
Building upon the foundations that the Independent Print Industries Association (IPIA) Chair, Charles Rogers previously initiated at a Business Leaders reception, hosted by Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Downden MP. The IPIA alongside Puneet Gupta OBE and Lyndsey James-Williams from PG Paper Company participated in organising a roundtable discussion at No 10 Downing Street. There they met with a senior special advisor to the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak MP on the 22/06/23.
The print industry delegates invited to attend the discussion at No.10, consisted of our very own Lance Hill – MD for EDWPS and Eight Plus in addition to Charles Rogers – IPIA Chair, Brendan Perring – IPIA, Anthony Rowell – Tradeprint, Jane Rixon – HP, Marine Kerivel-Brown – Duplo International, Sarah Kilcoyne-Guilliam – Kingsbury Press/Bluetree Group, Simon Cooper – Solopress, and Mike Hughes – Latcham.
The purpose of the roundtable was to educate the government on the contribution of the print and paper industries to the UK economy presently, whislt discussing ongoing support for our industry, with a focus on long-term growth and success. The roundtable discussion undoubtedly highlighted the industry’s innovations and sustainability initiatives, emphasising its importance as a valuable British commodity.
During the productive discussion, the Prime Minister’s special advisor delved into various areas particularly where the government can provide assistance and long-term planning to safeguard our industries and foster their expansion. These areas encompassed energy costs and infrastructure development, material costs, recycling and the circular economy, technological innovation, export prospects, the perception of print and paper, and the promotion of print’s valuable impact on culture and society.
“The government special advisor was clearly very interested in what we had to say and there were some very powerful messages and statistics which conveyed the scale and importance of the industry. The collective group demonstrated, in a cohesive and aligned manner, just how innovative and resilient the paper, print and associated industries are, plus we are all on the same page around sustainability and how we very much lead the way in this field in the UK’s media landscape.”
Lance Hill, Managing Director, Eight Days a Week Print SolutionsKey themes of the conversation arose after some reflection from the attendees.
Sustainability and resilience through innovation
- “We were able to bring to light the resilience, highly sustainable and innovative nature of our trade and showcased the heritage, expertise and creativity that make the UK a leading print power globally and an industry to protect and invest in.”
Marine Kerivel-Brown, International Marketing Manager, Duplo International - “Innovation, sustainability and resilience are at the heart of this industry so thank you IPIA for bringing us all together for the collective good of our industry.”
Jane Rixon, Business Development Manager, Signage and Decoration, HP Inc - “We educated the government on the contribution that our industry makes to economic growth of the UK, pushed for support and focussed specifically on the tremendous job our sector does in innovation and sustainability.”
Sarah Kilcoyne-Guilliam, Deputy General Manager – Kingsbury Press at Bluetree Group - “Our presentation was clear, we are a huge part of the UK economy, and play a key role in every other industry and the health of our society – assist us and we will remain resilient and a key manufacturing asset for UK PLC”
Charles Rogers, IPIA Chair - “It is critical that we have been able to demonstrate the significant progress we continue to make to support innovation in print and packaging – such as removing plastics, reducing our carbon footprint, and providing highly personalised and target solutions”
Mike Hughes, Managing Director, Latcham
The importance of the government spotlight on the UK print industry
- “The room was filled with an air of confidence, optimism and energy from all participants. We are now firmly engaged in a process of dialogue with policy makers, which we hope will secure tangible support for our industries to develop their future prosperity.”
Charles Rogers, IPIA Chair - “The IPIA have provided a fantastic opportunity to ensure that the UK print and paper industry is being considered in government policy making.”
Mike Hughes, Managing Director, Latcham - “…We showcased our collaborative approach, we explained in detail how we innovate and how passionate we are about the industry we love. If government needed a sector to show how we make Britain Great, then I feel we delivered that.”
- Anthony Rowell, Sales and Customer Success Director, Tradeprint
Why educating and advocating for the print industry is needed
- “One thing that stood out to me was the powerful moment where we were able to get the Special Advisor to realise the damage that’s unfairly been done to the image of the printing and paper industries. It’s so easy for our sectors to be demonised, and therefore we need to keep educating people around their inherent sustainability.”
Simon Cooper, Managing Director, Solopress
If this has piqued your interest specifically look our for our next blog on advocating for the UK print industry. Which delves into the nitty gritty details of the topics from this roundtable with Number 10 Downing Street.
In Summary the IPIA is deeply committed to supporting its members and helping them excel by expanding their business horizons. To grow using targeted member collaboration, adapt to ever evolving market forces, and thrive through mutual support. Values which here at Eight Days a Week, we fully support and help to uphold.