Several industry pundits are pointing to catalogues as the future cash cow of the print industry, and with Christmas just around the corner they are more popular than ever.
Industry Edge’s 2016 Strategic Review suggests commercial printers will be facing trouble if you consider demand for printing and communication paper has plummeted across several categories.
However, it noted the only type of paper to remain unscathed by the drops was higher-quality coated mechanical papers commonly used for catalogues and magazines, which climbed 0.8 per cent to 376,000 tonnes in 2015 to 2016 – a record breaking figure.
The release of the 2016 Strategic Review yesterday also coincided with PMP’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), where the company informed investors catalogues will remain its core business.
PMP chairman Matthew Bickford-Smith says the board is confident catalogues will remain a robust channel for customers.
“Retailers have tried cutting down on catalogues, but consumers like them. More people read catalogues than national newspapers. When you cut catalogues, you cut sales,” he explains.
“So catalogues to the letterbox remain an important element of what marketers call the ‘omni-channel mix'.
“And we expect catalogues to continue to be a key marketing platform, particularly for groceries, liquor and other sectors, because they offer retailers an effective channel that is easy to control and which cannot be fragmented.”
This is backed by the Australasian Catalogue Association’s (ACA) industry report for 2015-16, which finds catalogues reach 21.8 million Australians every week, and with only a month until Christmas, tis’ the season for catalogues.
“Catalogues are used more commonly for price comparisons and market checks to assist consumers in their path to purchase and consumers interpret messaging with greater clarity when reading from printed paper over other channels,” says ACA CEO Kellie Northwood.
“Catalogues are a significant sales driver throughout the festive season and retailers are preparing their strong sales positioning and brand engagement development.”
This year, retailers are pulling out all the stops by creating bold, eye catching catalogues to put them one step ahead of competitors.
Myer says its Christmas catalogue will take customers on a ‘wishful journey’, tying in pages of its ‘Giftician’ offers to its ‘Giftorium’ in-store winter wonderland which will take up several floors.
David Jones is going down the traditional route with its ‘The Christmas Book’ catalogue featuring metallic foiled black pages with elegance, glitter and style.
Big W’s catalogues are expected to push its ‘Lay By until Christmas Eve’ exclusive offer – something which K-Mart is also offering, along with a summery creative catalogue splashed with island fashion and relaxing imagery.
Australia’s major catalogue printers are PMP, IPMG and Franklin Web.
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