Keeping it All Together
The binder and presentation folder market is following new trends
By Barbara Bucci
According to manufacturers, the market for folders and binders--two products that herald the production of more paper--remains stable and growing.
"Even though we're supposed to be living in a paperless world, there is still a lot of paper material being distributed. That material needs to be housed in some way. A folder is an ideal solution because it encourages people to retain the material," said Carol Ribol, executive vice president of Pittsburgh-based Filmkote.
Charlene Massing, president of FSI Products, Aurora, Ind., sees the market more in terms of change. "There are many competitors who are doing the standard 9x12à folder. Our expertise is in designs that are more difficult to make and are geared precisely to what the customer wants," Massing said.
Manufacturers report that distributors are placing more orders for binders and folders with greater storage capacity, different paper weights for folders and a variety of new colors and graphic techniques.
Although manufacturers welcome these requests and can easily accommodate them, they believe that distributors should know how to communicate the associated costs to clients.
"The art for these pieces is changing and becoming more sophisticated," noted Monica Poole, vice president and COO of Ellingsworth In-dustries, Chicago. "They must realize that not everything that can be conceived in a computer can translate to production on paper stock."
Innovative Applications
FSI's latest product, the frame folder, was developed for widespread use after multiple orders were received. It features a clear window in which a printed piece of paper or a photo can be inserted.
"The window has a backing piece that shows you how to put it in," said Massing. "When you open the folder, you have a standard product with two pockets and your piece is glued inside the window."
The company also produces the Pad and Pocket folder that includes a 50-sheet, 3x5à or 5x8à notepad glued inside. "These folders are great for seminars and sales meetings because the front can be custom imprinted," said Massing.
Like other folder and binder manufacturers, FSI has seen a growing demand for different numbers of pockets and pocket positions.
Media packaging has become more of a trend, with manufacturers reporting requests for pockets large enough to hold CDs or other types of audio/visual equipment.
"We've done some binders with pockets to hold tapes and videocassettes," said Poole. "It's a growing percentage of our business."
Rick Harrer, vice president of Pleasanton, Calif.-based Gold Medal Folders & Embossing, has also seen the trend moving toward increased capacity and media packaging.
"We see many orders for computer companies. They want more capacity in the binder spines and pockets to hold more in-formation," he said.
Along with greater capacity is the trend toward unusual textures. Ellingsworth Industries manufactures textured folders that imitate the look of basketballs and footballs. The company is also working on a material that will imitate the texture of golf balls.
These folders often have flaps with a Velcro enclosure, ideal for holding more information and for companies that re-quire a sports motif.
"Leather or vinyl folders of material that looks the same are quite ex-pensive, but these are paper. We just introduced them in the past six months," said Poole.
As for color, anything goes. Massing noted that marble patterns are growing in popularity. In its sales kit, FSI includes its Pocket Paper Picker, a sampler of 53 different colors and paper stocks. "We have to put new colors in our picker two years before they start to become popular, but glossy white folders are most commonly requested from distributors," said Massing.
Massing noted that the white folders are especially appealing to clients because they can be easily customized with logos, print or other types of cover art.
Personal taste is a major factor in the production of folders and binders. Accordingly, manufacturers noted that the bulk of their orders is comprised of custom work.
"We are doing more custom pa-pers and sizes," said Harrer. "It's really a product that is tailored to different clients based on their time constraints, budgets, or a specific application."
Custom designs encompass a variety of ideas, including the very small to the very large. FSI makes folders as small as 2x3à for hotel key cards.
"We know of clients who give them away with business cards in them. Everyone's always looking for a new idea," said Massing.
"We are one of the few houses that can do custom work at affordable pricing," said Poole. Ellings-worth produces paper binders and 23-gauge to 75-gauge poly binders.
"We can use offset print for short runs up to 500. We can also foil stamp, emboss and laminate the binders," Poole noted.
Three-ring binders form the company's standard binder offerings. However, Ellingsworth also customizes memo ring binders. These have six small rings that close together like an address book.