Transcontinental Inc. -- Growth on the Horizon

The acquisitions came on the heels of a 2003 campaign that produced predictable results, with 7 percent growth in revenues over 2002. Part of getting through a challenging year, Desjardins notes, is not getting caught by surprise.

"When we're having a good year, we say, 'Why don't we prepare for the tougher years?' " he states. "We are in three sectors: information product printing, marketing product printing and media business. What we did, before 2003, was restructure the business into those three sectors. Each sector fits for offering products and services made by each individual customer type, so with the print and the service of marketing products—all groups under the sector—we're positioning the combined offering to resolve customer problems and meet their needs.