Proforma

Independents Forge Ahead Top distributors embrace technology as revenue continues to soar by Bill Drennan and Maggie DeWitt The independent forms industry juggernaut shows no indication of slowing its pace of growth. Last issue, we reported on the gains made by manufacturers and suppliers. This month, it is the distributors' turn to shine. Distributors had another strong year as sales for the Top 100 reached $1.756 billion, an 8.4 percent increase over last year's $1.620 billion. And productivity, as measured by sales per employee, increased by 2.6 percent to $294,737. This year the Top 100 reported that 46.8 percent of their revenue came from forms sales, with 9.6 percent

How to get started in the profitable world of promotions By Carol Katarsky Opportunities abound in the fast-growing promotional product market. The most recent estimates put total sales at $12 billion--and increasing fast. To help navigate some of the choppier waters, Business Forms, Labels & Systems brings you this three-step guide to mastering marketing. 1. Gaining Access One issue many distributors encounter when they first begin selling promotional products is winning the trust of vendors. "The problem [when you're first starting out] is proving you're not an end-user," said Ron Natinsky, vice president of SAGE--Quick Technologies, Dallas. "You can use other suppliers

Riding High New growth results in record sales By Laura D'Alessandro Distributors had a great year. A strong economy resulted in fantastic growth that placed distributors on the threshhold of abundance as they round the corner into the millennium. According to figures supplied by this year's participants in Business Forms, Labels & Systems Top 200 Distributors, 1998 sales have reached an outstanding 17.8 percent growth over 1997 sales from $1.519 billion to $1.789 billion--a $270 million increase. These figures are based on sales provided by those companies listed. Not only is the amount of growth significant, but the areas in which distributors saw growth

DMW/IBFI FormsTech brings the industry together in one all-encompassing event By Stacey Wenzel Mark your calendar. The time is quickly approaching for the industry's first conference and exhibition designed to bring together the entire industry. Document Management World/IBFI FormsTech '98 is set for April 5-8, and will be held at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare in Chicago. What makes this show one not to be missed is its unique combination of players gathered from all segments of the industry. Atten-dees will converge on the show to share business document trends and gather the latest technological information needed to increase sales. Coming Together The need for this unprecedented forum was recognized by

Top 200 Distributors Precept Reigns Supreme 1997 Rank Company 97 Sales ($000) 1996 Rank 96 Sales ($000) Principal Officer 1 Precept Business Forms 159,335 1 110,574 David L. Neely 2 American Business Forms 136,000 3 101,000 Larry A. Zavadil 3 SFI 127,000 4 97,500 Tom D'Agostino Sr. 4 GBS 103,150 2 102,125 Larry Merriman 5 ProForma 79,700 5 74,600 Gregory P. Muzzillo 6 Data Supplies 66,516 6 62,048 James E. Combee 7 FGI Print Management 56,860 7 44,000 David A. Walters 8 Bank and Business Forms 27,956 10 26,695 Jerry M. Spears 9 Jerome Group 24,200 13 20,400 Gunther Kohn 10 FMC Resource