Comprehensive content programme set to spark change at The Print Show

24 September 2015


Comprehensive content programme set to spark change at The Print Show

Entertaining programme will celebrate the roots and culture of the print industry, while giving visitors the information and tools they need to grow

Organisers of The Print Show have unveiled the details of a comprehensive and entertaining content programme designed to not only celebrate the roots and culture of print, but also help visitors gain access to the information and tools they need to grow their business.

Taking place for the first time this year, The Print Show will pay tribute to the UK print industry and the work of its many members. From October 13th to 15 at the NEC in Birmingham, exhibitors from all corners of the print market will meet to show off their latest products and explain to visitors how they can use solutions to expand and grow their businesses.

While a packed show floor will give visitors the chance to catch up with the latest products and solutions from a host of major market players, organisers have also put together a special content programme that will offer those in attendance a further insight into ways that they can grow their business.

The show will be split into a number of different zones in order to help direct visitors in the right direction. Ranging from the 'Diversification Zone' that will highlight opportunities in other markets, through to the 'Traditional Print Masterclasses' that will pay tribute to print's founding technology, visitors can be assured that the programme will be packed with a host of interesting content.

Chris Davies, event director for The Print Show, said the programme has been designed in a way that will meet the needs of all visitors, regardless of how big their business is, where they are based, or what area of print they are operating in.

"Although it's been great picking up so many major names as exhibitors for the show, we're also very excited about the quality of our content programme, which will run throughout the event," Davies said. "We've lined up a host of specialist speakers from all backgrounds in order to address the needs and requirements of our visitors.

"Each zone has been designed to address certain areas of print, with some areas being split up even further to allow visitors to pick up critical information about individual market sectors. We're delighted with the way that the programme has been developed and we're looking forward to helping visitors at the show."

Addressing market trends

The Print Show content programme will be split up into a number of different sections. The first of these, the Diversification Zone, has been billed by marketing manager Page Tuck as the "jewel in the crown" of the event. Designed to show off the opportunities in sectors within the wider print market, this area will be split into sub-sections that address markets that offer diversification opportunities to print companies.

These sub-sections comprise 'Textile Printing', Industrial Print', 'Large-Format Print', 'Digital Marketing Services and Crossmedia', 'Packaging' and 'Promotional Print Products and Service Diversification'. Jack Gocher, who well-known figure throughout the large-format print sector, will be one of the experts on hand to offer advice to visitors.

Gocher said: "The print industry has always been hugely competitive, with price, speed and reliability being paramount to generating revenue, profitability and success. However, it is also an industry that remained relatively stagnant for hundreds of years but more recently has seen a technology revolution that opens the doors to many new opportunities. The Diversification Zone aims to help print companies learn more about how the industry is diversifying and how they can explore the possibilities."

Berni Raeside, another well-known name in the PR circle of the print industry, will also be in attendance pass out advice regarding the textile print sector. She said: "Emerging from the financial crisis, we have seen developed technology that has the potential to change our approach to print and production.

"From a textiles point of view, digital textile printing technology and textile substrates themselves have developed rapidly over the past five years and there are new companies, medias and display solutions not available before. The Diversification Zone is key to be able to show the print industry in a very independent, un-biased way, possible new routes for their companies, that may help consolidate their business and increase profits."

Elsewhere, the 'Business Seminar Theatre' will play host to a range of specialist speakers from across the print industry. Ranging from representative from the BAPC and BPIF, the likes of Matthew Parker from Print Champion and The Print Coach Nick Devine will all be on hand to show visitors how they can make their print operation more successful.

Jonathan Tame, UK Country Manager at Two Sides/Print Power, will be also be speaking at the Business Seminar Theatre: "The Business Seminar Programme is a fundamental element of The Print Show. By consolidating information acquired throughout the show, the seminars offer UK Printers practical guidance on how to integrate industry trends and themes into future business plans."

Neil Falconer, managing director of Print Future, also outlines his enthusiasm for this section of the show: "The number one problem facing the print industry is lack of profitability and the three biggest challenges to that are creating an effective business development process, generating marketing results and providing integrated services. The Business Seminar Programme is vitally important because it will help visitors to understand how they need to change and adapt to make print 'predictably profitable', even in a highly competitive market."

Educating the industry

Meanwhile, the 'Proskills Zone' will serve as the specialist learning area of The Print Show, with visitors able to go along and find out about the latest young talent in the print industry. Overseen by Proskills, organiser of the popular PrintIT! initiative, this section will also play host to hundreds of students that will be in attendance to learn more about the industry.

Speaking about the zone, Jonathan Ledger, managing director at Proskills, said: "The Proskills Zone at The Print Show will provide the perfect platform to showcase the many exciting careers that are available to those interested in Print. It will also help employers understand the range of skills training that is available to support their business sustainability and growth."

The Print Show will also feature three 'Software Training Theatres', where visitors can find out how to get the best from their software. On-site training will be provided from a number of leading providers such as X Training (Adobe), Quark, and Corel.

James Phillips, senior marketing manager at Corel, will be amongst the experts on hand to offer advice in the theatres, said: "Software is a critical part of the design and production workflow and by being part of The Print Show we hope that our free CorelDRAW workshops will help users work smarter and faster. And for those not using CorelDRAW we look forward to introducing them to a value-for-money subscription free design suite."

Matthias Guenther, director of desktop publishing at Quark also gave his views about the zone: "The QuarkXPress Training Zone at The Print Show is an excellent idea, as it allows print and creative professionals in the UK to connect directly with us. We'll showcase what's new in QuarkXPress 2015, how it increases productivity, and customers can get their questions answered in person. It's no surprise we have already heard from users who are planning to visit the QuarkXPress Training Zone."

Paying tribute to print's past

The final zone that looks set to be a popular attraction at The Print Show will be the 'Traditional Print Masterclasses', which will pay tribute to print's founding technology and learn more about how the industry got to the point it is as today. Featuring technology from as far back as the 1700s, this area will allow younger visitors to learn more about what life was back in the print industry hundreds of years ago.

Speaking about his involvement with this zone, Nick Hand of the Letterpress Collective, said: "Not only is letterpress printing the heritage of all modern presses today, it is still the only way that the public can engage with print and have a go themselves. Letterpress is tactile and produces results still not possible on modern presses. If you want to move forward, then you have to also look backward."

Another organisation that will be involved with this section of the show is the St Bride Foundation, with chief executive Glyn Farrow saying that demonstrating traditional technology is "hugely important".

Farrow added: "Experience has shown that when people see first-hand how the original processes evolved, they gain immense benefit and practical skills, which they have been able to translate into the digital genre."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Privacy Policy
We have updated our privacy policy. In the latest update it explains what cookies are and how we use them on our site. To learn more about cookies and their benefits, please view our privacy policy. Please be aware that parts of this site will not function correctly if you disable cookies. By continuing to use this site, you consent to our use of cookies in accordance with our privacy policy unless you have disabled them.