Page 6 - Print21 Jan-Feb 2020

Visual Connections leads the way in supporting a sustainable future for the print, sign, display, label and packaging sector – but what’s ahead for the association, and the industry suppliers who make up its members, as we move into a new decade?
We asked Visual Connections CEO, Peter Harper.
EXCITING TIMES AHEAD FOR
It’s funny how a ‘zero’ on the end of a year prompts more reflection and speculation than most, providing a milestone marker that has many in the industry speculating on what the ‘20s’ may hold, for our own businesses and for the industry.
No-one is perhaps better placed just what trends will impact on this new decade than Visual Connections, which represents the industries suppliers.
Harper has been at the helm of the organisation since its foundation in 2014 from the merger between the Visual Industry Suppliers’ Association (VISA), of which he was previously General Manager) and the Graphic Arts Merchants’ Association of Australia (GAMAA). He says the new decade, kicking off with a drupa year, is shaping up as an exciting and even transformational one for the organisation.
“If you look at the past 30 or 40 years across the broader print, sign and graphic communications sector, we have seen as much, if not more, change than perhaps any other industry,” he says, “and the pace of that change continues to accelerate year-on-year.
“This places significant and constant pressure on all businesses in the sector, but it also creates exciting opportunities. Our job is to facilitate the two-way exchange of information and ideas, create productive B2B opportunities to drive business opportunities, and to provide support to areas like education, career development and cross-industry initiatives, which are so vital to underpin the stability, sustainability and success of the sector.”
With such a wide remit across the industry at large, it’s a busy job, but Harper remains remarkably calm and purposeful as he outlines the organisation’s vision and plans for what is shaping up as an exciting – and even transformational – decade.
Coming off the back of a major exhibition year – Visual Connections runs the PrintEx and PacPrint exhibitions, the Visual Impact sign and display expos, and the Label & Packaging Expo – one might assume
the organisation was anticipating a quiet 2020 but, according to Harper, nothing could be further from the truth.
“The expos are of course vital – we know that they are regarded by both suppliers and industry businesses as a valuable opportunity
to see and discuss new products and technologies, to keep up with industry trends, and to expand knowledge and skills. That was borne out by the very positive feedback we’ve received from both exhibitors and visitors to the PrintEx event held last year in Sydney. However, PrintEx is not our only show, and industry expos are not our only activity.”
In fact, the organisation is involved in a wide range of initiatives, from providing scholarships and grants, to promoting the profile of the industry and the associated career opportunities, to delivering
a range of information both to its membership and the wider industry. While much of this is handled by the supplier association alone, many initiatives are done in collaboration with other industry organisations including TRMC and PVCA, ASGA and FESPA, LIA, FPLMA and others.
“Collaboration is always a key to success and we see our partnerships with a wide range of leading representative organisations as becoming even more vital as our industry continues to change and develop,” Harper says, noting that trade shows are the quintessential two-way exchange, between industry businesses who are closest to the coal face in responding to changing customer demands, and the suppliers whose role it is to equip them to meet the challenges – and exploit the opportunities – of the future market.