2025 PRINTING United Expo Sets Record-Breaking Numbers

By Toni McQuilken

By the Numbers

We have wrapped another PRINTING United Expo, this year in sunny Orlando, Florida, and to say it was a success is an understatement. More than 30,000 people explored 838 exhibitors spanning nearly a million square feet — a record breaking year for the Expo. A few other numbers of note:

4.7 million pounds of equipment were on the show floor.
104 countries were represented.
There were more than 100 educational sessions and presentations.
More than 60 students from local and national schools and universities attended the annual Student Day, held in partnership with Print & Graphics Scholarship Foundation (PGSF).
More than 300 attendees convened at the Women in Print Alliance luncheon.

And that is just a taste of what the Expo had to offer this year.

"The Expo embodied the convergence of every market under one roof — and the innovation our industry thrives on,” Chris Curran, group president, Media and Events, said in a statement. “From AI to automation and sustainability, every corner of the show floor was power-packed with solutions driving print forward. We’re already looking ahead to 2026 where the show floor is already 65% sold to date.”

Celebrating the Wins

Of course, the true test of success for the Expo is whether or not business was getting done, which is the true purpose we all come together each year. Networking, learning about new technologies, exploring new markets, and of course purchasing new equipment and software to help every size and shape of printing business thrive in the coming years is ultimately the Expo’s goal. And this year brought that spirit in spades.

Enedy Brache, managing partner, A-Plus Printing and Graphics, a trade printer who also had a booth on the floor, noted, “Just the energy, the amount of people stopping by — a lot of people are excited about printing, and the things that they are seeing at the show. I see a lot of people actually looking for new ways to make money and new ways to grow the business. And the show has been great for that.”

Exceeding Expectations

One of the big sponsors of the Expo, Canon U.S.A., also had nothing but praise for the three days spent interacting with the industry. “Canon achieved an undeniable success at PRINTING United Expo,” Kiyoshi Oka, executive vice president and general manager, Marketing Strategy Unit, Canon U.S.A, said. “We were thrilled to showcase innovations like the varioPRINT iX1700 and the global debut of the Colorado XL-series, both of which generated tremendous interest. As title sponsor, we welcomed the opportunity to witness the energy and vision on display, which confirms the event's importance in shaping the future of print.”

Don Dubuque, director of marketing, Standard Finishing Systems, noted that the Expo exceeded the company’s expectations, with hundreds of equipment demonstrations in its booth, new leads, and meaningful discussions with print service providers (PSPs) and partners.

“We were also very happy with sales at the show, which totaled several million dollars and were spread across the different Horizon automated finishing products we sell and had on display in our booth, including perfect binders, trimmers, folders, saddlestitchers, bookletmakers, diecutters, slitters/creasers, and paper cutters,” he said.

Konica Minolta is another exhibitor that saw big success this year. It reported two big sales — One Hour Business Cards out of Dallas, Texas, purchased a Konica Minolta AccurioPress 7090 CMYK cut-sheet toner press on the show floor; and Flower City Group out of Rochester, New York, became Konica Minolta's first AccurioJet 30000 High Chroma variant customer.

Graphco reported three sales directly from the show floor, said Monica Keenan, sales operations manager. That included the SD Augusta F150R Pro with Auto Stud Welding, Foliant Mercury 530NG 4x4 Double-sided Laminator, and Fold Stream Folder/Gluer.

“I’ve never seen someone order a machine this quickly,” she noted. “He saw it on the floor, thought it was cool, took a video, and sent it to his dad. They signed the contract on the spot.”

Expo Proves its Value

Printware surpassed its sales goal for the 2025 Expo.

“iJetColor by Printware is already taking orders for late this year as we overachieved our sales goal for the show, sold all the equipment on the floor, and launched a new inkjet unit that our current customers are fighting to get their hands on their first unit! We loved Orlando,’” Tim Murphy, president of the company, said.

DSI also sold several SEAS MEEVO machines, noted Steve LaMarsh, Business Development Director. And it had serious interest from another two-dozen prospects during the three-day event.

Colex Finishing reported that it sold everything it brought to the show this year. Maureen Damato, the company’s senior director of channel sales, noted, “PRINTING United, Orlando 2025 was outstanding for Colex Finishing and Fotoba! Great attendance from attendees who came to purchase equipment, and great attendance from partners who exhibited as well. Sales at the show were outstanding with many more equipment orders to close!” In fact, she shared that one customer who purchased at the show said, “The Sharpcut Flatbed Cutter will be a great addition to our finishing department with the ability to say ‘yes’ to every job that comes in the door. The Colex Sharpcut Flatbed Cutter offers versatility, speed, and great price.”

Agfa had a great showing this year as well, with the robotics on display attracting crowds of people interested in learning how they can remove friction and bottlenecks from their large-format workflows. Deborah Hutchenson, director of strategic business development & distribution, Agfa North America, noted, “I’m really excited at the success of the show. We’ve had a great show. We’re selling lots of engines. We’re selling stuff off the floor. We’re having new conversations with customers.”

Looking Ahead to What's Next

Enfocus had another successful Expo as well, with attendees flocking to its booth to check out what has fast become an annual tradition of using its powerful automation software and working with partners around the show floor to demonstrate how fast and easy projects can be with the creation of “mini-me” standees live on the floor.

Piet De Pauw, head of marketing, Enfocus, noted, “I just love the fact that this is the only show in the industry that’s clearly organized by a media company. It’s a very good show, but then you think about everything around the show as well — we visit your offices, the things that we’re doing with the videos that we’ve done with Ashley Roberts — that makes it so much fun to be here. Plus, of course, we get results, and we get to meet people, and have really meaningful conversations to help printers forward with automation. This show is a full package, and that’s why it’s my favorite show of the year.”

Sharp Electronics Corp.’s vice president, Product Management and Production, Dino Pagliarello, noted, “What a great show! PRINTING United 2025 was a tremendous success for Sharp Electronics this year. I've been in the Production Print business and going to shows of this caliber for 20-plus years, and I can honestly say that this was the busiest booth ever! We uncovered lots of new opportunities including closing on equipment directly off the show floor.”

And while the sales are always a great measure of success, they aren’t the only thing exhibitors were excited to see this year. Dan Wilson, VP of marketing at Roland DGA, noted, “I’m excited about the people that I’ve talked to that are here looking for new ideas and creating new businesses. They’re not just sort of settled in what they do today. They’re looking at what’s next.”

That was a theme of many conversations around the show floor — this year attendees were out in force to find solutions to problems both new and old. They were taking the opportunity to check out not just products to help them solve their business needs today, they were searching for ideas on how they can thrive tomorrow. Even on day three, traditionally a fairly quiet day compared to the first two, attendees were still out in force looking to make last-minute connections and get a few more conversations in while they could see everyone together.

In fact, this show reignited a lot of hope and excitement. Steve Lynn, executive director, Durst Image Technology, noted, “What I’m excited about is, I think we’ve had a strange year. We’ve had a weird time. We’ve had tariffs, we’ve had price increases. Just a lot of instability. And I feel like coming to this show, talking to printers the length and breadth of the country — large, medium, small companies — it feels like our industry is buoyant. It’s okay. We’re resilient. We got through it. People are investing.”

Perhaps Susan Shoffner, business development manager, SmartSoft/Datatech, summed it all up best.