Ian Melville of Intec Printing Solutions

In the first of a new series of expert opinion articles, Ian Melville of Intec Printing Solutions suggests how lessons learned in the development of Intec could help today’s digital printers.

Today, if a digital printer wants to grow profitably, it has got to be outside of flat print. The market place in the UK is tough, and we are still seeing a race to the bottom on price. Printers need to add value, which in practical terms means ‘diversify’ by offering a wider range of services. Lots of printers are focusing on printing as many sheets of paper as possible, but customers want Just in Time printing and a much wider range of products and media types to choose from.

There are big decisions for today’s printing companies to make, and I hope that my experience in developing the business that is today called Intec Printing Solutions might help them. I started this business with literally nothing at the age of 30. I had previously worked for a company selling desktop typesetting systems to printing businesses. A client from that previous employment called me at home and asked if I knew anything about the new Apple Macintosh computers. I didn’t but I looked into it and was able to make a recommendation, resulting in my first sale.

Within a short time I became the recommended supplier of desktop publishing solutions to one of the UK franchise print chains. I started to advertise high quality laser printers for originating artwork (printing direct to polyester film and plate) in the print industry magazines and began to grow a business trading from my spare bedroom at home. Within two years we were the recommended supplier of DTP systems and laser printers to five franchise chains of print shops across the UK.

Technology moved on though and we had to move on with it. We have had to keep finding new products that keep us ahead of the game; we have had to do something different to the mainstream because we are a relatively small company. We also moved into distribution rather than selling direct to the printers; that was a big step.

We recognised that litho, even in 1995, was beginning to struggle. We thought that litho printers could offer more services, and amongst other things we started importing large format systems. Many of them really struggled to adopt digital technology; it was a new opportunity and many could not get their heads around it. The litho industry missed an opportunity as it was so set in its ways.

As the internet took hold, the markets became very competitive and the world was shrinking. Mid-2000s, we had to find a new market. We chose to address a wider geographic market and we could only do that by developing our own brand. The decision to do that was made in 2005: Intec Printing Solutions.

There has been a huge change in the UK market and you see it in the number of companies that have disappeared. In the early 1990s, we had 110 dealers on our books in the UK and Ireland. Most of those no longer exist. They were companies that did not adapt to the changing market.

This is why it is imperative that today’s printers do adapt to the realities of a changing marketplace. They are all looking towards the major digital press manufacturers, but is there something different they can do, something that will differentiate them to their customers and channel? They need to be offering a wider range of services. Variable data is still untapped; printing on a wider range of substrates / heavier stocks; label and short run packaging; cutting / prototyping; point of sale; envelope printing…..it’s offering something different, not just CMYK print but small gifts, packaging, printing with white inks, watermarks, in line spot varnish, special effects, fluorescent and UV etc. Produce something unique and you are no longer being compared on price per sheet; it is work that no-one else is doing.

While the bigger manufacturers are focusing on mid to high-range digital production, Intec is creating niche products that add value to the space where all printers are fighting. That’s how we have not only survived for 25 years but had a record year in 2014 with 15% growth in sales, with 90% of our revenues coming from exports around the world. We are already looking at and working on the development of products for launch in three years’ time that will address further new opportunities. The market never stops moving and digital printers must move with it.