Mike Greene, managing director, ABC Print
"I think it is important to buy British. I wouldn’t outsource a job abroad because once you do that, you immediately lose control and that is not something we can afford to do. I also think that British print manufacturing is in good health. Operating in the B3 market has meant that we have not been as affected as some other companies in the larger format markets. I am also optimistic for the future of British print manufacturing. You have to have a belief in what you do and I think we’re excellent at what we do here."

Howard Turner, managing director, Printing Plus
"The most important aspect for us here at Printing Plus is to buy products and services locally more than we do internationally. A factor that can dictate those decisions is getting the best value for money. When we outsource work, we will always try and have that done in north-west England first of all. I can’t think of any work that we have placed abroad as, when you do that, it is difficult to maintain the same levels of service. Going forward, there are plenty of opportunities for British print manufacturing to develop and I’m optimistic about its future."

Tim Lance, sales and marketing director, X1
"Where we can, we will always buy British. It’s much easier to buy from our own shores, so it definitely influences our decisions. That’s a big plus right now, given we are all in this life boat together in rough economic seas: it never hurts to try and weather the bad times together. But if buying British is three times more expensive than elsewhere, we have to look abroad to places like China. I think British manufacturing suffers an unwarrantably bad press. There are some great companies and people and we need to get out there and spend."

Gareth Roberts, managing director, Bishops Printers
"All things being equal, I think it is very important to buy British and to buy as locally as possible. I do so because I hope and I expect that to be reciprocated by our customers. I think buying locally is a healthy way to do things. As we are in the middle of a move to our new 7,710m2 Portsmouth site in August, we are asking all of our suppliers and subcontractors to source resources such as vehicles locally. I like to know where things come from because that also gives you a greater level of control. Going forward, I am cautiously optimistic about the future of British print. You have to be positive otherwise it can turn out to be a self-fulfilling prophecy."