By Erica Keppel

As many of the nation’s leading paper suppliers ramp up for what is traditionally their busiest time of year, we thought it poignant to seek a little inside knowledge around the wonderful world that is the supply of parchment to creatives, corporates and printeries alike.

The selection of paper for any print job holds a lasting impact on the end user’s tactile experience with the finished product.
Whether it’s a glossy publication, a matte finished fashion magazine, a hardcover novel, or the rollout of corporate stationary, we like to hold it, turn the pages and and admire its visual splendour.
As Creatives – we also like to ensure our communication solutions are printed out looking top notch (with no nasty surprises).
The choice of good quality stock determines not only how the end product will look and feel, but also how a design solution will perform.

Catherine Doggett from K W Doggett, and Rodney Elias, Marketing Communications Manager from CPI Group, kindly offered to shed light on current industry trends, great products and give a few pointers on selection of the right paper for any given job.

K W Doggett exists as a leading supplier of paper in Melbourne. As a family owned and operated business, the range of products on offer have been carefully chosen in an effort to supply customers with the very best the industry has to offer.
The range of options takes into account budgets, purpose and environmental footprint.
Stocking brands such as Mega Recycled (well priced and producing a fine result) and Knight (offering a high end look and feel without the price tag), Doggett make a concerted effort to supply a small range of market focused products.
This serves the Graphic Design Industry, in particular, very well. With a new 100% recycled product in their range, Conquerer CX22, Customers have access to a super white, speckle free, super smooth, 100% recycled product, for those jobs that require a high end finish. www.kwdoggett.com.au

The CPI Group operates as a comprehensive national distributor of branded products from global manufacturers which has two separate paper divisions: CPI Paper and Raleigh Paper.
Raleigh Paper falls under the umbrella as the home to distinctive paper products specific to the creative industry.
Raleigh supplies brands such as strong sellers Ecostar, Novatech Carbon Neutral and the notable Mohawk line of papers.
CPI and Raleigh Papers have taken a particular focus to industry leadership for environmentally superior papers, with recent attention to Carbon Neutral (CN) papers, which include Brilliant CN, ONYX CN and Titan Plus coated paper. www.cpigroup.com.au

Both suppliers encourage creatives to embrace the valuable knowledge bank that exists in their respective organisations as a resource to customers. Samples of stock as well as techniques for gaining the most favourable results are available as a end to end service for customers, and utilising this education is an investment to any creative’s professional toolbox.

Taking advantage of the wealth of knowledge these suppliers and their trained staff have to offer about new products, value for money, environmentally sustainable solutions and best fit for your job, ensures a quality outcome.

When asked what pointers KW Doggett had for creative professionals in selecting paper, Catherine suggested taking time to select a paper that best suits the image or design.
The team at Doggett are more than happy to show customers examples of how a product performs on the press, prior to purchase.
Catherine says that by working with you paper supplier and printer prior to finished art completion, this will be enhance the design and eliminate margin for error.

Rodney from CPI Group outlined the importance of addressing “dot gain” with your printer prior to printing, which results in a lower margin for error on uncoated stock.

“Paper is the canvas for the industry’s beautiful work,” Rodney said.
“The knowledge bank that resides at Raleigh Paper as well as our library of samples will highlight many techniques.”

While the graphic design and print industry is still going strong, there is no denying that the digital media space is racing ahead at a speed of knots.
Not only can we access almost any global newspaper each day on our screens, but we are blogging, subscribing to long-established publications and even paying our bills via the fibre optic cables.

When asked if developments in the online space may eventually eliminate the requirement for print, Suppliers are doubtful and optimistic at once.

“Though it won’t eliminate print…we are seeing a lot of communication that was once in print, transfer to the online space,” Catherine said.
“I believe this is only reinforcing as having more value; online communication is seen as transient and instant, the first thing we do when we receive something important is print it out.
“There is something permanent about paper and marketing managers know that if their message is important or requires action, such as buying response, they need to print it on paper.”

Rodney Elias says that he believes paper and print is the “only truly sustainable communications medium”, a fact that is contrary to popular mythology and is now being addressed by climate change advocates such as Sir Nicholas Stern, author of The Stern Report.
“Lithography for medium run communications is a very environmentally sound process by any measure including digital delivery in hard or soft copy,” Rodney says.
“Cyberspace and print will compliment each other.
“There is no elimination of print on the horizon, there are simply more ways of doing things.”

With just a snap shot of the industry’s paper suppliers letting us in on a few home truths, we as creatives can rest assured that the hard work of accessing environmentally sustainable, cost effective and high quality papers is in the hands of committed professionals.
The job of creating brilliant visual solutions is still upon us, and print remains very much at the forefront of the communication space.

So, if you haven’t found your preferred supplier of stock, that’s probably because you’re quite simply spoilt for choice!