The strong economy translated into revenue and employment gains at Orange County’s largest commercial printers in the past year, according to this week’s Business Journal list.
The group of 30 printers based or operating here posted gains in sales and jobs for the 12 months ended March 31, the eighth straight year of gains.
The 30 printers saw their aggregate OC revenue increase 6% to $445.7 million, while their total employment notched up 5% to 2,675. Eighteen of the 30 companies saw their sales increase, while 20 added to their payrolls. The average increase among printers reporting higher revenue was 14%. Only six companies reported declines in sales. The largest single decline came at No. 16 Westamerica Graphics Corp., which saw sales drop 12%. Four companies reported flat revenue, while two sales figures are Business Journal estimates.
When comparing last year’s list of 30 largest printers to this year’s, the overall revenue gain was 4%, from $427.1 million last year. Three printers are new to the list this year, replacing two that dropped off and one that consolidated with another.
Outside Influence
The list ranks the printers by their OC revenue. This year’s list includes six printers that operate here with headquarters elsewhere. Among them is No. 15 Hunter Pacific Inc., which along with Anaheim’s Sundance Litho was bought by Miami-based Workflow Management Inc., a business services and fulfillment company. The two local companies were merged into one in Irvine after the $8.9 million acquisition.
Other companies with out-of-county ownership include: No. 2 Wallace Computer Services, No. 4 Creel Printing of California, No. 6 ColorGraphics, No. 7 Fisher Printing Inc. and No. 17 Woodridge Press Inc.
Los Alamitos-based Trend Offset Printing, which also has a facility in Texas, retained its No. 1 position with $99.9 million in OC revenue, more than twice that of its nearest competitor, Wallace Computer Services, which operates out of La Palma and grew its revenue 6% to $45.5 million.
Todd Nelson, Trend’s president, said the company has completed a 136,000-square-foot, $7 million expansion and plans to open a third facility in Jacksonville, Fla. next year.
The biggest change that Trend Offset has seen in the past year is the growth in the Internet, Nelson said. That’s led to more clients from outside the county contracting with Trend on jobs for OC customers, he said.
“It’s a very exciting time for printing,” Nelson said.
The largest six companies on the list tallied 52% of the total revenue. They also accounted for the same percentage of revenue growth, but only a quarter of the employment growth,due largely to an ongoing reduction of employees at ColorGraphics in Irvine, a satellite facility for the Los Angeles-based company.
Sales Gains
The biggest numerical gain in revenue was posted by Creel Printing, which boosted sales by $5 million, to $24 million.
The biggest percentage gain in revenue came at No. 26 Gunther’s Printing, Irvine, which reported a 55% increase to $4.5 million. New owner Steve Ard, who purchased Gunther’s this year, said the company has upgraded its computers, image-setting and bindery equipment. It also has acquired a new press. Ard said he’s also focused on customer relations with a goal of reaching $5 million in revenue for 2000.
“It has taken a lot of work, a lot of frustration and a lot of late nights, but it’s paying off,” he said.
Another company posting a big sales gain,29%, to $13.5 million,was Dual Graphics of Brea. The improved performance boosted the company to No. 9 on the list from No. 16 last year. Sales manager Paul Carney attributed the increase to the firm’s more active embrace of new technology.
“You don’t have to be a trailblazer (in this business),” he said. “But you do have to keep pace.”
Carney said the company added a new press and more sales people and expects to see similar growth this year.
Some Slowdown
Foothill Ranch-based Westamerica Graphics was the biggest revenue gainer on last year’s list. But the printer reversed itself this year with the biggest sales drop on the list.
President Doug Grant called the past year “challenging” and attributed the downturn to a general slowdown among clients after a banner 1998.
“What do you do for an encore when 1998 was an exceptional year?” Grant said.
Other companies with declines in revenue were: Woodridge Press, down 9%, to $8.4 million; newcomer No. 29 Orange County Color Graphics, down 6%, to $3.1 million; No. 24 K & D; Graphics Printing & Packaging, down 5%, to $6.2 million; No. 21 Industrial Printing Group, down 3%, to $7.4 million; and No. 14 Lithocraft Co., down 1%, to $12.2 million.
Six of the companies reported workforce declines: ColorGraphics, Westamerica, OC Color Graphics, No. 13 Pacific West Litho Inc., No. 20 Gardner Lithograph and No. 22 Southern California Lithographics.
ColorGraphics managing director Pamela Jones said that the company’s 38% (28 positions) drop was part of “ongoing downsizing” in the wake of the acquisition of Calsonic Miura Graphics two years ago.
Jones said most of the downsizing in the past year was the result of a transfer of administrative operations to Los Angeles.
Three companies are new to the list this year: No. 18 Morrison & Burke, Anaheim; No. 27, We Do Graphics, Orange; and OC Color Graphics.
Tom Burke, vice president of Morrison & Burke, said the company has been in OC for 20 years but only recently expanded its operations to include commercial printing services. Until recently, it only offered screen printing services.
Burke, who recently was named OC Small Businessman of the Year by the Southland Economic Development Council, said the company has purchased a new five-color, 64-inch by-84-inch inline press in order to attract new business.
Dropping from the list this year were Fullerton-based Crown Printing and Orange-based BFP Print Communications, both of which disappeared from the OC printer scene. The companies’ Web sites were not operational and their phones were disconnected. n
