PRINTERS NAVIGATE CHANGE FOR SUCCESS

Customer responsiveness, digital integration and tangible sustainability efforts were central themes in the Print Leadership Panel at PacPrint 2025, facilitated by Kelly Northwood, CEO of the Visual Media Association.

The panel featured Simon Bailey of IVE Group, Lachlan Finch of Rawson Print Co., and Emmanuel Buhagiar of Imagination Graphics, who each shared how their businesses are adapting to evolving customer needs and operational challenges.

Web-to-print platforms were a common thread across all three businesses. Buhagiar highlighted how the implementation of a personalised online storefront has streamlined ordering for clients in the healthcare sector. “All their different divisions, instead of ordering through one area, can individually order their own product, it’s just a seamless way to order print and get it delivered,” he said.

At Rawson Print Co., Finch also pointed to the importance of convenience. “If it’s not convenient, they’ll go somewhere else,” he said. The company operates a consumer-focused online brand, Print Together, which uses 100 per cent recycled stocks. Finch said the initiative reflects how the business has embedded sustainability into its operations at a practical level, including small but measurable steps like switching to processless plates.

Simon Bailey said IVE Group’s web-to-print offering integrates HP Site Flow with its Indigo presses, allowing customers to receive automated job updates and tracking. “It really helps us from an efficiency perspective and makes it a lot more self-sufficient for them,” he said, noting that short-run, deadline-driven jobs particularly benefit from this model.

The panellists agreed that speed, transparency and communication were essential to maintaining customer relationships in a competitive environment. Finch said, “Everybody can print quality and relatively quickly. So what is it that keeps customers coming back? It is convenience and making sure they’re looked after.”

Buhagiar described how a focus on service at Imagination Graphics, even for small jobs, often led to lasting business relationships. “We picked up a major client because I gave someone the service and time to do her wedding invitations,” he said. “It’s competitive, but if you can help make life easy for them, you’ve got them.”

Bailey said that at scale, consistency and reliability were key. “If we say we’re going to deliver something, we deliver it,” he said. “It’s not all about price, it’s about moulding the relationship to work however it needs to for the customer.” He added that IVE’s structure allows clients to engage with different parts of the business based on their needs, whether that’s print, apparel or retail display.

The session underlined that while technological capability and sustainability matter, customer service remains a core differentiator in the print sector.