Print is one of the most exciting, dynamic, and rapidly growing sectors globally. In this digital era, print’s enduring relevance and vitality often go unnoticed—or worse, undermined. In reality, print is more alive than ever and it’s largely in part to the digital era.
According to Smithers, the printing industry has a total market size of more than $800 billion. The industry outlook promises immense opportunities, especially in digital printing, which is rapidly expanding to accommodate micro orders from the booming e-commerce space.
Digital printing’s market size is around $200 billion and estimated to increase by $90 billion in the next four years, according to Smithers. For reference, the expected growth of digital printing equates to two global music industries, with the music industry’s total market size of $41 billion, as reported by Statista.
Seizing the Digital Opportunity
The shift toward digital has been transformative for the print industry. Traditional offset printing, effective in its time, now falls short of the demands for greater personalization and efficiency. Today’s most influential consumers, Gen Z and Millennials, expect interactivity and engagement, driving the need for digital solutions capable of delivering personalized, on-demand products. This shift is critical as e-commerce continues to grow, emphasizing the need for production solutions that can help the industry adapt swiftly to dynamic consumer demands.
Embracing Change: The Four Macro Forces
A handful of transformative key trends intersect to underscore print production’s vibrant digital opportunity:
- Personalization: According to Deloitte, more than 50% of customers were interested in acquiring personalized or custom products. That desire for personalization is even more pronounced in younger buyers. In a study by WP Engine, 75% of Gen Z survey respondents said they’re more likely to buy a product if they can customize it.
- Sustainability: Consumer demand and regulations make more sustainable production practices a necessity. ESG (environmental, social, and governance) investments are projected to rise to $34 trillion by 2026, according to PwC.
- Local: Consumers prefer supporting local businesses and receiving products quickly and sustainably.
- Creator Economy and E-commerce Entrepreneurism: Projected to reach $480 billion by 2027 (Goldman Sachs), the creator economy offers vast opportunities for on-demand, local production.
When combining these insights with the fact that influential Gen Z and Millennial consumers prioritize delivery speed and mobility, plus the advancements in print-specific technologies and major production breakthroughs like 3D printing, there has never been a more exciting time to be in the print production space.
Introducing GelatoConnect: Pioneering a New Era of Production
Gelato, known for being the world’s largest production-on-demand network, has been at the forefront of production innovation for the past 15+ years. With operations across 32 countries and more than 140 production partners, Gelato prioritizes local, on-demand production to cut emissions, costs, and delivery times. Throughout its development, Gelato has been refining its software for its production partners, enabling them to produce micro-orders with more efficiency. This has evolved into GelatoConnect, now available to all print producers.
GelatoConnect integrates procurement, workflow, and logistics into a single platform, dramatically improving efficiency, reducing waste, enhancing profitability and the overall quality of print production output. Today, GelatoConnect processes millions of orders annually, handling substantial revenue and proving essential for modern print operations prioritizing speed, customization, and more sustainable production methods.
The advantages of GelatoConnect, as validated by McKinsey and Company, include a 3-7 percentage point increase in profitability for print producers by eliminating operational inefficiencies, improving procurement, reducing excess inventory, and optimizing shipping solutions.
GelatoConnect Results: Transforming Production
Some of the industry’s most innovative leaders are deploying GelatoConnect and experiencing significant results:
- Simon Smoguer, CEO, ESP: “GelatoConnect stands at the forefront, revolutionizing the print industry! Seamlessly integrating procurement, workflow, and shipping into one intuitive application. GelatoConnect ensures my machines are seamlessly integrated, providing real-time insights into my equipment, packers, and carrier performance. Gelato’s software is poised to redefine our industry, and I am witnessing tangible improvements in our production efficiencies and cost base in real-time.”
- Charlie Saunders, CEO, TidyMerch: “With GelatoConnect Logistics, we are saving on average 15-20% on shipping costs while improving our output efficiency by 4 to 5 times. In GelatoConnect Procurement, we are saving, for example on mugs, roughly 40%. We will also, once you start to roll out automatic replenishment which you have started doing in the US, save 2 hours per day in manual handling time. A time saving of 500 hours approximately per year.”
Meet Gelato at drupa
Discover how GelatoConnect can revolutionize your print production processes at drupa. Gelato’s booth is located in hall 9A, right next to Landa. Also, don’t miss Gelato founder and CEO, Henrik Müller-Hansen, for his keynote presentation in the drupa cube on Friday, May 31st at 10:45 am: “What Gen Z and the Creator Economy Means for Printing.”
For more information, or to sign up for a live demo at drupa or virtually, www.gelato.com/gelato-connect.
When print producers sign up for the GelatoConnect Workflow module before June, they receive two invitations to our October VIP partner summit in Madrid.