What's in a List?

The U.S. economy always has been prone to mood swings, and the past few years were no exception. There were a lot of ups and downs in 2014 alone, as Dr. Ronnie Davis, senior vice president and chief economist for the Printing Industries of America (PIA), Warrendale, Pa., observed.

According to “Industry Briefing: Competing in Print’s Dynamic Marketplace in 2015,” a report prepared by Davis and his Center for Print Economics and Market Research, there was “a negative first quarter followed by strong growth in the second quarter and more modest growth in the third.” Davis explained that for the full year, growth should total around 2 percent, which he referred to as “weak” for a normal recovery phase. So, how did the industry’s leading suppliers fare in light of this finding? The answer might surprise you.

Not only did our resellers improve over 2014’s list, they produced their best numbers since 2009’s $3.15 billion, finishing at $2.74 billion. Three of last year’s missing heavy-hitters, Magnets 4 media, Consolidated Label and InfoSeal LLC, submitted information for the 2015 list, which certainly boosted the grand total.

Ennis Inc. managed to hold onto the No. 1 spot, putting forth $580.0 million in sales versus last year’s $542.0 million—an increase partly thanks to the acquisition of Kay Toledo Tag and SSP. 4over Inc. took second place with $164.2 million, compared to $138.2 million in 2014. The remainder of our top five added an element of surprise. Western States Envelope & Label tacked on $7.5 million to its 2014 figures, resulting in an impressive $110.0 million in sales for 2015, though it wasn’t enough to keep OneTouchPoint from taking over the third spot. It is important to note that in previous years, OneTouchPoint did not submit under the parent company name, but rather as its division OneTouchPoint–CCI, with last year’s sales reaching $67.5 million. Newcomer Taylor Promotional Products (which includes sales of ADG Promotional Products, Taymark Inc., Navitor, Carlson Craft and Label Works) rounded out the top five with $99.2 million in sales. Its parent company Taylor Corp. generated quite the buzz after making the winning bid—a cool $307.0 million—on the bankrupt Standard Register Co. in June.

Individual product sectors, for the most part, took a step in the right direction. Labels & Tags reported $511.9 million (2014: $377.5 million)—enough to dethrone reigning champion printed forms and its $486.8 million (2014: $475.7 million). Commercial Print landed at $340.9 million (2014: $275.2 million); Promotional Products jumped to $391.9 million (2014: $234.0 million); Envelopes/Folders/Stationery climbed all the way up to $239.1 million (2014: $193.9 million); and Direct Mail finished at $99.9 million (2014: $64.3 million).

Three categories weren’t as lucky. Plastic Products/Cards declined to $96.1 million (2014: $106.0 million) and Web Solutions fell to $14.9 million (2014: $15.2 million). The biggest upset belonged to the “Other” category, which dropped to $123.2 million—down $50.8 million from 2014’s $174.0 million. Common responses for this sector included:

• Specialty print
• Toner
• Transactional printing
• Signage
• Digital book printing
• Packaging
• Business cards
• Print management
• RFID
• Fulfillment distribution
• Checks
• Integrated cards and labels
• Consecutive barcodes and MICR numbers

Some of these entries may skew the “Other” category; the decision to consider integrated labels, for example, as miscellaneous instead of labels is left to the supplier’s discretion.

The Top 50 Promotional Products Suppliers chart returned for another year (see page 34). Published in July 2015 from our sister publication, Promo Marketing (PM), the list is based on 2014 revenue. According to PM’s calculations, the majority of respondents enjoyed increases in sales—a testimony to the power of promotions.

If there’s one takeaway from this year’s numbers, it’s this: Suppliers don’t have time to waste while the economy takes a timeout to sort through its feelings. Those who take a proactive approach in business are proof that good behavior is rewarded.

We congratulate each and every company that made either list and wish them the best of luck in 2016. View the complete list here.

(Editor’s note: Factors to consider when interpreting sales figures are ongoing industry consolidations and responses reporting idiosyncrasies.)