May 31, 2007
VistaPrint recruits independent sales reps
LEXINGTON, MA — VistaPrint has launched a sales rep program, called Notable Style, through its U.S. website. Anyone with a U.S. credit card can sign up to become an independent sales rep for VistaPrint’s range of products, including business cards, postcards, magnets, brochures and T-shirts. “Reps [will] sell the products at whatever price they want, and make money when they buy at a discount at VistaPrint. Reps will keep their vendor (VistaPrint) anonymous, so essentially they are running their own independent business,” said Jason Keith, public relations manager at VistaPrint. Target customers include consumers, small home businesses and start-up companies. Keith likens the scheme to how Tupperware is sold and expects the reps to hold sales parties. “”The program [will] be driven through word of mouth and individual testimonials.” In some instances reps may also offer design services to customers. Currently, the program is offered only through VistaPrint.com, but may be offered in Canada through VistaPrint.ca in the future.

Two shops install large-format printers
TORONTO—Commercial and digital printer RP Graphics is bringing its large-format display work in house, with the purchase of a Inca Spyder 320 from Fujifilm Canada. While in Calgary, digital large-format sign printer, Anvy Digital Imaging is the first in Canada to install Fujifilm’s Inca Spyder 320+ white.

Brian Auty (left), chief technical officer, and George Mazzafero, president of RP Graphics, show off the company’s new Inca Spyder 320.

Anvy Digital owner John Phan (left) and Bob Lush, account manager with Fujifilm Canada, stand beside the Inca Spyder 320+ white.

May 29, 2007
Assets of bankrupt suppliers to be auctioned off
BRAMPTON, ON — Two southern Ontario graphic-arts suppliers are bankrupt. Their assets will be sold at a public auction on May 31, 2007. Gummed Papers Ltd., in Brampton, Ont., made and supplied non-curled gummed printing papers, laminated paper and tape, as well as offered custom-coating and laminating services. Mississauga, Ont.-based Marathon Graphics Supply Inc, in business since 1983, sold platesetters, plates, film, and chemistry. The liquidator is Platinum Asset Services. The receiver is BDO Dunwoody. The auction will take place at the Gummed Papers’ Brampton facilities.

Toronto shop opts for a Suprasetter
TORONTO — 20-year-old commercial printer, Imperial Graphics has installed a Heidelberg Suprasetter A52 CtP device. Pictured left to right with the Suprasetter are Imperial’s Carmelo Lorefice and Corrado “Charlie” De Luca.

May 24, 2007
Print exports up, while Chinese imports are down
OTTAWA—Industry Canada has released the most recent set of import and export totals (top 10 countries) for the print industry. The numbers are not adjusted for inflation.

EXPORTS	2007	2006	Change
March	$135.9 million	$125.9 million	7.9%
Year to date	$354.2 million	$347.3 million	2.0%

In March, exports grew by $10 million, with exports to the U.S. topping the list at $108.2 million. Our next best customer is the United Kingdom, with exports totalling $4.6 million.

IMPORTS	2007	2006	Change
March	$126.4 million	$98.3 million	28.5%
Year to date	$265.5 million	$331.4 million	24.8%

Though still Canada’s second largest importer of print, the Chinese totals continue to decline with March’s figures closing at $11.5 million.

New iGen3 for southern Ontario shop
MISSISSAUGA, ON—Phil Sproul (centre), senior vice president of print shop dsicontac, stands in front of a newly installed Xerox iGen3 digital press with Anika McDonald (left), marketing coordinator, and Giary Riley (right), operations manager. The Xerox iGen3 was installed in dsicontac’s expanded Mississauga, Ont. facility.

May 22, 2007
Ontario printer dies in plane crash
PICKERING, ON—Max Hudson, 55, co-owner of Tech Web Printing in Pickering, Ont., died last Thursday, May 17, when the twin-engine Beech Baron plane he was piloting crashed near Buffalo, NY. He and two companions were en route from Oshawa, Ont. to Wilmington, Del., when engine trouble forced Hudson to attempt an emergency landing. “He was my best friend,” said David Gilby, Hudson’s business partner in Tech Web. Gilby’s and Hudson’s friendship goes back 20 years when they both worked at Web Offset Publications in Pickering (now part of Ironstone Media). In 1997, the pair left Web Offset to start Tech Web. “Max had three passions,” said Gilby. “Story telling, flying and telling stories about flying.” Hudson leaves his wife, Peg, and daughter, Sarah, and many, many friends in the industry.

Production Values – Quebec print bounces back
OTTAWA—Statistics Canada has released the latest data for domestic print shipments, updating to March 2007. Note that these numbers are not adjusted for inflation.

SHIPMENTS	2007	2006	Change
February	$919.23 million	$970.13 million	-5.2%
Year to date	$2.50 billion	$2.60 billion	-3.8%

Quebec’s shipments have bounced back from a five-month slide, finishing March at $284.94 million, up from February’s total of $239.70 million.

May 18, 2007
Lay-offs at St. Joesph
TORONTO—St. Joseph Print has laid off approximately 20 employees, some at its Ottawa plant, St. Joseph’s Print Group, and some at other locations. The laid-off employees were involved in statement printing, and were let go because of “a cyclical downturn in the market,” said Marta Sinyard of St. Joseph”s corporate communications.

May 17, 2007
Mary Black Recruiting to open westcoast office
TORONTO — Mary Black Recruiting, an executive recruiting firm dedicated to placing top graphic communications management talent, is opening a new office in Vancouver to serve the graphic arts community in western Canada.  The Vancouver office will be run by Lorne Patterson, Canadian industry veteran, long-time board member of the BCPIA and past president and vice chair of the CPIA.

May 15, 2007
General Printers wins big at OPIA Awards
TORONTO—General Printers of Oshawa was the biggest winner at the Ontario Printing and Imaging Association’s 2007 Excellence in Print Awards, announced during the OPIA Spring Gala on May 11, 2007. General Printers won six category awards, including Best of Section (Sheetfed). Other Best of Section winners were Parker Pad & Printing of Markham (Packaging) and Ottawa-based companies St. Joseph Print Group (Web) and Lowe-Martin Group (Specialty). Webcom Inc. of Toronto took home three awards in the Web category, while Tri-Graphic Printing of Ottawa bagged three in the sheetfed category. Winning two awards apiece were Parker Pad & Printing; Bowne of Canada of Toronto; Owen Sound’s Transcontinental Printing RBW Graphics and Twin City Dwyer Printing of Kitchener.

Canada Post reports growth in admail volumes
OTTAWA—Canada Post Corporation’s 2006 Annual Report, released in early May, shows the markets that grew the most were unaddressed and addressed admail, which saw 9.1% and 5% volume increases respectively. Lettermail volumes did not grow substantially, registering only a 3.2% increase, while newspaper and magazine mailings grew by a mere 0.8%. A press release from CPC says population growth in Canada contributed to the growth in admail volumes, but warned that the “average renenue-generating items delivered to each address has begun to decline.”

May 10, 2007
Quebecor’s Marine Drive plant to close
VANCOUVER—Quebecor World will close its Marine Drive plant in Vancouver by the end of 2007. Employees were informed in early April. “The building has been sold and we have to be out by the end of the year,” said Tony Ross, vice president, communications, Quebecor World. Operations at the heatset web plant, which specializes in magazine printing, will be consolidated with Quebecor’s Port Coquitlam plant, which specializes in heatset-printed advertising inserts. What consolidation means in terms of employee layoffs is unknown. “We are currently negotiating with employee unions,” said Ross. Marine Drive has approximately 170 employees and Port Coquitlam has 120.  Quebecor World’s website states that during the last two years it has invested “over $15 million in new equipment” at its Marine Drive plant.

Quebecor World’s first-quarter results down
MONTREAL — Quebecor World has reported first-quarter 2007 revenue of $1.39 billion — down from $1.47 billion in first quarter 2006. This downward trend was blamed on temporary inefficiencies resulting in Quebecor’s retooling and restructuring initiative, which saw the closure of six plants in the first quarter and the redistribution of presses and equipment among remaining plants.  Other factors include challenging market conditions in Europe and in Canada price pressure and loss of sales to U.S. customers because of unfavourable exchange rates.

May 8, 2007
Isabelle Marcoux named in Canada’s Top 40 Under 40
MONTREAL—Isabelle Marcoux, vice chair of the board and vice president, corporate development of Transcontinental Inc., has been named as one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 for 2007.
Marcoux has overseen more than 75 mergers and acquisitions in the 10 years she has worked for Transcontinental and heads up the company’s new educational materials group. She was cited for her many contributions to the company’s success and for her volunteer work on behalf of various Montreal charities. The Top 40 Under 40 were selected by an expert panel of 29 business and community leaders in Canada.
Marcoux will speak on the Future of Publishing on June 6, 2007 in Toronto as part of the Canadian Magazine Industry conference, Mags U.

Calgary printer installs an A. B. Dick
CLAGARY—Sharper, based in Calgary, has recently installed a refurbished A.B. Dick 9810. It was purchased from Pressdown Graphic Equipment in Scarborough, ON, and installed by Calgary-based The Service Depot Inc. Sharper produces personalized marketing products such as postcards, calendars, stationery for healthcare professionals in the U.S. and Canada. Left to right, are operations manager David Thirkell and Mark Dyck, the Service Depot. Inc.

May 3, 2007
Dollco to offer university scholarship in Nicholds’ name
OTTAWA—Though he never went to university himself, G.B. “Hap” Nicholds was a big advocate of higher education. A new scholarship to be formed in his name will help Dollco families do what he never could. Nicholds, who passed away on February 22, was president of Dollco Printing from 1976 to 2001 and oversaw the company’s growth into a $50 million enterprise. He never had the chance to attend university, but according to Krista Nicholds, his daughter and the current co-president of Dollco, “he always advocated strongly for us to continue our education as far as we could.” Since his passing, the company has formed the G.B. “Hap” Nicholds Scholarship Fund for employee’s children. The fund is arranged through the University of Ottawa, for which Dollco has done print work before. The value of the scholarship is yet unknown as donations are still being counted and organized. Krista Nicholds says the company plans to award the first scholarship this September.

Transcontinental gets deeper into Saskatchewan newspapers
MONTREAL—The Grenfell Sun and The Broadview Express have been acquired by Transcontinental, making them the company’s seventh and eighth Saskatchewan newspapers. Formerly owned and published by Dwayne Stone, the two papers were acquired for an undisclosed sum earlier this week along with a commercial printing operation. Transcontinental owns 167 newspapers nationwide.

May 1, 2007
Custom Direct finds a buyer
TORONTO—After four months of searching, cheque producer Custom Direct Income Fund has found a buyer from Canada. As PrintCAN initially reported in January, Custom Direct had been shopping its assets around. EdgeStone Capital Partners, a private equity firm based in Toronto, announced yesterday that a deal had been reached. EdgeStone will buy Custom Direct’s shares for $199 million and cover Custom Direct’s US$37.5 million debt when the deal closes. All of that translates to a $10.20 payout per share for Custom Direct’s shareholders, who will vote on the deal at an upcoming meeting. The arrangement, if approved, is expected to be finalized by the end of May, at which point the public fund will become private.

Web offset conference lands in Toronto
TORONTO—Big names drew crowds at the 55th annual conference for the Web Offset Association. Former prime minister Brian Mulroney, St. Joseph CEO Tony Gagliano and Transcontinental CEO Luc Desjardins, among others, addressed 650 attendees at Toronto’s Sheraton Centre during the conference’s five-day schedule. The event concludes tomorrow morning.

Marcoux’s trophy case bulging at the seams
TORONTO—It’s been a golden couple of months for Transcontinental’s founder Rémi Marcoux who yesterday added another award to his collection. After an induction to the printing hall of fame last October, and being granted membership in The Order of Canada in March, Marcoux has been awarded the Harry V. Quadracci award at the Web Offset Association’s 55th annual conference. Named for the founder of Quad/Graphics, who died in 2002, the award recognizes leadership and vision in the print industry. Marcoux, left, was presented with the award by Ralph G. Pontillo, Transcontinental’s vice president and general manager and chairman of the Web Offset Association, right.