The Altered State Of the Industry
The printed products industry remains in the midst of a huge metamorphosis. Just as business forms distributors have branched out into other types of products, sales organizations from those other industry segments are doing the same.
Where the competition was once other distributors and direct-selling manufacturers, now it is just as likely to come from quick and commercial printers, office supply outlets and promotional products distributors.
In this downsized, high-productivity business environment, many prospective customers neither want, nor have the time, to field sales calls from reps for every product line. In essence, distributors have become more valuable for their expertise and the time they can save clients than for savings on individual orders.
Ten years ago, the BFL&S Top 100 Distributors sold $952 million worth of products. Five years ago, they sold $1.58 billion. This past year, sales for the top 23 distributors topped $1.58 billion. The top six distributors alone sold more than $1 billion of products. The increases have come for two primary reasons: Distributors have increased their sales forces, and they've expanded their product portfolios to service more clients with more types of products.
In this year's State of the Industry report, we interviewed distributor executives representative of the Top 100 Distributors. Each of them provides insights into the five major topics we covered: Forms, Labels, Commercial Printing, Direct Mail and Promotional Products. Each of them has knowledge in several other areas such as value-added products and services, electronic services and digital printing, and each of them runs a profitable business.
As the industry evolves to encompass more products and more people, the capacity of the industry's business leaders to analyze trends and put new opportunities into profitable practice is also increasing.
Bill Drennan
Editorial Director