There’s Gold in Them Hills
Tens of thousands of Americans took part in the California Gold Rush of 1849. At that time, everyone in our fledgling country could envision the seemingly limitless opportunities available in the great, untamed West. Fewer were actually willing to venture out into that wild territory to mine those hills, and fewer still were prepared with the knowledge, mindset and tools to overcome the challenges of doing so. While there was no doubt gold was in those hills — it was only the well-prepared and well-informed who ultimately struck it rich!
For NPES members, today’s global business opportunities are not unlike the 1849 California Gold Rush. Actually, in many ways, it’s much easier since life and limb aren’t threatened by failure, and the journey is a lot easier. But the road to success is the same, beckoning with the same promise of adventure (or venture), and requiring proper advance preparation to overcome what lies ahead.
In December, while flying back from my first visits to the NPES offices in China and India, I considered this similar potential for NPES members. After a 16-day trip to Shanghai, Beijing, Mumbai and New Delhi, it became apparent to me that opportunities and, indeed challenges, exist for companies willing to venture out into those territories. I’ll spare you the multitude of photo ops of me cutting ribbons and gripping n’ grinning, because it was during my one-to-one discussions at shows, visits to equipment manufacturers, printers and designers, that I realized if NPES doesn’t do a better job of engaging members internationally, both members and NPES will be completely left out of this “gold rush.”
There should be no doubt that a gold rush is already occurring and will continue to grow in our industry. In 2006 the worldwide market for print was $610 billion; in 2011 it is forecast to be $721 billion, an 18.2% increase. In the area of equipment and consumables (substrates excluded) the market in 2006 was $47.8 billion and it is forecast to grow to $57.8 billion in 2011, which is a 21% increase. When we consider the forecast for the next five years for China and India, you can see at right how leaving them out of your future market mix would exclude you from the largest growth areas our industry has seen in our lifetime.
The opportunity is clear, and the data on more specific areas is available for the asking – but I would be remiss if the challenges weren’t also considered and vetted. First and foremost are the cultural and structural obstacles that exist in both countries, from the language to physically getting resources available to assist members in dealing with them. While it won’t make the challenges go away, these resources will help increase the potential of your success in these countries.
I was struck by many things during my trip in December. I have ten pages of notes on personal observations and business opportunities, but two stand out in particular. During all my visits and discussions, the recurring theme conveyed from both countries is their keen and genuine desire to work with U.S. companies. Our counterparts in both China and India have great respect for our sense of innovation and business acumen. And although many other countries have had an earlier, larger and more successful presence in both countries, the desire to do business with us remains strong. From my perspective, that’s amazing considering our slow movement to these countries, compared to our European counterparts, and the general myopic view U.S. individuals and companies have of the world.
My second observation occurred during a visit to China’s largest printing equipment manufacturer. The general manager of Beiren Manufacturing invited me to tour his facility outside Beijing. During the tour I queried him about a dedicated section on the plant floor where the workers were uniformed in lab coats and hard hats and appeared to be Japanese nationals. I was informed that this was a recent joint venture between Beiren and Mitsubishi Litho Press. I asked if he was aware of the destination of one of the presses that was near completion, and he told me it was headed to a printer in India. I further queried if he was aware of the job that the printer had planned for this press, and he replied it was to do label printing for a U.S. retailer. It struck me immediately that if there was ever a doubt that the U.S. printing and printing equipment industry was part of Tom Friedman’s “The World is Flat,” it should be put to rest with this very real life example: a former state-run Chinese manufacturer in partnership with a Japanese technology company selling a press to an Indian printer that will be printing labels for a large U.S. retailer!
The challenges our entrepreneurial counterparts of 1849 encountered en route, and in California, are not unlike ours today. While all the planning did not eliminate their challenges, it certainly helped them better manage them. NPES can absolutely help you manage the challenges of the international marketplace so that you can acquire more sales. If you don’t make the journey and NPES doesn’t help, we both are leaving a lot of gold for someone else to prosper. That is NOT the American spirit!
