Widthwise 2022
What the data tells us:
Business outlook
H
ow was it for you? The past year has presented its fair share of challenges but the results of the 2022 Image Reports Widthwise survey suggest that it was much less of an annus horriblis than 2020/21. That may explain the relatively rosy outlook shared by most print service providers (PSPs) in the UK and Ireland: 73.63% are optimistic about their business over the next two years. That view is underpinned by the fact that almost two out of three (66.17%) expect demand for wide-format print to grow over the same period, with only a pessimistic 9.49% believing it will shrink. As upbeat as all that may sound, the survey also makes it absolutely clear that the sector is not out of the woods yet. More than four out of ten companies (40.30%) say their margins have decreased since the beginning of 2021. And very nearly the same proportion (39.80%) say their turnover has shrunk by more than 10% over the same period. That is a dramatic improvement over the year before - when 64.62% saw their revenues fall by 10% or more – but it does suggest that the industry is still not back to business as usual. There is evidence of a growing performance gap between PSPs. While four out of ten are still struggling, 26.37% of companies report that their turnover has grown by 10% or more and 20.40% say their margins have increased over the past year. There was a significant, albeit hard to qualify, reduction in print capacity when the British economy went into total lockdown and this may have benefitted some of the survivors. Looking ahead, 55.72% say that growing their business is top of their agenda while 14.93% are focusing on finding new markets. Reducing costs is top priority for 11.44% of respondents which reinforces the view that printers are pretty bullish about the future but may also reflect the drastic cost cutting that has occurred across the sector in the past two years.
10 | Widthwise 2022 | www.imagereports.co.uk
Q4. How has your total turnover changed since the start of 2021? Decreased by more than 10% Increased by more than 10% Stayed about the same Increased by 1-10% Decreased by 1-10%
39.80% 26.37% 12.94% 10.45% 10.45%
Q5. How have your large-format print margins changed since the start of 2021? Decreased No change Increased
40.30% 39.30% 20.40%
Q6. Which of these sectors is now the biggest provider of revenue for your business? Retail Manufacturing Events Local Govt. Education Construction Entertainment Hospitality Medical Other
30.35% 16.42% 13.43% 8.46% 7.46% 6.47% 4.98% 3.48% 2.49% 6.47%
