Web printing royalty rub shoulders at manroland dinner

High-end web printing's most influential and well-known personalities gathered to share war stories over drinks and a meal at this year's manroland Customer Club dinner.

Two dinners were held, in Melbourne around thirty high-ups enjoyed a rich Italian feast at the Sapore in St Kilda, while in Sydney the guests were treated to seafood and steak at the Banjo Paterson Cottage Restaurant, nestled on the shore of the Gladesville river. The elite crowd included Geoff and Paul Selig from Blue Star Group, Craig Dunsford of IPMG, Warwick Hay from Webstar, Sam Hanna from Hannapak, Bob Lockley of Fairfax North Richmond, Geoff Booth and Stephen Johnston from News Ltd, and Adrian O’Connor from Hannanprint, among many others.

Speaking with Print21 Allison Whitelaw, manroland Australasia sales and marketing coordinator, calls the dinners a success: “We had the absolute top quality of the industry there. It’s manroland’s way of saying thank you to our users and customers. In the past we’ve had speakers and forums, but this year it’s just been great to have everyone around the table for a wonderful dinner. It’s a good opportunity for all the guys to get together and catch up.”

The star-studded gathering saw fresh members join from the CaxtonWeb takeover of Blue Star, and recent press sales into Colorpak and Hannapak brought an added vibrancy to the night, according to Whitelaw.

The now annual event kicked in 2009, with the inaugural dinner held to introduce the manroland Australasia team to the industry. Since then the format has evolved into a forum event held over two days, covering more topical issues and featuring insights from international speakers and key industry figures.

In 2011, manroland brought in MIS workflow specialists to talk with members, Amcor’s Bill Hicks offered insights into the International Packaging Council, and Phillip Lawrence provided an informative introduction to grappling with the carbon tax.

Last year’s event was one of the Customer Club’s great success stories, says Whitelaw, with an exclusive site visit to Vistaprint offering members a chance to see the only direct drive in the country in action. Manroland also brought in an international expert to speak on the Clean Technology Investment Program, which was ultimately picked up by a number of members including The Franklin Printing Group who netted a $1.88 million grant, and projected carbon reduction of 65%.

“This year it was a little bit different. We didn’t feel there was a whole lot new to offer topic-wise, so we went back and just put on the dinners as a big thank you. It really helps keep up that bond between us and the customers, and it’s a great networking opportunity for everyone,” said Whitelaw.

Whitelaw suggests that manroland plans to go back to the two-day forum format next year, and is in the process of looking at the industry to identify key areas to include in future events.

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