Commercial Opportunities for Newspapers -- Know Your Strengths

The Fayetteville (NC) Observer has proven that it's never too late to start offering a new service. In 1994, the Observer (70,000 daily/80,000 weekend)—the oldest continuously published newspaper in the state of North Carolina—spun off Target Printing and Distribution.

Wide Range of Offerings

Target goes beyond its name, offering everything from design work, database management, fulfillment, mailing, printing and distribution, according to John Jenkins, Target production director. The printer performs a lot of work for the government, primarily books (flexi, case-bound and stitched). Among its publication customers are alternative weekly publications, such as Creative Loafing, affectionately dubbed the Village Voice of the south.