But although just 2,421 of the organisers’ 3,000 target actually turned up, the turnout was 8% higher than the number of people that attended the last event in 2011 when 2,250 crossed the threshold.
And while there are those that bemoan the time, effort and cash they put into exhibiting at the event only to see a fraction of the number of potential buyers that would have roamed the halls in the heady days of the 1990s and early 2000s, there are as many, if not more, that say the quality of visitor is far higher now.
One vendor, German manufacturer Palamides, even compared its results at the show to last year’s Drupa. Regional sales manager Martin Recknagel says: "Even on home territory we didn’t get the kind of interest and quality of leads that we have had here in Harrogate."
Sharing a stand in Hall M with distributor Perfect Bindery Solutions and MGI, Palamides came to show its Smartliner 240 layflat binder, a prototype of which was unveiled at Drupa 2012. Not only did the manufacturer make "a lot of strong leads", of which Recknagel says at least 80% are "very serious", but the company actually sealed its first two sales of the machine on the stand, to the tune of around £100,000. This was the machine’s first outing in the UK, but Recknagel says that, after his experience at North Print & Pack, it most likely will not be the last. "We were extremely busy all three days. I think the UK is going to be a really strong market for us," he says.
Indeed Perfect Bindery Solutions’ Steve Giddins attests to this with comparable sales of around £100,000 after shifting six machines from the stand – three ODM casing machines, two guillotines and a perfect binder.
On its second visit to Harrogate, MGI Technology too had a successful show, with visitors queuing to see its highly versatile Meteor DP8700 XL digital press, saying that with such quality of leads it was "vital" to keep coming back.
In Hall C Konica Minolta UK sold seven production print systems from securing three separate deals on day two of the show. Market development manager Mark Hinder says that almost 50% of the "hundreds" of leads the company made relate to KM Bizhub Press C8000e system, while a huge buzz surrounded the much-anticipated KM-1 which, it was confirmed at the show, would be on display at Print 13 in Chicago this autumn as well as Ipex next year. "The show was a massive success for us and the fact that we made these sales is great news, not just for us but for the industry," says Hinder.
"There was a buzz about the show this time. While there has been much negative news in the industry, we are seeing that there is money to invest and people are really evaluating what they want to invest in and are coming to shows like North Print & Pack to talk to the vendors they want to see."
The refreshed format of this year’s show, including 56 speakers in the Knowledge Centre theatres, the Labelcity zone with exhibitors such as ABG International, Domino UK and Flint Group, the Printers’ Profit Zone, and particularly the new focus on packaging, helped to attract not only a raft of new exhibitors but also a higher quality of visitor, Hinder believes.
In fact, according to show organiser Informa, 40% of exhibitors were new this year with a "large majority", involved in supplying packaging services and equipment.
More deals
Further sales were reported elsewhere with Ricoh shifting digital presses and software applications, Morgana taking orders on its 2000S Booklet System launched at the show and Autobond doing deals on two of its new B2 entry-level Micro 52 laminators.
So, although numbers weren’t what some would have hoped, business for some was brisk.
But for Renz managing director Iain Bullock, who exhibited at North Print & Pack for the 10th time this year, the Harrogate event isn’t really about immediate gains.
"We made just over £23,000 at the show. It’s nothing really to write home about, but in conjunction with the opportunity to network with distributors and customers it is satisfactory and, in line with previous shows, will most likely double once we have followed up on leads," he says.
Bullock, who has already booked his floor space for North Print & Pack 2015, says that overall the show met his expectations because he didn’t set the bar too high.
"It is easier to justify not being able to show an immediate ROI on the relatively low cost of North Print & Pack – compared to the likes of Drupa and Ipex – because it enables us to meet and socialise on a very personal level with our distributor base and direct customers," he adds.
Perfect Bindery’s Giddins, who has also confirmed his spot for the 2015 show, agrees that expectations these days should be tempered and that vendors need to do more to attract customers. He highlights the collaboration with his stand partners which involved Giddins and his team taking output from the MGI Meteor to create A3 landscape photobooks, stitching and binding them on stand with a range of equipment from the company’s portfolio.
"The industry is changing and we need to change with it. Not just in our business models, but in what we offer at exhibitions. Our sales this year were the first we have made at a show in a long time and I think it was down to collaboration," he explains.
"We need to make things interesting for visitors. After all it’s not about us, it’s about them."
COMMENT
Show has a key role to play in informing the industry
Trevor Crawford, director, Print & Media Group, Informa Exhibitions
Following Northprint 2011, we carried out a great deal of research with visitors and exhibitors to ensure we delivered an event in 2013 that was tailored to their needs. It was clear that educational content and packaging were high on the list of important additions to North Print & Pack for visitors, while high-quality visitors with purchasing power were of great significance to our exhibitors.
Across the board, exhibitors have been commenting positively on the high number of quality visitors they met with during the show. Compared with 2011, we have this year seen a real desire from the print and packaging communities to visit the show to invest in new equipment and services. Our VIP programme, which invited high-quality decision-makers from both the print and packaging industries, resulted in a three-fold increase on the VIP attendance we achieved in 2011 and we believe this played a big role in the number of visitors looking to invest this year.
The record number of pre-registrations we had for the show this year highlighted that there is still a real appetite for a national print and packaging show, with initial data suggesting that 60% of visitors came from the Midlands and northern England, while 40% of visitors were from the South. The final net footfall, although less than the pre-registration number, is therefore very positive, especially given the current challenges our market is facing.
I believe that North Print & Pack still has a key role to play in the UK print and packaging calendar for the industry to learn about the new commercial opportunities, hear how industry leaders are developing their businesses and of course, to see the latest products. We will be speaking to this year’s exhibitors and visitors over the coming weeks and asking them for their feedback and suggestions to ensure we continue tailor the event accordingly in order to continue responding to the market’s changing needs.
READER REACTION
What was your experience of this year’s North Print & Pack?
David Allsopp, director, ASAP Digital
"I went to look at finishing equipment, specifically a laminator, and I was able to have some good conversations, but these shows just aren’t what they used to be. I last went to Northprint four years ago and even then it was just so much smaller than it used to be. I feel sorry for the organisers because I don’t think these shows will survive. People simply don’t need to go there to network or view equipment because they can do that online on Facebook, Twitter or YouTube."
Timon Colegrove, managing director, Hunts
"I’ve been many times before and I got a lot of value from it – it had a real networking quality. It is less daunting than Ipex or Drupa. It’s more about quality over quantity. The people you meet there are really worth talking to and, because it is smaller, you bump into more of them. I didn’t engage with the education or packaging side of things because I go with a focus on what I want. I also had the most incredible fry-up and tea at Bettys. Everything there is done with finesse and I think that’s something we in print can learn a lot from."
Adrian Horne, pre-press team leader, Archant Print
"I’ve never been to North Print & Pack before and I found it really useful. The main reason I went was to make contact with businesses that are local to the Harrogate area and wider Yorkshire region because it’s an interesting region. My secondary reason was because I wanted to look at any new MIS and web-based client file options and what transferable technology there might be for newspapers in the in the packaging world."
