DOVER, N.H., - June 3, 2003 - Defying the challenging economic climate, Gene Maiale is proving that a niche and a knack for service can still be a powerful formula for growth. Maiale's company, Inserts East, has installed its second two-web Heidelberg V-30 in as many years to keep up with demand in the heatset insert business. A 108,000-square-foot facility in Pennsauken, New Jersey also houses two Heidelberg NC-400 presses and a work force that has expanded from 24 people to 120 since 1996. Maiale does not hesitate when asked how Inserts East has kept growing in tough economic times. "This is a people business, and it's all about service," he explains. He credits his sales and customer service organization with cultivating tremendous customer allegiance. That is especially important for a printer in the insert business, where local and regional retailers and grocery chains typically sign long-term contracts for weekly or monthly print runs. The organizational structure at Inserts East, under the direction of vice president of sales and COO Nick Maiale, gives the customer service reps responsibility for the production needs of each customer and frees the sales team up to concentrate on sales. "Customer loyalty is critical in the insert business, and our service reps deliver the personalized attention that builds that loyalty," according to the younger Maiale. "Even when our customers shop around, they almost always give us a final chance to make our case. That's because we've earned their trust and loyalty through outstanding service." The people behind the success at Inserts East also have technology on their side. The prepress department has been modernized for complete digital production, and the four eight-unit, two-web Heidelberg presses represent the right tools for the job. "Heidelberg has always delivered high-quality and excellent service, and the V-30 and NC-400 are perfect for our heatset insert work," Gene Maiale explains. He points to print quality, economical operation and fast changeovers as critical advantages with the newer V-30 presses. Running nearly identical press configurations allows Inserts East to interchange crews. That reduces training requirements and reveals another secret to success. This is a company that has carved out a clearly defined niche in the printing market. Concentrating almost exclusively on heatset inserts in the narrow, two-pages-across by one-page around format makes it possible to configure equipment, workflows and personnel for maximum efficiency. A growing list of customers from New York to Florida and west to the Mississippi River appears to support Maiale's belief that this type of specialization provides an edge in service. Narrow-web presses do not keep inserts East from accommodating a wide range run lengths. Annual retail and grocery advertising programs calling for press runs of three to nine million copies every two weeks or every month are the norm. The company also prints shorter run jobs in the 75,000-copy range. "We don't compete for the large, national insert jobs that are generally printed on wider presses," says Maiale. However, the 43-year veteran of the insert printing industry qualifies that remark with a statement that may hint at future plans for Inserts East. "We don't compete for these jobs yet."