Living Among Giants
ON LABELS
The Participant: Jeff Salisbury, president, Label Impressions Inc., Orange, Calif.
Print+Promo (P+P): What are your thoughts on the current state of the label market?
Jeff Salisbury (JS): The label market is quite a bit different from what it was 10 or 20 years ago. Labels have taken on a larger role in packaging and print in recent years with the advent of multi-process presses, digital printing, rotary screen and foil, and advances in adhesives and substrates.We're seeing more and more challenging applications and a demand for specialty label products such as tactile finishes, high-opacity whites, multi-layered labels, and multi-sensory products incorporating scent, tactile feel and even taste.With regard to sourcing, our experience is that since the recession buyers and marketing folks are working with fewer resources. Decision-makers are now doing the job of two or more people and as such don't have time to entertain a lot of new vendors. Instead, we see them looking to their trusted partners who in turn bring the work to us, so we're very focused on building relationships with distributors and brokers.