Printing industry in festive cheer

The printing industry is eyeing higher sales of calendars, diaries and greeting cards ahead of the New Year and Christmas, buoyed by a stable political environment.  

“We are expecting increased sales of calendars, diaries and greeting cards this year compared to the previous year mainly due to an improvement in political environment,” said Shahid Serneabat, chairman of the Bangladesh Mudran Shilpa Samity (BMSS), a platform for printing entrepreneurs.

Sales of printing products centring on the New Year and Christmas festival could be as much as 50-60 percent higher than last year, according to industry people. November to January is the peak period for printing products such as calendars, diaries and greeting cards, they said.

Last year, the printing industry suffered just like all other businesses from the violence that ensued from the opposition party's refusal to participate in the tenth parliamentary election on January 5 this year.

“This year sales are somewhat satisfactory,” said Abul Kalam Azad, founder and chief executive of Azad Products, a major printing house, adding that he is expecting 60 percent more orders. 

Azad Products has already developed calendars, diaries and greeting cards of many sorts to cater to all segments, he said, adding that the prices range from Tk 15 to Tk 180.

The company had to sell off half of last year's calendar and diary production as scraps. Most of those remained unsold due to political instability, Azad said.

Sales of calendars and diaries run into about Tk 270 crore annually, according to industry insiders.

Helpline Resources Ltd, another leading printing company, is also expecting increased sales this year. It has already sold calendars and diaries worth more than Tk 7 crore, said one of its officials wishing not to be named.

The company, which mainly supplies to corporate clients, sold calendars and diaries worth around Tk 33 crore in 2012, but the amount plummeted to Tk 13 crore last year, he said.

Abul Kalam, proprietor of Memorial Products, another seller of calendars, diaries and greetings cards, is also upbeat about the sales.

Meanwhile, the demand for printed greeting cards is on a declining trend due to growing popularity of e-greeting cards, said Hasina Newaaz, vice-chairman of BMSS.

More and more people are now sending digital cards to greet near and dear ones economically, she said, adding that e-cards now account for 30 percent of the total demand for greeting cards in the country.

Wider the usage of internet is another reason for the gaining popularity of e-cards, said Newaaz, also the proprietor of Orchid Printers, one of the country's large printing houses.

The annual market size of printing, including textbooks, stands at around Tk 3,500 crore, according to BMSS.

Around 7,000 printing companies, including small and medium enterprises, are in operation across the country, employing around two lakh directly and indirectly, it added.

suman.saha@thedailystar.net