International Paper

PART OF effectively marketing your firm is a clear understanding of what your business is about—what are your market differentiators, why do customers buy from you rather than someone else, and what would attract new customers to you rather than the guy down the street or the Internet storefront at their fingertips? In his keynote address at EFI Connect 2007, Apple Fellow Guy Kawasaki’s advice, among other things, was to define your innovation or differentiation with a two- to three-word mantra, like Nike’s Authentic Athletic Performance, FedEx’s Peace of Mind, eBay’s Democratize Commerce. This is a good approach that makes it easy for your

Is it recycled? Is it recyclable? Does the mill use energy efficiently? What about clean air and water? What about sustainable forestry? Should I buy from a printer who uses soy inks? Should I buy from a printer who’s close by so that there is less energy used in delivering my print job? What about global warming? These are excellent questions, and clearly it’s not just about recycling. Fortunately, help is on the way. Three years ago, I conducted market research on environmentally preferred papers (EPP). I went to Seattle because I expected the Pacific Northwest to be especially sensitive to environmental issues but,

Cal Poly Dedicates New Sheetfed Press SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA—Cal Poly’s Graphic Communication Department received the donation of a new Heidelberg four-color Speedmaster CD 74 press to commemorate the 60th anniversary of its establishment. The perfecting press with anilox coater and Prinect system—which was a gift from Heidelberg USA—will introduce the newest sheetfed technology to Cal Poly students, said Harvey Levenson, head of the department. It will be used in sheetfed printing classes and as part of the department’s student-run company, University Graphic Systems (UGS). To better serve the graphic communications market, sales training consultancy 2WIN! Global has entered into a business

Friesens Corporation, Lawton Printing, and Corporate Press Join Organization’s Growing Membership WASHINGTON, DC—March 22, 2007—The Print Council, a national business development initiative dedicated to promoting the greater use of printing and print media, today announced that Lawton Printing, The Friesens Corporation and Corporate Press have joined the organization’s growing membership. As new members of the Council, these well-regarded printers will be working with other companies to increase demand for printed materials. Members of The Print Council include commercial printers, paper manufacturers, press, ink and equipment manufacturers, publishers, industry associations, ad agencies, and public relations firms. Through advertising and speaking engagements, The Print Council is

WASHINGTON, DC—January 24, 2007—The Print Council, a national business development initiative dedicated to promoting the greater use of printing and print media, today announced that the Jacob North Companies and The John Roberts Company have joined the growing membership of the organization. As new members of the Council, these respected printers will be working with other companies to increase the market for printed materials. Ben Cooper, Executive Director of The Print Council, commented, “We are pleased that Jacob North Companies and John Roberts Company have elected to become part of our important industry effort to promote the value of print to the nation’s

PHILADELPHIA—1/17/07—Publishing Executive magazine proudly announces Google’s Jim Gerber as keynote speaker for the upcoming 2007 Publishing Executive Conference and Expo, scheduled for March 5-7, 2007, at the New York Marriott Marquis, Times Square. Gerber, director of content partnerships at Google, will present the Keynote Address on Tuesday, March 6, 2007 at 9:15 a.m.   The Keynote Address is open to all registered attendees. “We are thrilled to have Jim give the keynote address at the Publishing Executive Conference and Expo. There are few companies that have as profound an influence on publishing today as Google, so it’s a major boon for our audience of publishing executives

MEMPHIS, TN—International Paper (IP) has strengthened its balance sheet by more than $7 billion since embarking on a transformation plan in mid-2005 aimed at becoming a more focused and profitable company. IP has reduced its debt by approximately $6.2 billion from roughly $13.4 billion. A majority of the debt reduction was funded through divestiture proceeds…

Ryobi Plans Third Press Manufacturing Facility HIROSHIMA, JAPAN—Driven by strong U.S. and worldwide demand for mid-size offset printing presses, Ryobi Graphic Systems began construction on a new press manufacturing facility this month. The new facility will be the third at Ryobi’s Hiroshima East central production center. Ryobi officials said the newest facility, Hiroshima East Plant 3, will be at full-scale operations in September 2007. It will add another 99,000 square feet of manufacturing space and represents a total expected investment of $27 million. When the third facility is completed, Ryobi will have 314,000 square feet at its Hiroshima East operations, more than double

Valassis, ADVO Settle, Merge LIVONIA, MI—After several months of acrimony, Valassis and ADVO have decided to patch their differences and merge. The sides have dropped their chancery court case and will move under one roof via a renegotiated $1.2 billion deal, at $33 per share for the outstanding common shares of ADVO stock. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2007. Bowne Buys St Ives Financial NEW YORK—Bowne & Co. is acquiring St Ives Financial, the financial printing division of St Ives plc. Terms of the deal were not revealed. St Ives, which is keeping its annual report printing business, has financial printing

THE 2006 printing industry campaign provided more than enough ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ to keep followers on the edge of their seats, including a summer blockbuster takeover attempt of Banta Corp. by Bob Burton and Cenveo Inc. And the subject of postal reform, which has festered for years without a resolution, appeared on the brink of falling to pieces at the last minute. The M&A train seemed to pick up speed in 2006, though some parties managed to botch the due diligence aspect and instead land in court. Reorganization was in the air (unfortunately, so were job losses) and some of the biggest names in