Smithers latest analysis shows that 2020, and the global coronavirus pandemic, have profoundly disrupted the global printing industry. Total value fell from $814.7 billion in 2019, to reach a projected $743.4 billion in 2020. This article explores the major industry trends to emerge in the wake of the pandemic.
By John Nelson
Smithers latest analysis shows that 2020, and the global coronavirus pandemic, have profoundly disrupted the global printing industry. Total value fell from $814.7 billion in 2019, to reach a projected $743.4 billion in 2020. With the impact greatest in graphics and publications work, total volume declined from 47.8 trillion A4 prints (2019) to 41.4 trillion A4 prints (2020), according to exclusive data from its study The Future of Print to 2030.
The challenge of operating during lockdown (shelter-in-place) orders has been severe, and the nature of these restrictions has had a deep effect on print purchases. Some of these will recede as the COVID-19 restrictions do; others will have a lasting impact, either unanticipated or accelerating existing market trends for the 2020s.