IBISWorld Report: Commercial Printing Industry Decline to Continue, But Pace to Slow

The printing industry is highly fragmented, with the four largest printing companies accounting for less than 25.0 percent of the industry's revenue. The majority of commercial printers in the United States are privately owned and generate less than $35.0 million in revenue on average. Furthermore, more than 70.0 percent of firms operating in this industry have fewer than 10 employees. The majority of these smaller firms are struggling to capture new customers. According to the Printing Industries of America, firms that have 1 to 19 employees only account for 12.0 percent of industry revenue, while firms with more than 100 employees account for 62.0 percent of industry sales. Throughout the past three decades, there has been an increase in market share concentration due to mergers and acquisitions. One such acquisition occurred in July 2010, when Quad/Graphics acquired World Color Press, the second-largest provider of print, digital and related services in the Americas. In the five years to 2014, IBISWorld estimates that the number of industry firms will decline at an average annual rate of 3.2 percent to 22,946 companies.