Opportunity Guide

Looking to get into an adjacent market? We’ve created six guides to help you!

Each Opportunity Pocket Guide provides segment opportunity, market size, types of products, key markets, entry criteria, best practices, and exhibitors to visit at the show.

Learn from your peers! These articles include real-life examples of businesses diversifying and industry insights around convergence.

An In-plants Success with Apparel Decorating

Meet Judy Peace, the manager at Printing Services, an in-plant for the University of Regina in Saskatchewan, Canada. For those who aren’t familiar with in-plants, these are businesses that operate to fulfill the printing needs of organizations such as hospitals, colleges, and the like.

Customer Referrals and Diverse Offerings Drive Continued Growth for Classic Litho + Design

 Masoud Nikravan, the company’s VP of sales, notes. “Cold calling is an age-old thing,” he says. “No one picks up the phone [now.] So all the new business is from referrals — I’d say 95% of it comes from referrals.” Darioush Nikravan, director of marketing, adds that part of that success comes from not focusing on any one market segment too hard. “We have a very diverse client base,” he points out. “We’re not dependent on any one segment.” 

Promotional Products Open the Door for Print Providers to Create New Revenue Streams

Promotional products are applicable to many different situations and buying verticals, making them a natural complement to traditional print offerings. Not a substitute. If you’re a print service provider that hasn’t considered adding promotional hard goods or apparel to your product line, now is a good time to start. It’s a way to create new revenue streams for your business without leaving money on the table.

Eric Kahle of VMS on Convergence, Adding Offerings

With its roots in durable label printing, Visual Marking Systems (VMS) has been active and effective in embracing industry convergence and taking the company in the direction of new opportunities, centered around building the brands of its customers. Eric Kahle, chief revenue officer, shares strategies and experiences.

Loremans’ Embroidery, Engraving & Screen Printing: The One-Stop Shop Success Story

If ever there was a business that represented convergence, it’s Loremans’. Thom Loreman is the current owner of Loremans’ Embroidery, Engraving & Screen Printing LLC. What began as an operation that ran out of a car trunk now runs a variety of equipment. A short list of what they offer includes screen printing, embroidery, heat transfer, pad printing, wide-format digital printing, and engraving. And of course, that’s just some of it, with things ever evolving.

Convergence Plays Pivotal Role at Industry Event

Beyond efficiencies, McGrew emphasized the need for PSPs to continually reevaluate their product offerings and added capabilities.

“You want to take a look at what you offer and add 10% new things each year,” she said. Additionally, “turn off the things that aren’t making you money.” She suggested PSPs take a hard look at what they sell and figure out how to leverage their expertise to “create the next generation of your business.”