. Artificial Tongue. Libeling Parrots.

Published August 9, 2019

The medals for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics are being made from recycled mobile phones. An Irish teen wins the Google Science Fair for a system for removing microplastics from the oceans. Can Waterstones’ savior duplicate that success for Barnes & Noble? A typeface based on heinously gerrymandered Congressional districts. Scottish researchers develop an artificial tongue for whisky tasting. 3M streamlines packaging material. If you’re a UK publisher, go ahead and insult all the parrots you want. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Sir Speedy Tampa Sees Strong Growth in Signage

Published August 8, 2019

Kelley Holmes talks with Steve Albritton, President & CEO of Sir Speedy Tampa, about the marketing tips he picked up at the Franchise Services Annual Convention, as well as some exciting recent projects he has worked on, including signage and display graphics.

June Jobs: Up in the Short Term, Down in the Long Term

Published August 2, 2019

In June, overall printing employment grew +0.5% from May to June 2019. On a year-over-year basis, it is down -2.5%. Production employment was up +0.4% from May to June, but year-over-year was down -4.9%. Non-production employment was up +0.7% from May to June, and year-over-year was up +2.6%.

Around the Web: Mechanical Marketers. Breathable Lava Suits. Smart Diapers. Wearable Air Conditioners. Paper Organs. Geomessages. Butternauts! Words About Words. Craving Carvers. Rebooted Airplanes.

Published August 2, 2019

Chase replaces its copywriters with AI. What to wear when immersed in molten rock. “If only there were a way to determine when a diaper needed changing...” Look cool being cool. Creating organ models from maps of Zürich, for some reason. Sending messages via geomapping. The dictionary explains “fursona,” upsettingly. The stone carver job market heats up. New books for language nerds. “We will start boarding as soon as the plane has rebooted.” All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Converted Paper Product Manufacturing Establishments—2016

Published July 26, 2019

in 2016, there were 3,638 establishments in NAICS 3222 (Converted Paper Product Manufacturing). More than four out of 10 of these establishments (42%) have 50 or more employees and two-thirds (65%) have 20 or more employees.

Around the Web: Medical Tattooing. Etsy Faces the Music. Guinness’ Road Less Traveled. Another Press Conference Cat-astrophe. Slugs in Medieval Manuscripts. Wienerbnb.

Published July 26, 2019

Disney’s “Escape from the Haunted Mansion” papercraft. Tattoos that function as medical diagnostics. Etsy buys musical marketplace. What technology will be obsolete in your lifetime? Is the world’s steepest road really the steepest in the world? What is it with these cat filters? A long, but well-worth-it Twitter thread about slugs in Medieval manuscript illumination. Spend a night in the Wienermobile...if you dare. “Disruption has come for toilet paper.” All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

May Printing Shipments Up from April

Published July 19, 2019

Printing shipments for May 2019 were up from April—and even came in above May 2018 shipments, albeit only very slightly.

Around the Web: Newspaperless Starbucks. Printless Textbooks. Madless Al Jaffee. Memeless TikTok. Painless Airplane Seats? Monkless Chanting. Methless Gators.

Published July 19, 2019

Starbucks stops selling newspapers. Pearson switches to etextbooks. All about the semicolon. Coder Margaret Hamilton saved the Apollo 11 mission. The inventor of the computer password is ******. What is TikTok? IBM patents a smartwatch that unfolds into a tablet. Whatever happened to all those Bob Ross paintings? F. Scott Fitzgerald and “cocktail” as a verb. Heavy metal knitting. Twinkies for Breakfast. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

FSI’s Rich Lowe on the Latest Trends Affecting Print Franchises

Published July 19, 2019

Rich Lowe of Franchise Services talks to Kelley Holmes at this week’s Franchise Services Convention about current trends in the marketplace affecting print franchises and their customers. Specifically, franchises have had to learn how to really be a marketing services provider, how to work with data, and have had to understand the sign business.

PR Agency Employees—2010–2016

Published July 12, 2019

In 2016, there were 58,489 employees in establishments in NAICS 54182 (Public Relations Agencies). Employment in this category has grown +17% from 2010 to 2016.

Around the Web: Knitted Sensors. Disabled Books. The City that Invented the Publishing Industry. Brands and Amazon Search. Most Valuable Brands. Underwater Internet. Another Photo Cake Incident.

Published July 12, 2019

The MIT Media Lab develops knitted sensors. Microsoft discontinues its ebooks—and erases everyone’s libraries. Venice and the dawn of book publishing. Most of product searches on Amazon are brand-free. Sea-level rise may adversely affect the Internet. An AR application to identify street artists. Working for the [Robot] Man. Use AI to keep your prey-toting pet out of the house. Levitating turntables. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Printing Industry Profits: What Goes Up...

Published June 28, 2019

Industry profits data came out earlier this month, and overall profits slipped a little. Annualized profits for Q1 2019 were $3.58 billion, down slightly from $3.66 billion in Q4 of last year. Again, it’s the large printers that are dragging down overall industry profitability.

Around the Web: Yet More Meeker! Madvertising. Roasting Design. Trouble On the Map. Public Domain: The Musical. Danger: Slugs! The ENIAC Programmers Project. Portugal’s Plastic Rocks. Fishbots!

Published June 28, 2019

Mary Meeker Slide Roulette. Brands harness online outrage. How can an Albany antiquarian bookstore outlast its owner? Core77 roasts bad industrial design. Fake businesses on Google Maps. Celebrating the original six ENIAC programmers—women all. Country Time is on your side. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Advertising Agency Employees—2010–2016

Published June 21, 2019

In 2016, there were 194,792 employees in establishments in NAICS 54181 (Advertising Agencies). Employment in this category has grown +31% from 2010 to 2016.

Around the Web: More Meeker! Press Conference Cat-astrophe. 3D Fashion. A Tale of a Tail. Marking Computer History. Redesigned Mailboxes. Celebrating Tristram Shandy. Bakery Printing Error. Li-Fi.

Published June 21, 2019

Mary Meeker Slide Roulette. 3D Fashion Editor. An app-controlled animatronic tail. A N.H. highway historical marker commemorates the creation of BASIC. Note to press briefers: turn off the kitten filter. The USPS combats postal box fishing. A look at Laurence Sterne’s classic “Tristram Shandy.” Who wouldn’t want a Marie Curie birthday cake? Internet-transmitting lights. Crocheted body parts. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Ditch Your Silos for Convergence

Published June 20, 2019

Pat McGrew, President of McGrew Group, talks about convergence and what it means for the printing industry.

April Printing Shipments—A New Season?

Published June 14, 2019

Printing shipments for April were up from March, happily disrupting what has become the usual seasonal pattern. Even better, April 2019 shipments came in above April 2018 shipments.

Around the Web: Two Words: Mary Meeker! Kirie Eleison. Passenger Drones. Shame-Based Ecology. Kids on Film. LED Earbuds. Ice Ice Hawking.

Published June 14, 2019

Data nerds rejoice: Mary Meeker’s 2019 Internet Trends Report is out. The Japanese art of kirie. Robotaxies to take flight. Barnes & Noble sold to a hedge fund. Fujifilm resumes making black-and-white film. Light up your brain, ostensibly. “The queen of eating shellfish online.” A Stephen Hawking-esque voice synthesizer performs “Ice Ice Baby.” All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Canon Solutions America's Océ Colorado Printer Offers Endless Solutions

Published June 13, 2019

John Kaufman, Senior Marketing Specialist for Canon Solutions America, takes us on a tour of the Océ Colorado wide-format printer with faster automation and an endless array of configurations for both small and wide format printing.

Vycom Offers a Variety of Plastic and Specialty Substrate Solutions

Published June 10, 2019

Kevin Duffy, VP of Sales and Marketing for Vycom, outlines a variety of unique substrates available to the sign industry, including Celtec PVC and Polycarve products.

Onyx Graphics Celebrates 30 Years

Published June 10, 2019

Bryan Manwaring, Director of Product Marketing for Onyx Graphics, talks about the 30-year evolution of the company's wide-format RIP software, focused on helping customers and print shops boost profitability.

Around the Web: Fashion Footprints. Dental Data. Born-Again Bookstores. Delicious Design. Correlation Caution. Dash Disturbance. Forgery Fallout. Rocket Reading.

Published June 7, 2019

Quantifying fashion’s environmental footprint. Transforming the bookstore into a “cultural department store.” A profile of revolutionary designer Cipe Peneles. Buy your own Follows and Likes. Caution: Correlation vs. Causation. Using hyphens in academic paper titles adversely affects citations stats. Nuclear tests can help spot art forgeries. An AR-enabled book about the history of rocket launches. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services Employees—2010–2016

Published June 7, 2019

In 2016, there were 472,163 employees in establishments in NAICS 5418 (Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services). Employment in this category has grown +15% from 2010 to 2016.

Mimaki and the "Internet of Things"

Published June 6, 2019

Bert Benckhuysen of Mimaki talks about how to imagine the future of print and the "internet of things"—it's all about connecting printers in an integrated workflow with ERP software, robots, cutting solutions, cameras, and more. Mimaki's IP Job Control software brings Mimaki printers into the Internet of Things, enabling an end-to-end workflow with minimal human intervention.

PrintFactory Offers Color Management Software Solutions

Published June 6, 2019

Simon Landau, Director of the Americas for PrintFactory, talks about the company, the current state of color management, and PrintFactory's software solutions available to the wide-format market.

An Intro to LED Signage

Published June 5, 2019

Josh Brasher, President of EBSCO Sign Group, offers a primer on LED signage, discussing the technology and the business model.

John O'Grady Talks About the New Kodak

Published June 5, 2019

At Kodak’s GUA event celebrating the 20th anniversary of Prinergy, WhatTheyThink Contributing Editor Pat McGrew talks to John O'Grady, President, Print Systems Division, Eastman Kodak Company, about his vision for the new Kodak. Specifically, in order to continue to be of value to their customers, Kodak needs to show them ways to be more effective and more efficient, and to reduce costs.

Agfa Helps Grow Businesses

Published June 4, 2019

Jason Hamilton, Solutions Architect for Agfa, talks about the company's goal to help small to mid-tier sign shops grow their business not only through equipment and technology but through a business partnership.

Horizon Releases a Fully Automated Binding System

Published June 3, 2019

Yoshi Oe, General Manager of Global Business for Horizon Systems, talks about the company's new smart binding system, a fully-integrated and automated unwinder, cutter, folder, binder, and three-knife trimmer.

Kodak Celebrates 20 Years of Prinergy

Published June 3, 2019

At Kodak’s GUA event celebrating the 20th anniversary of Prinergy, WhatTheyThink Contributing Editor Pat McGrew talks to Todd Bigger about his new role as President of Kodak's Software Division, his personal journey in the industry, and Kodak’s renewed commitment to reinvesting in print and developing new products, particularly in the areas of automation and cloud-based technology.

HP Launches STITCH

Published June 3, 2019

Ester Sala, Global Business Director for HP, talks about the development and launch of the new HP STITCH dye-sublimation textile printing portfolio. By working alongside their customers, HP has created a product to solve real-life problems.

The Changing Face of Print Business Opportunities

Published May 31, 2019

In our annual Print Business Outlook Survey, we found that the top opportunities for print businesses included some newer, proactive items, with some of the old chestnuts falling off the tree. As we saw with recent Business Challenges, could this reflect a “changing of the guard” of print business management?

Around the Web: Books...In a Library?! Hidden Secrets of the NYPL. The World’s First Poster Museum. Optical Illusion. A Digital Dress? What the ? A Puckish Idea. Three Little Words.

Published May 31, 2019

The clamor to keep print books in academic libraries. 10 reasons to get a New York Public Library card. NYC opens first poster museum. Fry your brain with this new optical illusion. $9500 for a dress that doesn’t actually exist. Meredith sells Sports Illustrated...but not the magazine. The mysterious origin of the dollar sign. Let us proclaim the mystery of tape. Hockey pucks for the blind. For sale: one Wienermobile. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

From File Server to Systems Builder

Published May 30, 2019

Pat Janowski, Global Sales Director for Proactive Technologies, talks about this boutique computer systems builder focused on the printing industry that began as a file server in the 1980s, as well as the importance of hardware in RIPing and other prepress processes.

Dataline: ERP Dedicated to Making Graphic Arts Businesses More Efficient

Published May 30, 2019

Dirk Deroo, CEO of Dataline, talks about the founding of his company in his attic and why its modular approach to ERP for the graphic arts industry adds value for the industry. In addition to product development experts, Dataline puts substantial focus on project management/implementation. The company has 8,000 users across all segments of print including textiles.

Avery Dennison Wins ISA Innovation Award

Published May 29, 2019

Molly Waters, Senior Technical Specialist for Avery Dennison, talks about the technology demonstrated at the ISA Sign Expo in Las Vegas, including their MPI 1405 PVC-Free film that won the ISA Innovation Award, as well as vehicle wrapping and environmental printing.

HP Adds Dye Sublimation to Its Portfolio

Published May 28, 2019

Santi Morera, General Manager and Global Head of Graphics Solutions Business for HP, discusses the company's strategy for dye sublimation in the textile market and how the new HP Stitch fits into the current HP portfolio.

Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services Establishments—2016

Published May 24, 2019

in 2016, there were 37,875 establishments in NAICS 5418 (Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services). Two-thirds of these establishments (65%) have under four employees, 79% have under 10 employees, and 88% have under 20 employees. The largest agencies (100 or more employees) only account for 2% of all establishments.

Around the Web: Recycling Garments. “Knitting is Coding.” Stubborn Signage. Fanatics and Fast Fashion. Graphic Design for President! QR Codes to Aid Memory. Big Monet.

Published May 24, 2019

Sex weasels of classical portraiture. Times Square billboard under fire. Fanatics becomes the Amazon of sports apparel. The West Wing Weekly podcast looks at campaign design and typography. Using QR codes to assist dementia patients. Is there money in art? The tragedy of AirPods. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Good Graphic Design is an Art

Published May 22, 2019

Anthony Hemsworth, Team Leader for My Graphic Design Team, talks with Kelley Holmes about the importance of good graphic design and what it means to the printing industry and its customers.

Summa Adds Innovative Laser Cutter for Textiles

Published May 21, 2019

Wim Maes, Executive Director at Summa, talks about the company's entry into textiles to address the bottleneck created in the cutting department as textile printers gain in speed. The company acquired CadCam Technology, resulting in the development of the Summa L3214, a 3.2-meter laser cutting device that cuts while the fabric feeds across the table, enabling cutting at 800 square meters per hour.

EFI Focused on Green Printing for Textiles

Published May 20, 2019

Adele Genoni, Vice President and General Manager of EFI Reggiani, talks with Senior Editor Cary Sherburne about EFI's sustainable approach to digital textile printing, from design through production and finishing, including two sustainable inks to cover virtually all fabric types.

Around the Web: Revised Receipts. Lost Libraries. Elusive Elements. Killer Conferences. Otic Apps. Flora Fluorescence.

Published May 17, 2019

Adding visual information to register receipts. 75 years of ISA. A recently discovered 500-year-old library catalog of lost books. Our dwindling helium supply. Does conference room air negatively affect decision-making? Plant-based lighting. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Frank Talks to Highcon's Christian Knapp

Published May 17, 2019

Frank caught up with Christian Knapp of Highcon at the recent Canadian Graphic Arts show. Highcon is a pioneer in automatic creasing and laser diecutting.

FESPA 2019 is All About Innovation

Published May 16, 2019

Mark Hanley of I.T. Strategies talks about the vibrant digital print market represented at FESPA 2019 in Münich, Germany.

Engineered Printing Solutions Covers Many Substrates

Published May 14, 2019

Julian Joffe, President of Engineered Printing Solutions, talks about the history of the company and their ability to print on a variety of surfaces.

HP's Smart Printing

Published May 13, 2019

Steve Newton, Software Solutions Manager for HP Large Format, talks with Kelley Holmes about HP's cloud-based "smart printing" for wide-format, facilitated through PrintOS, and introduces HP's Stitch for the dye-sublimation market.

EFI Checks All the Wide-Format Boxes

Published May 13, 2019

Ken Hanulec, VP of Marketing for EFI, talks about what customers are looking for in a wide-format printer: lower total cost, expansion of capabilities, and reliability.

Printing’s Labor's Lost?

Published May 10, 2019

Overall printing employment dropped -0.7% from March to April 2019 and on a year-over-year basis is down -2.9%. Production employment dropped a tad from March to April, and is down -4.5% from April 2018. Non-production employment was up +0.6% from April 2018 to April 2019.

Around the Web: Textile Reshoring. $50 Typo. Ad Nauseam. Beyond RGB? Salvador Dalí Meets the Marx Brothers. The World’s Smallest Post Service. Parrot-Based Marketing. Also: Hatebeak!

Published May 10, 2019

OnPoint named Alabama Manufacturer of the Year. New dress shirts. The origin of the word “dude.” A dark vision of the future of advertising. Will we ever be able to see more colors? The long lost Marx Brothers movie written by Salvador Dalí. Selling whisky with parrots. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

3M Introduces the Award-Winning Graphics Hub

Published May 9, 2019

Tammi Johnson, Business Development Manager for 3M, talks about the Graphics Hub, a software and website platform for sign and graphics manufacturers, which features a suite of tools including the Install Wizard, which won Business Services/Software Innovation Award at the ISA Sign Expo last month.

Ultimate TechnoGraphics Provides Software Solutions for a Variety of Workflows

Published May 9, 2019

Julie Watson, CEO of Ultimate TechnoGraphics, talks about the breadth of automated software solutions available as either standalone applications or integrated into a variety of third-party products and established workflows.

Convergence Connects Communities

Published May 8, 2019

Brandon Hensley, COO of the International Sign Association, and Joshua Carruth, Trade Show Director for Emerald Expositions, talk about how digital printing technology is driving convergence across wide-format, signage, and textile printing.

Carey Color on the Rebirth of Flexo

Published May 7, 2019

Ed Nicholson, Project Manager for Carey Color Inc., talks to David Zwang about what being a “color separator” means today, and how Carey Color serves as the middleman between ad agencies and printers. The company has also branched into flexographic platemaking—a venture that has taken off with flexo’s recent rebirth.

Save Money and Get Results by Managing Your Data

Published May 7, 2019

Christine Erna of Strategic Postal Advisors and Scott Eganhouse of TEC Mailing Solutions discuss the trends in the automation of workflow centered around transactional documentation and managing data from a centralized location.

Mactac Celebrates Its 60th Anniversary

Published May 6, 2019

Ross Burnham, Senior Marketing Manager for Mactac, talks about Mactac's 60th anniversary, and how Mactac materials are allowing owners of Canon Solutions America's Océ Colorado 1640 wide-format printer produce a wide variety of applications.

Production Inkjet Print Quality Continues to Improve

Published May 6, 2019

Ralf Schlozer, Director of Keypoint Intelligence-InfoTrends, discusses the trends he saw at Hunkeler Innovationdays, including print quality improvements in current production inkjet technologies.

Around the Web: From Tablets to Tablets. Quantophrenia. Smart Towels. The Pinkest Pink. Email Snail Mail. Oak Gall Ink.

Published May 3, 2019

A new history of writing exhibition. Towels that tell you when to wash them. Why the Red Cross loves Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five.” Send a physical letter...by email. Making ink from oak galls. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Print Business Challenges: Some Old Cares, Some New Concerns

Published May 3, 2019

In Winter 2018/2019, we conducted our annual Print Business Outlook Survey and found that the top challenges for print businesses included some new cares and concerns with some of the old challenges falling by the wayside. Could this reflect a “changing of the guard” of print business management?

Kodak Leaps Ahead in the Inkjet Flexible Packaging Market

Published May 2, 2019

Rick Mazur of Kodak's Enterprise Inkjet Division talks with Kelley Holmes about the technological breakthroughs Kodak and Uteco have made in inkjet flexible packaging printing. Although inkjet adoption in flexible packaging has been slow, Kodak sees tremendous interest and potential for growth.

Design Pool Is an Interior Design Resource

Published April 30, 2019

Kristen Dettoni, Founder of Design Pool, talks about the company's online library of designs, and how Design Pool is a kind of Shutterstock for the commercial and residential interior design industry.

ISA and Emerald Expositions Join Forces

Published April 29, 2019

Brandon Hensley, COO of the International Sign Association (ISA), and Joshua Carruth, Trade Show Director for Emerald Expositions, discuss their partnership with ISA and colocation in Orlando next year.

Sign Manufacturers—2010–2016

Published April 26, 2019

In 2016, there were 5,650 Sign Manufacturing establishments (NAICS 33995). The decline and rise of sign manufacturing over the course of the 2010s reflects the impact of the Great Recession, as well as the recovery and the growth of digital printing into traditional signmaking.

Around the Web: Offline Americans. Touring Greece. Loud Restaurants. Topical Typography.

Published April 26, 2019

10% of Americans do not use the Internet. The Comma Queen” tours Greece. The rise of the Post Office—and the decline of dueling. A new app measures the loudness of restaurants. The Presidential candidates’ typography. A requiem for the old Penn Station. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

ISA Joins Forces with Impressions Expo

Published April 26, 2019

In 2020, the ISA Sign Expo will colocate with Impressions Expo (formerly the Imprinted Sportswear Show). Lori Anderson, CEO and President of ISA, talks about the advantages of this colocation for both shows.

Customer Education is Integral to Visutech's Success

Published April 25, 2019

Pat McGrew interviews Jan-Olef Jungersten, CEO of Visutech Digital AB, about his print philosophy and the importance of customer education to create profit.

Catherine Monson: Sign Trends From Environmental Graphics To Dynamic Digital Signage.

Published April 25, 2019

FastSigns President Catherine Monson discusses trends in the sign industry from environmental graphics to dynamic digital signage.

Minimize Wasted Workflow Time to Save Money

Published April 24, 2019

David Spencer, President and CEO of SpencerMetrics, analyzes how people, machines, and workflow come together to identify and minimize wasted time to reduce costs.

Inkjet Evolves in Customization

Published April 24, 2019

Scott Leger and Gary Barnes of FUJIFILM discuss the shift from analog to inkjet technology for late-stage customization and the higher speed of variable print.

Metallizing and Other Industrial Printing Technologies

Published April 23, 2019

Rob Malay, Product Development Manager for VDI, was a keynote speaker at InPrint 2019. He talks to Kelley Holmes about metallizing, and VDI's converting of polymer webs, metal foils, and flexible glass substrates for printing industry applications.

February 2019 Printing Shipments: Starting the Year Off on the Right Foot

Published April 19, 2019

Printing shipments for February 2019 came in at $6.08 billion. In keeping with the industry’s seasonality, it’s down from January, but so far 2019 shipments are higher than 2018’s.

Around the Web: Mixed Reality Retailers. Heavy Metal Knitting. Recycled Sneakers. 3D Heart. Lego Printing Press. Changing Music Formats. A Netflix Magazine. Mad Libs Sci-Fi Plot Generator.

Published April 19, 2019

The first Heavy Metal Knitting World Championships. Running shoes that can be recycled. A 3D-printed human heart. Danger! Facebook is launching a voice assistant! Run! Cursive handwriting is coming back. Netflix is producing a magazine. “Balloon-related incidents.” All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Hunkeler AG Looks Ahead to drupa 2020

Published April 18, 2019

Hans Gut, VP of Marketing for Hunkeler AG, talks about the importance of drupa 2020 as a showcase for the industry, and Hunkeler's innovations in automation, workflow, and systems integration.

FASTSIGNS of Helena's Unique Showroom Honors the City's Rich History

Published April 17, 2019

Greg Painter, owner of FASTSIGNS of Helena (Mont.), takes us on a tour of his unconventional showroom complete with an upstairs diner and other iconic elements from Helen's storied past. All of it is designed to pay tribute to the history of the town and show customers many of the applications available.

Bluecrest Blends Production Print and Direct Mail

Published April 16, 2019

Kevin Marks, VP of Global Production Print for Bluecrest, talks about the company's involvement in production print and direct mail, as communication continues to change.

The Ecommerce Trend in Labels and Packaging

Published April 15, 2019

Dawn Olson of Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S., helps customers who have invested in industrial print solutions profit from their investment as quickly as possible. She encourages those in the label and packaging world to take advantage of the opportunities in packaging for ecommerce.

From the Corporate World to FASTSIGNS

Published April 15, 2019

Div Bhingradia, owner of FASTSIGNS Mooresville (N.C.), left his corporate job to open his own sign shop and take advantage of the fast-growing North Carolina business environment. FASTSIGNS helped him navigate an industry with which he was unfamiliar.

Outdoor Advertising Establishments—2010–2016

Published April 12, 2019

In 2016, there were 2,556 establishments classified as Outdoor Advertising (NAICS 54185). In 2010, NAICS 54185 comprised 2,378 establishments—but note that the Census Bureau changed the name of this category in 2012.

Around the Web: Behind the Seams. Threading the Needle. Imaging the Unimagable. A Good Week for Type. Wikienigma. I, Author. Scamming the Scammer.

Published April 12, 2019

The current state of the US textile industry. Ironic commemorative stamps. Making a giant paper dragon. Photographing a black hole. A font of typography news. An encyclopedia of unknowns. Robot-penned books. A screenwriter toys with a Facebook Messenger scammer. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

InPrint 2019 is Off to the Races

Published April 11, 2019

Frazer Chesterman, co-founder of InPrint, talks with Kelley Holmes about this year's event, the move to Louisville, Ky., and what the future holds for the organization.

HP Builds on HDNA to Give Customers a More Diverse Platform

Published April 11, 2019

Carles Farre, Director of Commercial Business for PageWide Industrial at HP, talks about new features and capabilities that build on HP's High Definition Nozzle Architecture (HDNA) platform to give customers more productivity and versatility.

Steve Kouroupas Transitions from Commercial Printing to Signage

Published April 10, 2019

Steve Kouroupas, owner of FASTSIGNS of Greenville (N.C.), spent 10 years in the commercial printing industry and in 2016 looked into opening his own sign business by purchasing a FASTSIGNS franchise. He's found the sign business to be a "mashup of printing, graphics, and construction."

For IWCO Direct, Direct Mail is a Mix of Offset and Digital

Published April 9, 2019

Steve Myrvold, EVP of Operations for IWCO Direct, talks about the fully-integrated direct mail company and their mix of digital and offset equipment.

Business Conditions: Up in 2018, Optimism High for 2019

Published April 5, 2019

In Winter 2018/2019, we conducted our annual Print Business Outlook Survey and found that business in 2018 was perceived by survey respondents as overall pretty good: 42% said that revenues had increased by six percent or more compared to 2017.

Around the Web: iPhone Airbags (no, not the users). April Fool’s Folly. In Praise of Jet Lag. 3D Color Matching. Screen Sharing Horror Stories. No eBooks for You. One Ruler to Rule Them All.

Published April 5, 2019

April Fool’s Day: some cautionary tales. Pantone’s color matching for 3D printing. Be careful when you share your screen. Repossessing eBooks. Gin and tonic toothpaste. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Smooth Operators

Published April 5, 2019

Frank opines about printing press operators. The number of legacy presses has created a need for operators because they are all somewhat different and at any rate schools don't graduate operators of specific machines. Recognizing this problem, the state of Minnesota has created a grant program to help train press operators.

The WhatTheyThink Blooper Reel

Published April 1, 2019

It's April 1, and that can only mean one thing: the annual WhatTheyThink video blooper reel!

Articles by WhatTheyThink