Paper Clips

Digital marketing runs at remarkable speeds. To help customers not only activate their deep data sets but do it exponentially faster, direct mail powerhouse SG360° found a powerful solution in production inkjet. With this technology, SG360° is pushing the envelope of what direct mail — and their business — can do. see more at: https://www.piworld.com/xchange/production-inkjet-printing/sg360-powering-direct-mail-communications-with-digital-print-and-next-generation-inkjet/#ne=d7f0e6e16b0d037f71fc050491da5623&utm_source=today-on-piworld&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=2020-11-16

The Kansas City Star will leave its iconic glass building downtown and look for a new home, the newspaper announced Tuesday. The Star will vacate its building at 1601 McGee St. by the end of 2021. As part of the transition, the newspaper will move printing to a third party, beginning in the first quarter of 2021. The changes come after parent company McClatchy, which owns 30 U.S. news organizations, including The Star, The Miami Herald and The Sacramento Bee, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February. The reorganization, which was approved by a federal judge in early August, allowed the company to renegotiate leases. Publications across McClatchy and the news industry have seen similar print consolidations.

Walsworth announced the full integration of The Ovid Bell Press in Fulton, Mo., into the Walsworth brand. This integration will lead to enhanced printing capabilities and available services across all Walsworth facilities. “This is the right time for the integration of The Ovid Bell Press into Walsworth. More than uniting our name, this move will make it easy to do business across all Walsworth locations. Our customers will benefit from more flexibility and enhanced capabilities and services, and each facility will be focused on the products they do best,” president Don Walsworth said. Operations at the Fulton facility will continue as normal. In coming under the Walsworth brand, this location joins Walsworth’s other facilities in Marceline and Brookfield, Missouri; St. Joseph, Michigan; Ripon, Wisconsin; and a sales and marketing office in Overland Park, Kansas.

HP Inc. and Shutterfly, the world’s leading online retailer of personalized products, today announced a landmark expansion of their strategic relationship to deliver next-level productivity to supply the growing e-commerce market of photo gifts and photo products. Shutterfly is investing in more than 60 new high-performance HP Indigo Digital Presses to drive higher productivity for its range of high-quality, photo-based and personalized products including photo gifts, photo books, school portraits, holiday cards, and home decor. The agreement with Shutterfly, the leading US supplier of HP Indigo digital print, is the largest single customer order to date for the HP Graphics business. Now underway, the rollout includes next-generation, high-productivity B2 sized HP Indigo 100K digital presses, high versatility HP Indigo 12000 digital presses, as well as significant investment in web-fed photo presses to transform photo portrait printing to digital.

Third Quarter 2020 Highlights: * Total revenue increased by 10.4% to $49.9 million, from $45.2 million in the third quarter of 2019. * EBITDA1 was up 49.3% to $8.1 million, an increase of $2.7 million, from $5.4 million in the third quarter of 2019. EBITDA includes a $0.9 million of assistance from the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy (“CEWS”) program. * Net Earnings increased to $2.7 million (or $0.10 per share), from $1.2 million (or $0.04 per share) in the third quarter of 2019. * Packaging and Specialty Products segment revenue increased by 18.9% to $15.8 million, up from $13.3 million in the third quarter of 2019. * Envelope segment revenue increased by 6.9% to $34.1 million, up from $31.9 million in the third quarter of 2019. * Net cash flows from operating activities increased to $7.2 million, up from $3.7 million in the third quarter of 2019.

R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company unveiled ConnectOne by RRD™, an end-to-end communications management platform that can help marketers enhance brand continuity, streamline workflows, and accelerate speed-to-market while driving down costs and improving their ROI. ConnectOne delivers a comprehensive suite of technologies for marketing automation, digital asset management, personalization at scale, and data-driven supply chain management. Combined with RRD’s unmatched communications management resources and expertise, ConnectOne delivers a simplified 360-degree view of enterprise communications through a single portal that can help deliver: *Optimized customer experiences that leverage content, data, and multichannel delivery *Streamlined content creation, production, and delivery *Personalized communications at scale across multiple channels *Automated workflows and data-driven processes that lower costs and improve efficiency

The ultra-high-speed, single-pass EFI™Reggiani BOLT digital textile printer from Electronics For Imaging, Inc. has received the InterTech™ Technology Award from PRINTING United Alliance. The InterTech Technology Awards honor technologies predicted to have a major transformational impact on the printing industry. The groundbreaking EFI Reggiani BOLT is the very first textile printer to receive an InterTech Award. Thanks to its cutting-edge printhead concept and high-performance ink delivery system for direct-to-textile printing, the 71 inch- (1.8 meter-) wide EFI Reggiani BOLT is the fastest digital textile printer available, delivering a top throughput speed of 295 feet (90 meters) per minute at a 600 x 600 dots per inch (dpi) resolution. It features high-end imaging in drop sizes from 5 to 30 picoliters, and also provides premium-quality 600 x 4,800 maximum-dpi resolution printing, allowing customers to address their full range of design needs.

Reach is proposing to close the newest newspaper printing facility in the UK, with two of its print sites set for the chop with the potential loss of 150 jobs. At the end of September Reach, which is the biggest contract newspaper printer in the UK, announced it would review its printing operations due to uncertainty over the levels of future work. It is now proposing to close its Luton and Birmingham sites. Reach Printing Services currently has six sites across the country. The group said that it planned to “balance the production of its national and regional print titles as well as third-party customers across its remaining print network”.

*Revenue was $54.1 million lower than last year. COVID-19 continued to negatively impact our results, primarily across the Promotional Solutions, Cloud Solutions and Checks segments. *The Payments segment delivered strong revenue growth of 15.6% over the same period last year, benefiting from Treasury Management revenue growth of 20.9% in the third quarter driven primarily by December 2019 sales wins. *Net income of $29.4 million was impacted by COVID-19, compared to a net loss of $318.5 million in the third quarter 2019. 2019 results included pre-tax, non-cash asset impairment charges of $391.0 million. The impairment charges related to goodwill, as well as amortizable intangible assets. *Cash flow from operations for the nine months ending September 30, 2020 was $166.8 million and capital expenditures were $42.7 million. Free cash flow, defined as cash provided by operating activities less capital expenditures, was $124.1 million, a decrease of $34.2 million as compared to 2019. In addition to COVID-19, free cash flow was impacted by previously disclosed expenditures to support the Company’s business transformation and the ongoing secular decline in checks. These impacts were partially offset by lower income taxes and a legal settlement in the prior year. *At the end of the third quarter, the Company had $1.04 billion of total debt outstanding under its revolving credit facility, compared to $883.5 million at the beginning of 2020. Liquidity was $413.0 million, with cash and cash equivalents totaling $310.4 million at the end of the quarter.

“One of our clients recently referred to us as the ‘Swiss Army Knife’ of direct marketing providers,” John A. Wallace Jr., president and CEO of SG360°, says. If the client had declared the company to be direct marketing’s equivalent of the famous Wenger 16999 Swiss Army Knife Giant — a 2-lb., 12˝-long pocket toolbox containing 87 implements and 141 separate functions — he probably wouldn’t have been embarrassed. The comparison may be exaggerated, but not by much. Wallace points out that the “360°” in the company’s name reflects its determination to give customers everything they need to conduct successful direct marketing campaigns under one roof. In this, he contends, SG360° is unique, because its only business is direct marketing through hyper-targeted mailings, in volumes as massive or as minuscule as the customer desires.

R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company announced that it has closed on the previously announced sale of its International Mail and Parcel Logistics business to ePost Global LLC. Dan Knotts, RRD’s President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “This sale completes the final step of our previously announced plan to exit our Logistics platform.” Knotts continued, “I want to thank the International Logistics employees for their support of RRD and wish them well as they join ePost Global LLC.”

Results for the three months ended September 30, 2020, included: *Net Sales — Net sales were $679 million in 2020, down 28% from 2019. Sales declined 26% during the quarter, excluding the impact of the January 2020 sale of the Omaha packaging plant, primarily due to the economic impact from the COVID-19 pandemic, and ongoing print industry volume and pricing pressures. *Net Earnings (Loss) From Continuing Operations — Net earnings from continuing operations increased $50 million from the third quarter of 2019, from a net loss of $47 million in 2019 ($0.94 diluted loss per share from continuing operations) to net earnings of $3 million in 2020 ($0.05 diluted earnings per share from continuing operations). Results for the nine months ended September 30, 2020, included: *Net Sales — Net sales were $2.1 billion in 2020, down 27% in 2019. Sales declined 25% during the nine months ended September 30, 2020, after excluding the impact of the January 2020 sale of the Omaha packaging plant, primarily due to the economic impact from the COVID-19 pandemic, and ongoing print industry volume and pricing pressures. *Net Loss From Continuing Operations — Net loss from continuing operations improved $42 million from the first nine months of 2019, from a net loss of $63 million in 2019 ($1.26 diluted loss per share from continuing operations) to a net loss of $21 million in 2020 ($0.41 diluted loss per share from continuing operations).

Quad/Graphics, Inc. announced that it has sold its two remaining Book manufacturing facilities in Fairfield, Penn., and Martinsburg, W.Va., to Berryville Graphics, a division of Bertelsmann Printing Group USA, a leader in hard cover, mass market, trade and digest books, components and specialty finishing. The transaction closed on October 31, 2020. Quad will use proceeds from the sale to pay down debt. With this transaction, Quad has completed the full divestiture of its Book manufacturing platform – part of a previously announced strategic decision to optimize its product portfolio. In July, the company sold its only other book manufacturing facility in Versailles, Ky., to CJK Group, Inc.

Quad/Graphics, Inc. announced the launch of its Quad Direct Marketing Exchange™ (QDMX) – a platform that delivers entirely personalized direct marketing campaigns at a fraction of the cost and at greater speed to market. An industry first, QDMX helps marketers mitigate the impact of rising postage costs and navigate ongoing economic uncertainty through a suite of solutions that integrates sophisticated data application, innovative direct mail production and streamlined mailing. “For years there has been a feeling among marketers that there has to be a more efficient and effective way to reach the consumer through the mailbox,” said Scott Harvey, Quad Senior Vice President for Marketing Solutions. “Through our QDMX platform, we provide marketers with an opportunity to re-imagine their direct marketing strategy – leveraging the scale, technology investments and expansive client base of Quad – to deliver even stronger ROI from the direct mail channel.”

During these challenging times, it is imperative for commercial print companies to offer flexibility, media versatility, and superior print quality to their customers. Since the implementation of inkjet, Taylor Corporation has been able to expand its offerings by migrating higher-volume jobs from offset to digital inkjet, mainstream commercial and digital work at a lower cost of ownership, as well as embed a more targeted approach to market segments with product sets. Since the addition of the Canon ProStream to Taylor Corporation’s print workflow, the press’ capabilities have enabled the organization to boost production levels, reduce turnaround times, and increase profit margins across a wide range of applications, including premium and high-volume direct mail, books, catalogs, and magazines.

R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company announced that it has closed on the previously announced sale of its DLS Worldwide Logistics business to TFI International Inc. Dan Knotts, RRD’s President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “The sale of DLS Worldwide is an important step forward to optimize our business portfolio and improve balance sheet flexibility. The transaction serves to further enhance our strategic focus as a leading global provider of marketing and business communications.” Knotts continued, “I want to thank the DLS Worldwide employees for their support of RRD and wish them well as they join TFI International.”

Everything that has happened to printing firms as a result of the pandemic is unprecedented. This means everything they have done in response to it has obliged them to improvise. To rethink. To come up with new ways of protecting their employees. To pivot to completely different methods of interacting with customers. In short, to innovate. As we've done the past several years in Printing Impressions, we profiled six companies that remain alive and well in the printing industry. This year, we’re presenting these portraits of Innovators in tribute, not just to the companies themselves, but to every printing business that has survived the trials of 2020 by being innovative. Here is a profile of one of our Best-in-Class Innovators. Does innovation have a distinctive aroma? It does at H&H Graphics. In fact, innovation there smells remarkably like … tacos. That was the olfactory enhancement the Vernon Hills, Ill.-based specialty screen printing business gave to a holiday gift wrap for Taco Bell by infusing the paper with the scents of each of the snack’s principal ingredients. When the wrap was offered on Amazon, reports Michelle Leissner, president and CEO of H&H Graphics, “it sold out in a matter of minutes.”

Our reported revenue and organic constant-currency revenue declined 7% and 10%, respectively, in Q1. The pandemic continues to negatively impact our revenue results, but the year-over-year decline was less severe in Q1 compared to Q4 across all segments Q1 FY2021 GAAP operating income increased $10.6 million year over year to $36.0 million. The negative revenue impact of the pandemic was offset by variable cost controls, advertising efficiency and fixed cost savings. We also had a year-over-year decrease in restructuring charges of $2.3 million. Our GAAP operating income benefited from about $4.0 million of COVID-19-related government incentives, primarily to offset wages for manufacturing and customer service team members in countries where demand decreased but roles were maintained.

*GAAP net sales decreased 15.9%; non-GAAP organic net sales decreased 12.1% *GAAP income from operations was down $55.1 million versus the prior year primarily due to a $56.5 million increase in restructuring and other charges; current quarter included a charge for MEPP withdrawal obligations related to the LSC Communications (“LSC”) bankruptcy *GAAP loss per share from continuing operations of $0.13 included third quarter charges of $0.52 per share for restructuring and other *Operating cash flow, including discontinued operations, increased $40.1 million from prior year period, year-to-date improvement now at $113.0 million *Entered into definitive agreement to sell its Logistics DLS Worldwide business for $225 million, expected to close by year end *Launched plan to redeem $83.3 million of principal outstanding on Senior Notes due March 15, 2021

Financial Results • $106 million of operating cash flow from continuing operations, down $242 million year-over-year and up $72 million from the second quarter • $88 million of free cash flow, down $243 million year-over-year and up $73 million from the second quarter • $1.77 billion of revenue, down 18.9 percent year-over-year or 19.7 percent in constant currency and up $302 million from the second quarter • GAAP earnings per share (EPS) from continuing operations of $0.41 per share, down $0.27 yearover-year and up $0.30 from the second quarter, and adjusted EPS of $0.48, down $0.32 yearover-year and up $0.33 from the second quarter