InPrint Issue 8 by Life Media Group

in print FROM THE MAKERS OF PIXEL MAGAZINE

RETAIL SOLUTIONS FOR THE PRINT PROFESSIONAL Volume 1 Issue 8

STUD FOR IO LIGHT IN PHO TO R G SYST ETAIL EM ERS

PLUS: THE POSSIBILITIES OF PRINT - INPRINT SPEAKS TO DUNCAN MIDWOOD OF CEWE - STUDIO PHOTOGRAPHY, IN A NEW LIGHT COMPREHENSIVE CATCH-UP WITH OLIVIER GIMPEL - NEWS InPrint 1 THE LATEST PRODUCTS AND MUCH MORE...

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issue eight

contents 05 - News

Updates from the trade and the wider applications of print and graphics products

10 - The Possiblities of Print

FESPA has created a whole host of show features to guide visitors around its 2013 exhibition.

15 - CEWE interview

InPrint speaks to Duncan Midwood, MD of CEWE about the company’s relationship with Jessops and the future of photobook on the high street.

18 - Studio Photography In a New Light

It’s not often a product breaks the mold in the world of studio photography. Inprint spoke to Brian print at Passion Studios about the lighting range which has revolutionised his business

in print FROM THE MAKERS OF PIXEL MAGAZINE

RETAIL SOLUTIONS FOR THE PRINT PROFESSIONAL Volume 1 Issue 8

STUDIO FOR LIGHTI PHO NG SYS TO RET TEM AILERS

20 - Photo-Me Interview

Inprint sits down for a comprehensive catch-up with Photo-Me’s Olivier Gimpel

26 - PRINTED

A conversation with Wayne Connelly, President of Innova Art in America

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CREDITS & CONTACTS Managing Director/Publisher: Lee Mansﬁeld 01323 411601 lee@lifemediagroup.co.uk

Subscriptions: Leanne McConnell 01323 411601 leanne@lifemediagroup.co.uk

Sales Director: Simon Skinner 01323 433700 simon@lifemediagroup.co.uk

Accounts: Clare Fermor Amelia Wellings 01323 433708 clare@lifemediagroup.co.uk amelia@lifemediagroup.co.uk

Editor: Laura Knight 01323 437946 laura@lifemediagroup.co.uk Production Design/ Editorial Assistant: Harriet Weston 01323 411601 harriet@lifemediagroup.co.uk

Published by: LMG SE LTD Park View House 19 The Avenue, Eastbourne, East Sussex BN21 3YD 01323 411601 www.lifemediagroup.co.uk

Printed by: Gemini West Bristol BS16 3HH 0117 965 5252 www.ambassador.co.uk All material in this publication is strictly copyright and all rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. The views expressed in InPrint Magazine do not necessarily represent the view of Life Media Group LTD. Every care is taken in compiling the contents but the publishers of InPrint Magazine assume no reponsibilty for any damage, loss or injury arising from the participation in any offers, competitions or advertisment contained within InPrint Magazine. All prices featured in InPrint Magazine are correct at the time of going to press.

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news

Canon UK Hailed their Recent Appearance at Sign and Digital UK a Success Duncan Smith, Head of Canon UK’s Wide Format Group, said: “Sign & Digital UK provided us with as a great opportunity to interact and speak with customers from right across the UK sign and digital print industry. Canon looked to inspire customers and visitors to see the Bigger Picture, with the ultimate aim of helping them to explore new business opportunities and growth areas that previously didn’t exist.” Canon UK sold an Océ Arizona 460 XT UV ﬂatbed printer to C3imaging. The new machine will replace the company’s current UV ﬂatbed

printer to enhance the versatility of applications the company can offer and help it to expand into new proﬁtable markets. Albert Penninkhof, C3imaging Branch Manager, London, explains: “With the Arizona 460 XT, we will not only be able to offer a more diverse range of products

but much higher quality. We can now offer bespoke ofﬁce graphics, window vinyl, panels, exhibitions stands and more, all to the superior standard that top-end brands demand.” Penninkhof continued: “The market is moving fast and our customers’ demands reﬂect that. We’ve seen an increase in demand for white ink printing and decorative varnish to create diverse and exciting applications that can make them stand out. We need a machine that enables us to take advantage of these business opportunities, which the Océ Arizona 460 XT does.”

Taopix unveils integration with HP SmartStream Production Center

ur y.

HP recently announced availability of its SmartStream Production Center, designed to address the challenges of efﬁciently receiving, producing and delivering high volumes of short run print jobs. The system helps print service providers meet aggressive customer deadlines by improving job status visibility, identifying and eliminating bottlenecks, and monitoring production; enabling more effective use of the PSPs’ capital equipment. The integration between the two pieces of software uses JDF to transfer the Taopix photo gift production job and

its job ticket information to the HP SmartStream Production Center. This automates the job submission, shortening the production time, reduces manual work and human errors. Once the job is complete, the Taopix software receives a status update via JMF, which it relays to the printer. This then seamlessly triggers a notiﬁcation to the end user, which enhances overall purchasing experiences and increases satisfaction. As an HP SmartStream Silver Partner, the fact that the Taopix photobook and gift software platform is one of the

ﬁrst partners to announce a seamless integration with the HP SmartStream Production Center will be of huge beneﬁt to HP customers already using Taopix software, or thinking about venturing into the lucrative photobook and gift market.

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news Unique Aolution for POP Corrugated Board Printers Fujiﬁlm has launched a unique solution for POP corrugated board printers. The solution is a combination of the Inca Onset S40i, Fujiﬁlm’s brand new, innovative Uvijet OC inks, and its new handling system that was previewed in January. One of the inherent challenges for printing corrugated board is managing distorted (bowed) substrates. Depending on the severity of the distortion, various methods (skids, rollers, print height adjustment) can be used to overcome this issue, but all affect print quality. In addition, due to the absorbent nature of the substrates typically used,

there is a tendency for ink to sink in leaving an uneven matt ﬁnish. This can require prints to be over varnished to meet the quality expectations for the end customer. Fujiﬁlm has been working to overcome these challenges with the result being the launch of a new Uvijet ink system as well as a completely different solution for handling

corrugated substrates. The company has used its extensive knowledge to develop a set of digital inks offering a range of finishes from low glare satin to high impact gloss that can be used for all types of corrugated applications. As corrugated displays are required to be cut, folded and shaped, but not necessarily directly after printing, Fujifilm’s new Uvijet OC inks allow for any required storage time, and the printed corrugated board can be manipulated weeks after printing with amazing end results. www.fujifilm.eu/uk

Taopix Strengthens Global Expansion Taopix showcased their photobook Portfolio, at Pac Print in Melbourne in conjunction with RD Xmedia. RD Xmedia was recently appointed as the exclusive distribution channel for Taopix Portfolio, across Australia and New Zealand. RD Xmedia are responsible for all pre-sales, sales, deployment and support of the leading photobook and gift application within these territories. As such, they have been working closely with Taopix to showcase version 3.5

of the global photo gift platform at Pac Print. During preparations for Pac Print 2013, Peter Aylward, General Manager – Sales, for RD Xmedia commented: “We’re looking forward to exhibiting at PacPrint with Taopix this week. PacPrint is the largest show of its kind in the Southern hemisphere and is the ideal platform to showcase the Taopix photo gift software platform.” Speaking about the recent appointment of RD Xmedia

Peter commented; “The Taopix platform ideally complements our existing business offering and services. With our extensive experience of working in prepress production, RD Xmedia wanted to work with Taopix. As well as offering a complete photo gift production package.

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INDUSTRY NEWS NOW! www.pixel.co.uk

tal’ i g i D & n g i on S t r o p e r l l u ‘F

‘Farewell Focus on Imaging’ ‘Dragon to Relaunch Jessops’

Visit pixel.co.uk for all of the latest news and 8 InPrint information affecting your industry NOW! InprintIssue8.indd 8

04/06/2013 14:52

news feature The Name Behind Coca-Cola’s Name Campaign? HP HP Indigo Digital Presses were appointed to produce the personalised labels on HP Indigo WS6000 series Digital Presses for Coca-Cola’s biggest-ever personalised brand campaign. The campaign, Share a Coca-Cola, was launched across Europe on May 1. The campaign is designed to help Coca-Cola engage directly with its consumers in 32 countries. It substitutes the iconic Coca-Cola logo on bottles of Coca-Cola, CocaCola light and Coca-Cola Zero with 150 of the most popular ﬁrst names, nicknames and terms of affection in each country. The project combined conventional printing technology with HP Indigo Digital Printing to create 800 million high-quality personalised labels. “Packaging plays a critical role in the Share a Coca-Cola campaign because it connects the physical bottle with online communication channels, including social media and user-generated content sites,” said Marit Kroon, marketing manager, Europe, Coca-Cola. “The ability to personalise such a high volume of labels with HP Indigo Digital Presses, while achieving the quality and consistency that CocaCola requires, opens up

new possibilities for creative campaigns moving forward.” Maintaining productivity and quality with HP Indigo The project consisted of eight label converters across Europe who coordinated production of the personalised labels on 12 HP Indigo WS6000 series Digital Presses. The presses ran 24 hours per day for approximately three months to produce almost 800 million labels, the largest job on record for the HP Indigo WS6000 series Digital Presses. The static content on the labels for this project was ﬁrst printed conventionally on a 38-micron BOPP wraparound material and then personalised with the names using HP Indigo WS6000 series Digital Presses. All of the HP Indigo Digital Presses used for this project were set to the same conﬁguration and settings for complete alignment and consistency during production. Additionally, to ensure the Coca-Cola brand color was

maintained across all machines, HP Indigo formulated the CocaCola Red Ink. This ink served as the benchmark for all of the conventional and digital printing for the Share a Coca-Cola campaign. It also will serve as the reference color for CocaCola in the future. “There’s a tremendous opportunity for companies like Coca-Cola to better engage their customers by making their brand and product stand out on store shelves through customized packaging,” said Alon Bar-Shany, vice president and general manager, Indigo Division, HP.”

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The Possibilities of Print FESPA has created a whole host of show features to guide visitors around its 2013 exhibition. The show will provide valuable educational content and hands-on features, showcasing innovative real-life examples of print at the ExCeL London exhibition centre, 25th-29th June 2013 Visitors will start their business journey at the North hall N1 entrance. FESPA ‘airline stewards’ will be on hand to help guide visitors around the exhibition ﬂoor exploring the many possibilities of print. The Jet Set conference will be held on the show ﬂoor on stand B75N. For the duration of the show seminars will address key areas of opportunity for today’s Print Service Provider (PSP) including topics on digital textile, digital printing, business building skills and industrial printing. A short walk across the hall will take you to FESPA Fabric, the show within a show for garment printing and decorating. PSPs considering the opportunities in promotional products should take a stroll through the Promotional Products Business Academy. Visitors

to the feature will be guided through different zones – Garment and Gift – where they can explore the full array of promotional merchandise on show including: writing and ofﬁce products, electronics, promotional clothing, fashion, sport and outdoor wear, eco-friendly garments, accessories and headwear. Travelling through FESPA Fabric, visitors looking for more information and advice on garment applications can enjoy a hands-on experience at the Pilot’s Brieﬁng Zone. Building on the past success of Charlie’s Corner, this year Charlie Taublieb will be joined by other leaders in the garment community incorporating theory with valuable practical workshops where visitors will design and print their own t-shirts. The workshops will get progressively more technical throughout

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FESPA 2010

the week so visitors can experiment with the technology as well as beneﬁtting from expert advice. The garment conference will provide delegates with a sound understanding about garment print processes, trends and new technologies and innovations. One panel session not to be missed is the screen printers’ panel where four of garment printing’s biggest world players will discuss what’s new and innovative in the industry. The Pilot’s Brieﬁng Zone located in FESPA Fabric will offer visitors valuable insight into advanced garment design trends and decoration techniques. Delegates will be able to attend free presentations and demonstrations as well as hands-on interactive workshop sessions. ‘Get Hands-on’ workshops will run daily, led by Charlie and will get progressively more advanced throughout the week, looking at topics such as: discharge ink, designing for black shirts, turning full colour into one & two colours and getting the most out of your artwork. Visitors will also get the chance to design and print their own t-shirts, one of the designs

printed in the workshop sessions will be the FESPA 50th anniversary t-shirt. This year FESPA celebrates 50 years in the industry as a global hub, connecting people and organisations across diverse business sectors. Proceeds from the t-shirts will go to the Events for Namuwongo charity as part of FESPA’s Proﬁt for Purpose reinvestment programme. Duncan MacOwan, Head of Media and Events, FESPA, comments: “Year on year we strive to create an inspirational learning environment which is both educational as well as hands-on. Incorporating Charlie’s Corner with the garment conference this year enables visitors to get the most from their visit. The aim of the Pilot’s Brieﬁng Zone is to inspire garment decorators, printers and apparel brands to create new business opportunities. “Our packed programme and line-up includes some of the biggest names in the garment industry, providing delegates with valuable information as well as the chance to ask questions directly to industry experts.” FESPA Fabric will also see the return of

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FESPA Fabric 2013 offers educational content and hands-on experience at the Pilot’s Brieﬁng Zone. Charlies Corner FESPA Digital 2012

“The Management stream will cover critical skills f or sign shop owners, with seminars looking at costeffectiveness, pricing and personnel” FESPA’s t-shirt competition – Design-a-Tee – which aims to showcase the design capabilities and opportunities that garment print and decoration presents. The aim is for entrants to realise the design potential of this vibrant sector and to get their creative juices flowing. Budding designers can enter the competition until Friday 3 May and the winner will be announced at FESPA stand (H60N) on day 4 of the show at 11am. Visitors looking to inject their visit with some creativity during their stay at FESPA 2013 will find what they are looking for at the Print Inspiration Runway, located in the North hall. A real showcase of innovative ideas, the feature will be a real life example of awesome print. Each piece will be supported by a case study about how it was created and how effective it was for its intended purpose. Visitors looking to find out more will be directed to the exhibitors stand to

speak to them directly. Conﬁrmed pieces of print to be displayed include: interior design, garments, printed electronics, outdoor, screen print effects, instore and augmented reality. Next stop aboard FESPA 2013 is the Creative Corner, the packed programme targetting PSPs, designers, creatives and brand directors aims to showcase what print can do, opening up the relationship between PSPs and end-users. Located on stand Q100N, seminar topics will look at packaging and instore graphics, interiors, outdoor and extra large format print. Global brands already signed up to the packed seminar programme include, Coca-Cola, TBWA and Heineken. Travelling down the North hall, visitors can taxi through FESPA’s Hall of Fame, which highlights inspirational printers from across the world. PSPs can vote for who they think deserves

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show preview to be honoured until 7 June 2013. The top ﬁve printers and overall winner will be announced at the FESPA Gala Dinner on Thursday 27th June 2013. Winners will be inaugurated into the Hall of Fame on the show ﬂoor on Friday 28th June 2013. Of particular interest to experienced sign makers and installers - as well as wide format printers looking to enhance their signage offering for customers - is the free Sign Forum at this June’s European Sign Expo (25-27 June 2013, ExCeL London).

technology, and future trends. The sales and marketing stream within the Sign Forum will offer speciﬁc tips and advice on how best to promote a sign business and enhance its sales proposition for a successful future. Already conﬁrmed to present is Rebecca Dack of Signs Express – the UKs largest sign company - providing advice on How to Market a Sign Business. The design and installation sessions will consider the role of sign design in delivering effective messages, and the latest possibilities

FESPA 2010 Munich Aisle

European Sign Expo, incorporating Screenmedia Expo, is Europe’s only event in 2013 speciﬁcally targeted to the signage supply chain. The event is co-located with FESPA 2013, and sets out to bring together trends and innovations in all areas of non-printed signage, from conventional display systems, channel lettering and illuminated displays, to digital signage and digital out-of-home media. The Sign Forum seminar theatre on the show ﬂoor at European Sign Expo offers visiting sign makers access to a programme of invaluable education and insight, free of charge. Seminar streams will cover management, sales and marketing, design and installation, innovation and

and solutions around safe and efﬁcient installation and maintenance. A full day will be dedicated to technical innovation and regulations of sign production and installation. The Management stream will cover critical skills for sign shop owners, with seminars looking at cost-effectiveness, pricing and personnel. A strong line-up of international thought leaders in signage will discuss the current state of the industry and consider upcoming trends that can help to catapult your sign business into the future to stay ahead of competition. www.fespa.com/london

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focus

Behind the Scenes InPrint speaks to Duncan Midwood, MD of CEWE about the company’s relationship with Jessops and the future of photobook on the high street. What was your relationship with Jessops in its previous incarnation? Before the store went belly-up, as it were, we provided the Jessops Photo Service on behalf of Jessops. We managed the website on their behalf, and provided the products to the customers, either direct or by sending them to be picked up in store. We also provided products ordered through the kiosks in Jessops stores – essentially anything except the products physically made in store. At the time, there was a Jessops Photo team who dealt with pricing and the running of the business, whilst we did the website and the fulﬁllment. When Jessops went into administration, we acquired the photo aspect of the business, which in real terms meant we took ownership of the database and the ability to continue operating under the brand. This is why the Jessops Photo element of the business was only out of action for ten days and was able to continue trading long before the physical stores began to reopen. Will there be any changes under the new operation? What we do now for Peter Jones is akin to what we did before… we manage the website and fulﬁll the orders, but essentially it is now a separate business operating under the Jessops name. We give Jessops a fee for the use of the branding, which is money for nothing for them and allows them to provide our entire offering to their consumers without further investment, consumers

then perceive it as being part of Jessops. Currently there are some changes happening due to Peter Jones’ takeover, but once the dust has settled we will operate the Jessops Photo business just as before, receiving orders from the website and from Jessops’ in-store kiosks and producing the items for the end-customer. Now that we own the rights to the customer database and to operate under the Jessops name for a given amount of time, it does mean that we could potentially still operate that business in the unlikely event that Jessops folded again. Are Jessops the only client of this size you provide a service for? We also operate a similar service for Argos, WH Smiths, IWantOneOfThose.com and other wellknown brands and stores… offering a white label service in this manner is actually the mainstay of our business. And how does your offering differ between these customers? What we do in terms of fulﬁllment for all of them is actually very similar, but the customers we receive from the different brands vary greatly. From Argos, for example, we tend to get gifts and the low value items, whereas Jessops customers are more serious photo consumers on the whole, so from them we receive orders for big photobooks, expensive wall art products like acrylic, high value and quality large format prints. Jessops over-indexes on photobooks, which is why they’re such an important customer base

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“Key for photobook sales is, and has always been, putting good examples in people’s hands. This is why high street stores have a major sales advantage for these sorts of products – they can merchandise and demonstrate to full effect”

for us as these are our hero product. Jessops customers take better pictures, as a rule, so they tend towards the higher quality and higher value products. We also sell direct to consumers as CEWE but really, photo products are best sold by physical retail stores. We do have more than a hundred of our own high street stores throughout Europe but none in the UK. Do you think there would be an audience if you opened up CEWE stores here? Are photobook-based stores something the UK needs? Well, as your readers have probably read before, the UK does lag behind on photobook sales and that is very much still the case, selling around a third of the amount per capita that Germany does, so there’s a huge opportunity here for UK retailers. Key for photobook sales is, and has always

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focus

been, putting good examples in people’s hands. This is why high street stores have a major sales advantage for these sorts of products – they can merchandise and demonstrate to full effect. With our stores, we get staff involved and enthusiastic by having them make their own photobook to be used for display, so that they can really get behind the product. It works very well. It’s also an excellent technique for selling hardware, as staff can clearly demonstrate the results achievable with equipment via a photobook. Education has a big part to play. The big players aren’t advertising or investing in education because they’re too busy trying to cut prices and take customers from each other rather than growing the market, which is extremely short sighted. Other than educating more consumers as to what a photobook is and why they want one, what do we as an industry need to do to invigorate and grow this market? Focusing your efforts on adding value is certainly

the way to go. Consumers are actively seeking new products now that the original photo-products that once seemed novelty are commonplace, so we’re seeing a gradual shift from runs of single prints from photobooks, from humble canvas to acrylic and other types of wall art. The personalisation and photo gifting sectors are now converging, so we see more demand and opportunity for high-value, high quality items that combine user-generated images with graphics, text, licensed logos and images and more. As an industry, we need to steer away from price-cutting. If anything, we should be looking at how to offer consumers more value for the money they are spending, and to encourage upsales, rather than focusing our efforts on unreasonable discounting. The products we offer are high-value, and we can keep them that way!

www.cewe-photobook.co.uk

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Studio Photography – In a New Light It’s not often a product breaks the mold in the world of studio photography. Inprint spoke to Brian print at Passion Studios about the lighting range which has revolutionised his business Brian, tell us about the new lighting gear you have introduced to your business. I ordered a few products from the iLux range a couple of weeks before Focus, its official launch. I saw that the equipment was very reasonably priced and the quality was said to be very good for the money, so it was a logical choice for what I needed. I saw the products up close at Focus, loved them and picked up my first shipment a week later. A week after that, I completely re-kitted my studio from the range. Speaking now, at the beginning of May, I have iLux everything. Lights, umbrellas, modifiers, snoods, grids, brandoors... obviously I had existing kit in the studio but I’m in the process of selling it all on and replacing everything with iLux equipment. We take it you were impressed with the range, then? Given the price, it’s incredible. Even without taking price into account, it’s great equipment which is easily every bit as good as the brands that have historically been the industry-standard, with great functionality and manufacturing quality. When you take into account the fact you are parting with a small fraction of the costs of the

equivalent products in those other brands, it really is amazing. As you have no doubt noticed, everybody’s a photographer now so there are loads of really cheap kits available online, but they’re poorly manufactured. Previously I would have said that was just a case in which you get what you pay for, but Photomart have really got it right with the iLux range – the components are excellent and reliable, the products are attractive and nice to use and they’re at a price that makes them far more accessible than other gear of that quality. And have you really been putting your new kit through its paces? Oh, absolutely. I was using iLux gear from 11.30 am until 6pm yesterday and didn’t lose a single frame, and it’s half the price of the equivalent kit from other leading brands. I’m just continually amazed by it. I’m an average jobbing, working photographer doing a huge variety of work from fashion to football, from weddings and portraits to commercial shots, so diversity is essential for me, hence the huge list of kit. This is why a range like iLux is such a great thing for those who are just starting out in professional photography, or those growing an existing photo business, as the price point allows you to get far more for your money without compromising on quality. A range of equipment to cover all jobs is then far more affordable. So you believe that the iLux range is a good

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interview I was using iLux gear from 11.30 am until 6pm yesterday and didn’t lose a single frame, and it’s half the price of the equivalent kit

choice for photo retailers looking to add a studio to their offering? Certainly. I do run seminars about lighting, for which I use my iLux kit, and I show people how to use lighting to best effect. I would recommend anybody starting off with studio photography would need four or ﬁve lights to cover a range of situations. Now, you probably could shave off a few pounds by buying cheap from abroad on the internet, but as my father used to say, “buy cheap, buy twice!” I wouldn’t recommend scrimping on such important equipment but iLux offers the perfect balance of great quality and reasonable price. Judging by forums and word of mouth, everybody loves the kit – established professionals and start-ups alike. I’m certainly happy to recommend it. You can check out Brian’s lighting expertise at www.createthelight.com

Don’t Miss! You can see Photomart’s iLux range and a host of other business opportunities on November 7th at the Thames Valley Business and Community Expo, which will take place at the Royal Windsor Racecourse in Berkshire. The exhibition aims to showcase new ideas and revenue streams for small to medium sized businesses and will be host to a wide variety of leading businesses presenting great opportunities for retailers.

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Fighting the Good Fight Inprint sits down for a comprehensive catch-up with Photo-Me’s Olivier Gimpel Photo-Me has been active in the campaigns to save the UK’s ID Photo market from a Post Ofﬁce monopoly... What feedback have you had on this lately? How are your customers faring in Olivier Gimpel the current situation? I’m happy to provide you with an update on the ID photo campaign as it’s still a key area that impacts on everyone in our trade and I am pleased to report that we’ve had some positive progress in many ways. The Save the Photographers campaign had a debate in the House of Commons earlier in the year, raised by Sir Paul Beresford with the Minister of State for Transport, Simon Burns. We then had a big meeting with the powers that be at the DVLA, and have pushed much further now in helping them to understand what their needs really are – for example, using our photo expertise to explain what quality is necessary for their purposes and why – and how they will best get these needs met. The DVLA fully understood and acknowledged the situation we are facing, so they are re-evaluating their need. We are not there yet, but at least these discussions are constructive; a dialogue has been established and it’s moving in the right direction. They acknowledge that we Retro American ice cream truck as the ID photographic showcasing candy vending options industry should be

allowed to survive and make a living providing the photos they need, and we still haven’t reached an agreement on a solution, but at least we have all agreed that there needs to be one. Do you believe that it is, or should it be, the role of the Government to protect such areas of business where they can? That’s an interesting question and I’m glad you asked. Of course, we have to respect that it’s an open market, but the Government needs to be true to its word. They claim small businesses are the backbone of the UK economy and the country’s main hope for recovery, but then they award the Post Ofﬁce owned and heavily subsidised by the Government itself – a £50 million chunk of their business, all funded by the taxpayer. It will simultaneously cost the Government money outright in the set up and continue to drain funds as the businesses that once actively contributed to the economy, which thrived on the provision of ID photos, inevitably go out of business and stop paying taxes. It just seems ridiculous to bring in Mary Portas on one side, banging drums and blowing trumpets to save the high street, then on the other side take away such a major revenue stream. I wouldn’t go as far to say it’s the Government’s job to actively give business to the private sector, but at the very least they need to assess the risks of their measures on businesses that already exist. The purpose of the campaign is a great

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focus demonstration of that. We are happy with modernisation and with Post Office being a public-facing counter service for Government, but think there is room for our businesses to co-exist. It will be challenging to get back what we’ve lost, but we can fight to preserve what we have left. Photo-Me has other avenues of business outside photo. To what extent is the state of the photo market at the moment influencing these advances? Will Photo-Me continue to look for new advances within imaging too? We’re definitely continuing to innovate in photo with our instant printing solutions, which is a very strong element of our business, but our other strength in automated equipment has allowed us to bring new products to the market in other areas. The great thing is, we already have the infrastructure of engineers to take care of the machines, which allows us to expand and diversify easily. Our new automated laundry offering, Revolution, is already performing well and growing across Europe. It will be coming to the UK very soon. We’re also continuing to enhance our business in other automated-vending avenues that we have worked in for some time now, but we’re definitely still active in photo. Bearing recent challenges to the market in mind, what opportunities do you see continuing/developing in the UK photo processing and printing market? What can retailers do to grow their custom in this area? There are certainly challenges, but I think we’re all too quick to look at the areas of business that are shrinking and not quick enough to look at those which offer growth. Yes, the number of 6X4s printed is declining, but why are people in this trade so fixated on 6x4 photos? Yes, they may be decreasing in numbers but the rest of the industry needn’t go their way and isn’t going their way. You still need printing and we’re pretty good at coming up with printing solutions. Honestly? Minilabs are not performing as they used to, but

Automated laundry machine

in their places we are seeing more appetite for tailor-made solutions and other photo products. Our photobook makers, both instant and bespoke, have got off to a strong start and the Starcke photobooth has seen fantastic uptake – it’s something of a revolution in the instant ID photo experience we’re very proud of it. We definitely aim to help retailers maximise their investment with our solutions. People are finding new applications for existing equipment, which is great. We also look at ways to add on to what you already have, rather than having to find a huge lump sum for new equipment. This is why we built our photobook maker in such a way that it could be used with an existing minilab. At the moment, we’re looking into new ways of creating personalised phone covers and 3D prints, poster prints and we hope to have some new developments to show you all very soon. It’s still a very exciting market with lots of creative potential. What I always encourage retailers to think is “How can I impress my customers, entice them and inspire them?” Those who have the same mug in the window for four years are bound to struggle! You can present the same product in many ways, much like we did recently at an exhibition, to which we brought a retro American ice cream truck to showcase candy vending options and that received an enormous amount of attention. Marketing and customer engagement are key, and that’s something that the independent photo trade in particular has the potential to do very well. It’s just one more reason to fight hard for the market.

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Your Essential Guide to the Latest Launches GOSS MAGNUM GOES COMPACT Recognising changing habits of readers and emerging opportunities for printers, Goss International is launching a first-of-its-kind, highly automated 2x1 web offset press for the production of newspapers, books and semi-commercial publications. The new Goss Magnum Compact press system boasts a range of design features packaged to deliver fast makereadies, simplified operation and run-length flexibility. The new design retains proven and classleading features of the Goss Community/Magnum platform – the world’s best-selling single-width press platform – while introducing automatic plate loading and compact design to this market sector for the first time. The inclusion of automatic plate changing as standard is a crucial factor in delivering new capabilities. Enabling plates for the next product or edition to be loaded while the press is running,

the full sequence of old plate removal/new plate loading requires less than 30 seconds, producing a dramatic impact on crew requirements, makeready waste and press uptime. Additionally the removed plates can be reused – making this technology ideal for repeat small-batch production of books and other publications. Multi-shaftless press drives are similarly standard on every model, with the result that each cylinder level and inker module is driven totally independently, as is the infeed roller, providing maximum ﬂexibility and control over changeover waste. This control can be further enhanced with the addition of optional Goss DigiRail digital inking.

THREE NEW BIZHUBS FROM KONICA MINOLTA The new systems include many new functions and provide more scope for customisation to the users’ individual needs. With the new multi-touch operation, users of the new multifunctional printing devices will no longer need device training due to the intuitive new handling MFD touch panel, similar to that of smartphones or tablets. By using these familiar operations, users can work more productively and will be more comfortable using these devices in their professional environment. Another advantage is the panel customisation; this enables the user to have easy and quick access to all the functions they need to work with. From a wide range of MFD features, a panel showing only the required features can be created. This gives

users even quicker access to the most frequently used functionalities, leading to more efficient workflows. Thanks to further hardware improvement, the bizhub C224e, C284e and C364e now require less power, which leads to more cost savings. In particular, energy consumption during sleep mode has been greatly reduced. New clever functions make the bizhub C224e, C284e and C364e ideal for medium to large-sized organisations, work groups or departments. The enhanced scan function allows conversion of scanned documents directly into Word or Excel files. This feature, often requested by clients, enables users to work seamlessly with their documents in programs they frequently use without manual conversion – saving them time.

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launchpad ROLAND UNVEILED THE SOLJET PRO 4 XF-640 AT SIGN AND DIGITAL Its solid, uniquely engineered body has been designed for strength and speed, printing undeterred at speeds of up to 102m²/hr, ideal for the demanding production environment. With Eco-Sol Max 2 advanced ink technology, the XF-640 delivers vibrant, detailed images at incredible speed. Its dual CMYK ink set provides a wide colour gamut, quick drying prints and outstanding long-term outdoor durability. At 64” wide, the XF-640 will fearlessly produce a range of stunning, durable outdoor and indoor banners, posters, signs, vehicle graphics, window graphics, exhibition graphics, roller banners and pull ups and much more in super fast time and at exceptionally high quality. Additional pinch rollers and improved grit roller systems ensures nothing escapes its grasp,

and with many more added and redesigned features along with all the great beneﬁts of owning a Roland including VersaWorks RIP software, unsurpassed reliability and world-class RolandCare service and support it really does outperform everything in its class.

3D PRINTING COMES TO CONSUMER MARKET

THE EAGLE HAS LANDED!

3D printing means various things to various people, but is gradually becoming the accepted term for the technique of using inkjet-like devices to create solid objects from a variety of materials by laying down a thin later at a time to create a 3D form. The main factor holding up the mainstream uptake of 3D printing has been the need for a 3D model for the device to work from — a digital blueprint. Now 3D experts MakerBot have expanded their portfolio to cater for this 3D the input part of the equation with the Digitizer Desktop 3D Scanner. Using lasers and cameras, the MakerBot Digitizer is an innovative new way to take a physical object, scan it, and create a digital ﬁle. Anyone without any design, CAD software, or 3D modeling experience at all can make a 3D model and then print the item again and again on a MakerBot Replicator.

SSE are launching the Eagle 30 UV LED inkjet printer for industrial inkjet printing of parts and panel, and the printing of promotional items These small UV printers are extremely versatile. The Eagle printer produces incredibly crisp text, vibrant, full colour printed images with white, outstanding solvent and abrasion durability on a variety of substrates. Printing on wood, printing on to stainless steel, printing aluminium to printing ceramic tiles, printing plastic and moulded plastic objects and glass. The white UV ink creates a very opaque layer, virtually on to any coloured substrate and produces amazing bright colours with a white under base, in between colours or over. Unlike most other systems, the white ink remains in constant circulation throughout the ink delivery system to correctly maintain the white pigment in suspension.

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www.pmai.org

The Big Photo Show

The Big Photo Show draws more than 16,100 photography consumers The Big Photo Show held its inaugural event May 4-5, 2013, at The Los Angeles Convention Center, attracting 16,184 photo enthusiasts and advanced amateur photographers to attend. Attendees were able to discover, try and purchase the coolest new equipment and tools from top manufacturers and retailers; learn from some of the country’s best professional photographers/educators; take part in live model shoots in several photo shooting zones; explore creative new ways to frame and display their images, and much more. Scott Spiro, a semi professional photographer, was among the huge crowd of attendees at the Sony booth. “It’s nice to talk to the manufacturer reps here at Sony, who know the ins and outs of each camera, and have all my questions answered immediately. They showed me a NEX 6 camera that has a nice wide-angle lens and will work well for what I need it to do. It’s also small and easy to carry, and has a lot of resolution.” Ray Norouzi of Samy’s Camera commented: “The turnout at The Big Photo Show has almost doubled our expectation. All day long, our booth

has been non-stop. There are more amateur cameras being sold here, not that many pros; it’s people who are getting into photography and they want to know about the cameras. We are selling a lot of sport cams, both from Sony and Go Pro. Everything is busy. Panasonic is busy, Sony is busy, Canon is busy, Nikon – it’s a mixture of everything, but we are selling a lot more Sony products, because they are here. Having Sony here helped us a lot. They talked to the customers and they are showing their merchandise, for people to see how well it’s made and what it can do.” David Metz of Sigma said: “What’s really great about The Big Photo Show, what makes it different from every other show in the industry, is that it is truly about photography. Most shows are just a bunch of vendors standing behind a booth. They are really dull, not exciting at all. But here, there are plenty of lectures, plenty of workshops, and you could come in and shoot pictures of racecars and pretty girls. This show is really about photography. I was really happy to see that, and I think the customers are really

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inside track happy to see it too.“It’s been surprisingly good. I was figuring about maybe 3,000 people would show up, so I was very surprised to see such a much bigger crowd here,” Metz continued. “We are absolutely seeing a lot of interest from people who will be first-time Sigma customers, and many who are new to photography. They are aware of the Canon name or Nikon name or Sony name, but they don’t know who Sigma is. They have come to the Sigma booth saying, Can I get a Sigma lens for my Canon or Nikon camera? For us, in terms of brand identification, this is really powerful. And when they ask us that question, we can send them right over to the booths of our retailers who are here – Samy’s Camera and Paul’s Photo – to make those purchases, so they are able to leave the show with a Sigma lens in their bag. We want to be back at the Big Photo Show, in a bigger and better way, when it’s here again in LA next year.” Education Zone speaker Lee Varis said: “I think The Big Photo Show is a great success. We have quite a few crowds here. Everyone is eager to learn and experience photography in the 21st century. There was standing room only at my sessions; I’d say 150-200 people. It was great. I was not expecting even half of this. I was thrilled we got so many people there. I also got to look around the show, and I think people are

very excited. The education session have tons of people, and there are big crowds in the shooting zone. It’s all been very popular, people all have cameras, and there is a lot of excitement. I think that’s translating into sales for the exhibitors; there is a lot of action at the booths.” I’m at the Sony booth now so I can ask them about some lenses that I’ve been looking to add. It’s cool to have the manufacturer here. They have ﬁrst-hand knowledge of every aspect of the equipment; they are the experts. PMA President Allen Showalter enthused: “We are thrilled that more than 16,100 people attended The Big Photo Show – a number that does not include exhibitors or staff. That’s 16,184 of the most passionate photography consumers in Southern California, who came to The Big Photo Show and experienced the fantastic event we put together for them. “Looking at the trade show ﬂoor, we could see nothing but booths crowded with eager buyers, standing-room-only education sessions and packed photo shooting areas. The remarkable success of this, our inaugural event, speaks to the high caliber exhibitors, programming and opportunities offered at The Big Photo Show.” The Big Photo Show will return to Los Angeles in Spring, 2014.

McCurry Marketing Idea Exchange #479 Alan Logue, Hutt St Photos, Adelaide, Australia: “We have found a great add on sale for ALL orders to a disc – no matter if it’s ﬁlm to CD or movies to DVD. A number of companies make Gold Archival Discs in both formats, and we are upselling to these for an additional $10 per disc on our normal price. We are using bulk Verbatim Archival DVDs and Kodak

Preservation CDs which we are buying for less than $2 each. After explaining the beneﬁts to customers, probably 50 percent take the upsell, and those who want multiple copies of a disc quite often take one archival disc and the rest normal. The margin on these discs is huge, and all for a minimal amount of time spent in the upsell.” Thanks for the tip, Alan. We advise everyone to give it a go!

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Printed! Each issue, InPrint calls a UK printing business to bring you the essential information about life on the front line of our trade and prints the results. This issue, our spotlight falls on Wayne Connelly, President of Innova Art in America, who are celebrating 10 years in the industry. How has the business changed in that decade? A lot has changed in the past 10 years in our industry and the overall economic situation worldwide. The fine art and photo world was growing at a double digit pace in 2003 and Innova stepped into the arena with market knowledge, creative products and a new distribution model, exciting times. Our first products were an assortment of popular papers that provided high end print quality with a much better value proposition and we were off to a strong start. In the years since, the industry has matured and the pace of growth has levelled off, but Innova has maintained growth and profits throughout these tough economic times. The key to this has been INNOVAtion in paper products, distribution and new market development. What new products and services have you added to ensure that Innova art remains relevant to the changing print sector? After our initial product launch, we began to drill down into the requirements of photographers that used the traditional darkroom products that did not have an inkjet equivalent. This is where the FibaPrint Range of papers was developed. We were the first company to launch a true fiber based/baryta equivalent for inkjet printing winning us the 2006 TIPA Award. This created quite a buzz in the digital photo world amongst exhibition grade photographers and our competitors. This series of papers brought the last area of traditional photo processing into the digital world.

Our next new product range was to dive head first into the framing world with the JetMaster series of products. We now were providing finishing products so photographers and artists could output on Innova media and then use a JetMaster product to display the prints. The JetMaster range has opened up the sign and display graphics market to Innova with our direct print product for flatbed UV/Eco-solvent print technology. Again, exciting times. What plans do you have for the business in the next year or so? Not to be outdone, we are very excited about the future of our fine art media and the further development of the JetMaster range of products. We have added in house converting capabilities in our 54,000ft Andover production/distribution facility, a totally new venture for us. Utilizing our new converting assets will make us even more flexible and help us to address ever changing customer requirements. And finally, how will you be celebrating Innova’s 10th Birthday? Since FESPA is a “home game” for us in London (June 2013), we plan to meet up with our international customers and partners for a little get together to celebrate 10 years in business and plot out the next 10 years. More exciting times ahead are guaranteed. www.innovaart.com www.jetmaster-systems.com

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Retail Photo Gift Solutions Mitsubishi Electric’s latest photo retail solution Gift Kiosk has been designed to offer ID photos, instant print and personalised gifts quickly and easily. Gift Kiosk enables customers to create and print personalised calendars, albums, gift & greetings cards, mosaic and collage prints and instant prints, using their own images stored on memory card, USB memory stick, CD / DVD or via their online Facebook and Picassa accounts.

Mitsubishi are currently offering Gift Kiosk bundle packages starting at £3899 which includes hardware, starter media, point of sale material as well as installation, training and warranty.* For more detail contact Mitsubishi 01707 278684 email printer.info@meuk.mee.com or visit our website! * Check availability

All of our systems include passport photo printing services and Mitsubishi’s integrated biometric ID software makes the process of making a passport or ID photograph, very simple and quick; instant prints are available in 6"x4", 5"x7" & 6"x8" formats in either a gloss or matt finish.

Tel: 01707 278684 | Fax: 01707 278541 | vis.mitsubishielectric.co.uk | printer.info@meuk.mee.com InPrint 27

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