According to the latest BPIF Printing Outlook, demand for print was at its highest Q1 level for two decades and, even better, the fed’s report states that the trend is set to continue in Q2.

And the feel-good factor was clearly evident at Fespa Digital last month, where a record number of visitors attended a show that also boasted a record number of exhibitors.

No one can pretend that the industry at large doesn’t still face a number of challenges that need to be tackled, but the sense of optimism returning to the sector is palpable.

Printers by their nature (and experience) are a cautious bunch, so it’s inevitable that there are still lingering concerns over unsustainable pricing in some quarters. However, as the subject of this week’s interview Jon Tolley, managing director of our reigning SME of the year Prime Group highlights, margins can be moved in the right direction if you get the offering right and move the client discussions away from the traditional triangle of quality, service and price and replace the latter criteria with ‘results’.

By Tolley’s own admission it’s not necessarily an easy cultural switch to make, and it will take time, but more and more companies appear to have been able to make the move – first and foremost by developing an understanding of their clients’ pain points.

And now that business is picking up, the hope is that more people will be able to spend more time focusing on the changing needs of their customers and less time worrying about a rival’s suicidal pricing strategy.