How has the Nordic printing market changed over the last 5 years?
I believe the printing market is a market that is constantly changing – faster and faster. There are several trends that can be seen over the last years in the Nordics;
Regionalisation: The print market has been and is very national, however, this is slowly changing and more interaction in the Nordics is happening.
Nationalisation: At the same time as we see more regionalisation, we have also lately seen a boost in national trademarks – Printed in Norway, Printed in Denmark etc. Might sound like a contradiction to the point above, but I believe it’s just about using the USPs that are relevant.
Broadening of scope: Printers are broadening their scope as paper volumes decrease. Traditional printers are looking at the packaging, promotion, labels, wide format – and lately hygiene products to mention a few.
How has the attitude towards and communication with the Baltic printing houses changed?
Baltic printing houses have over time developed from being seen as a threat to being seen as an opportunity. More and more printers in the Nordics are co-operating with Baltic firms, even though not so many are saying that directly.
How have printing houses adapted themselves for Covid-19?
Generally, I believe printers have been good at adapting to covid. Even if you look at traditional commercial printers there are a lot of examples where firms post an all-time high in 2020. This is of course much due to a change in production where the printers have been good at delivering what the society needs during a pandemic.
What are Grafkom’s goals for this year?
Grafkom will continue to deliver news and digital services to the industry, which hopefully will inspire some. However, our idea is that business will boost when people meet face-to-face. Our physical events have been Grafkom’s core business through the years and we really hope to get going again and welcome everyone to PrintNext in late October 2021.
How does Grafkom contribute to alleviating the situation in 2020?
2020 was a very special year for us, being unable to hold any physical events. We have tried to inspire the industry by delivering relevant news and digital services to the industry.
The turnover of many printing houses have fallen by up to 40%, what would you advise them to do differently this year?
Adapt. There are also many printing houses that have seen an increase in turnover during 2020. The market is always changing, and I don’t think we will get the print volumes we had before the pandemic. So all printers must constantly develop and adjust their business model to stay competitive.
