Do-It-Yourself Promo

By Bob Neubauer

Selling promotional products is a growing business at in-plants. According to a new IPI survey, 20% of respondents are now selling promo items. It not only generates revenue, it entrenches the in-plant deeper into the organization’s culture, increasing its value.

For some shops, selling promo products means becoming a distributor by joining a promo products organization like SAGE or ASI. Others negotiate favorable pricing with established distributors, then add their own markup to orders. But another contingent produces promo items themselves using dye-sublimation, engraving, and flatbed printing equipment. Though they are limited to small runs, and the revenue won’t make them rich, they feel the benefits are well worthwhile.

“Instead of pointing schools and departments to outside vendors, having this and other services available here ensures that the Print Shop will be valued by the school district and seen as a one-stop shop for most everything print related,” explains Tom Licata, Print Shop supervisor at the Rochester City School District, in Rochester, New York.

His in-plant uses a Sawgrass Virtuoso SG800 inkjet sublimation printer along with a Geo Knight & Co. clamshell heat press to produce coffee mugs, book bags, window decals and apparel.

Tom Licata shows samples of promo items his in-plant at Rochester City School District has produced.

“The revenue generated from these products is not a lot, probably less than $5,000, but I think that the ability to be able to produce them is important to the future of the Print Shop,” he continues. “Every couple of years, the question is asked: ‘Why do we have a print shop?’ In addition to all of the other reasons, being a one stop-shop that has turnaround times that you would not get with an outside vendor, I believe, is another good reason.”

Across the country at Salem-Keizer Public Schools, in Salem, Oregon, the in-plant uses a Sawgrass SG500 sublimation printer, several heat presses, and an embroidery machine to produce apparel, book bags, and coffee mugs. Coordinator of Operations & Logistics David W. Hughes says this business brings in about $75,000 annually, but is often accompanied by additional print work. Producing promo items in-house, he says, provides customers with “quicker turnaround, more control of projects and timeline, and cost advantages to our customers.”

According to our new survey, 17% of in-plant respondents provide dye-sub printing and engraving, and 12% handle garment printing. These value-added services are satisfying a demand at their organizations, and increasing the in-plant’s value in the process.

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Bob Neubauer Author's page

Bob has served as editor of In-plant Impressions since October of 1994. Prior to that he served for three years as managing editor of Printing Impressions, a commercial printing publication. Mr. Neubauer is very active in the U.S. in-plant industry. He attends all the major in-plant conferences and has visited more than 180 in-plant operations around the world. He has given presentations to numerous in-plant groups in the U.S., Canada and Australia, including the Association of College and University Printers and the In-plant Printing and Mailing Association. He also coordinates the annual In-Print contest, co-sponsored by IPMA and In-plant Impressions.