The inaugural EcoPrint 2012 event in Berlin at the end of September drew just under 2000 visitors according to the organisers, who pronounced it a success.
Visitors came from all over the world and the breakdown included 55% print service providers and 15% brand and agencies, with the rest being from the manufacturers, consultants, specialists and press. About 7.5% of visitors (about 150) were from the UK, totalling around 110 excluding press and suppliers.
The show combined a series of seminars with a small exhibition. Two themes prevalent throughout the show were eco-standards/labels and price versus sustainability. Despite their proliferation being a headache for printers, many felt well researched and fully-consulted upon labels might still have a place in our industry; helping to establish criteria for printers to follow in order to align with buyer’s requirements and helping buyers establish fact from fiction.
Meanwhile the organisers said that the various price-versus-sustainability debates indicated that although pre-occupation with price can turn buyers away from sustainable print at present, huge market share awaits the printer/manufacturer that can achieve price parity or near parity, with the potential rewards justifying the research.
Frazer Chesterman, co-director of EcoPrint, said: ‘During a Drupa year, it was clear that launching a new event concept would be challenging for the market as well as for us as exhibition organisers. However, the successful launch of EcoPrint proved there is a need for high quality information and insight in sustainability for the print and creative communities. The popularity of the conference sessions absolutely exceeded expectations and the international brands and visitors who made the effort to attend EcoPrint 2012 provided genuine input in seminars, sessions and discussions.’
Visitor Steve Wicks, a director of the print management company GreenPrint Consultancy in Colchester, said: ‘As a company that combines green working practices and print management EcoPrint was an un-missable event for us. The seminar content was outstanding – Professor Braungart’s presentation set the tone for the entire event when he asked printers to look outside of print itself and consider their businesses in a global context, beyond just what they do with their presses. The whole experience was refreshing and totally different to any industry event I’ve attended before – there was more time to listen to experts in their field, a convivial networking atmosphere and I connected with people I would not normally meet.’
The event will be run again in 2013, once more in Berlin but this time co-located with the WAN IFRA ‘World Publishing Expo’ at the Berlin Messe on 8 to 9 October.
Contact: www.ecoprintshow.com
