The foothills of the Blue Ridge is a beautiful place to live and work. A respect for our environment has long been a part of our relationship with our local community. In 1988, we became one of the first web printers in the country to produce a catalog solely with soy-based inks. Since 2002, we have invested significiant capital in highly sophisticated afterburners for our press equipment and facilities. During this time we have reduced our volatile organic compound emissions by more than 90% to 2,700 lbs. per year. Other environmental investments include conversion from volatile alcohol-based solvents to synthetic, allowing for proper wetting without pollution. We currently have extensive programs in place to recycle and convert paper, printing plates and other materials used in our production process. In addition, our customers are afforded several options in recycled papers. Interested in finding a green printer? A list of the top polluters in the printing industry, updated annually, is available at http://www.epa.gov/tri/tridata/tri06 Look for section D; or, you may download the PDF here.
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Nashville—While prospecting through traditional direct mail channel isn’t getting any easier or cheaper, catalogers have to need to bring in new customers to grow their businesses—everybody knows this. Yet many mailers have pulled back sharply on prospecting.
A panel at the 2010 National Catalog Forum, presented here April 13-15 by the American Catalog Mailers Association, discussed why mailers were not prospecting. The main reason is the poor economy, but most catalogers are also dealing with fewer pages, fewer contacts, and changes in paper to keep costs down.
Still, bringing in new customers is critical to the health of a catalog business. “Through attrition, we could be left with nothing if we didn’t prospect,” said panelist Susan Isley, chief marketing officer for Stony Creek Brands, which includes the Cooking Enthusiast and Uno Alla Volta titles. Many catalogers indicated they start with a prospecting plan, but routinely have to make mid-season adjustments.
Multichannel MerchantWith first-class mail slowly eroding away, the time is now to implement five-day delivery, according to Sam Pulcrano, vice president of sustainability for the U.S. Postal Service. “The dilemma we have is it’s growing and growing exponentially,” Pulcrano said during a March 29 conference call. “We really can’t do anything without legislative changes.”
The Postal Service has seen its mail volume fall 20% since 2006, and it’s expected to drop another 20 billion pieces in the next 10 years. First-class mail is expected to fall by 30 billion pieces, while modest growth is anticipated for advertising mail.
Multichannel MerchantAmerican Press in Gordonsville, Virginia has had several crews qualify for the Pacesetter Club in past years with its Pacesetter 1000 stitcher. This year, crews on all three shifts did the same with a new Pacesetter 2200 system, averaging as high as 20,875 books per hour.