In this article, we will discuss the 15 largest commercial printing companies in the world.
The commercial printing industry produces a wide range of printed materials, including direct mail marketing materials, books, posters, catalogs, magazines, transactional statements, and packaging. Commercial printing services are essential for any business that wants to reach its target market through effective advertising and branding. While using a commercial printing machine, offices can print any document in-house at a high page per minute (PPM) without sacrificing print quality. The printing industry’s profits have been in a state of recovery since the Great Recession, but since its end in June 2009, print markets have continued to flourish. This uptick was particularly true throughout 2018 and into 2019.
According to a report by GrandViewResearch, the global commercial printing market size was valued at $489.63 billion in 2022 and is anticipated to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 2.8% from 2023 to 2030. The increasing need of businesses and enterprises for advertising materials such as brochures and pamphlets is driving the demand for commercial printing services. In the midst of this situation, the commercial printing market has entered curious territories, where players who modernize their business would lead the pack. Digital printing is also on the rise. In fact, it’s expected to jump from 17.2% of the industry in 2021 to 21.6% by 2026. These numbers indicate that R&D for digital printing will become a major focus across the industry.
The growth of online shopping and the demand for personalized experiences have boosted the demand for commercial printing from the packaging sector. Since packaging is considered a critical marketing tool, numerous businesses are utilizing packaging to display their products’ best features. This ultimately led to companies investing in high-technology commercial printing solutions. For instance, in October 2022, Comexi, a flexible packaging service provider, announced the launch of Digiflex, a machine designed for flexible packaging and label converters to print variable data such as QR codes, data matrix variable codes, barcodes, alphanumeric text, and other numbering & marking applications.
Our Methodology
For this list, we picked the 15 biggest commercial printing companies in the world after analyzing their scale of operations, growth prospects, and product portfolio. To provide a clear picture for our readers, we have ranked the companies in ascending order of their market capitalization. To estimate the market cap of the private companies on this list, we used a revenue multiple of 1.5x.
15. Quad/Graphics, Inc. (NYSE:QUAD)
Market Capitalization: $272.39 million
Quad/Graphics, Inc. (NYSE:QUAD) is an American commercial printing company which offers marketing strategy and management services, based in Sussex, Wisconsin. Founded as a printing company on July 13, 1971, the company has expanded its marketing services, leveraging its strong print foundation to help marketers and content creators in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of their marketing spend across offline and online media channels.
The company continued to pay down its debt in 2022 and has since reduced its net debt by $489 million or 47% over the past 3 years. Quad/Graphics, Inc. (NYSE:QUAD) concluded 2022 with a debt leverage ratio of 2.16x, beating guidance of approximately 2.25x and achieving its lowest leverage level since 2018. By the end of 2023, the company expects to have paid off $564 million in debt, signaling a 55% debt reduction since January 1, 2020.
14. The Vomela Companies
Estimated Market Capitalization: $510 million
The Vomela Companies are a full-service specialty graphics provider comprising of a vast network of graphic specialists capable of producing a wide variety of promotional, store décor, event, fleet, OEM, commercial, and transportation graphics. The Vomela Companies offer services that include design, prototyping, project management, production, fabricating, installation, kitting, and packaging across the United States and Canada.
13. Raksul Inc. (TYO:4384)
Market Capitalization: $570 million
Raksul Inc. (TYO:4384) is a Japanese company that operates an online printing platform, providing a range of printing services to businesses of all sizes. The company was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. The company’s platform makes use of a unique bidding system, which allows customers to compare prices from different printing companies and select the most suitable one based on quality, price, and delivery time.
12. Fort Dearborn Company
Estimated Market Capitalization: $613.5 million
Fort Dearborn Company is a commercial printing company that operates as a leading supplier of high-impact decorative labels for the beverage, food, household products, nutraceutical, paint and coatings, personal care, private label/retail and spirits markets. Headquartered in Illinois, the company has twelve operating divisions in North America, with approximately 1400 employees.
11. Elanders AB (STO:ELAN-B)
Market Capitalization: $689 million
Elanders AB (STO:ELAN-B) is a Swedish company that provides supply chain management, print and packaging, and e-commerce solutions to businesses across a range of industries. Founded in 1907 and headquartered in Mölnlycke, Sweden, Elanders has approximately 7,000 employees in some 20 countries on four continents and annual net sales of over EUR 1.3 billion. The company’s high priority markets include the United States, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, and China.
The company’s chain supply management involves managing the entire supply chain process for clients, from procurement to delivery while its print and packaging solutions include design, printing, and packaging services for a range of products, including books, brochures, labels, and packaging for consumer goods. In addition to offering to B2B markets, Elanders AB (STO:ELAN-B) also sells photo products directly to consumers through its own brands, fotokasten and myphotobook.
10. TungKong Inc. (SHE:002117)
Market Capitalization: $770 million
Tungkong Inc. (SHE:002117) is a printing company based in China that specializes in security printing services. The company was established in 1993 and has since become a leading provider of secure printing solutions for various industries such as banking, finance, government, and healthcare. The company operates 8 production bases throughout China, alongside 4 R&D centers in the Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou regions.
9. Cimpress plc (NASDAQ:CMPR)
Market Capitalization: $862.58 million
Cimpress plc (NASDAQ:CMPR) is an American Irish-domiciled company that invests in and operates a wide variety of businesses that use mass customization to configure and produce small quantities of individually customized goods. Founded in 1995 in France under the name Vistaprint, the company later changed its name to Cimpress to reflect its growing range of businesses and products, which include customized, accessible, and affordable print, signage, apparel, gifts, identity merchandise, packaging, and other related products.
Serving more than 17 million customers annually, Cimpress plc (NASDAQ:CMPR) makes use of a proprietary platform called the “Cimpress Mass Customization Platform” which allows for the rapid and efficient production of customized products.
8. Transcontinental Inc. (TSE:TCL.A)
Market Capitalization: $1 billion
TC Transcontinental, also known as simply Transcontinental Inc. (TSE:TCL.A), is a Canadian printing and packaging company that provides a range of services to businesses across North America. Its printing services include offset printing, digital printing, and flexography. Additionally, the company also offers packaging solutions such as folding cartons, flexible packaging, and shrink sleeves, alongside media and marketing solutions, such as content creation and distribution, and digital media services.
7. Shantou Dongfeng Printing Co., Ltd. (SHA:601515)
Market Capitalization: $1.21 billion
Shantou Dongfeng Printing Co., Ltd. (SHA:601515) is a printing company based in Shantou, China, specializing in the production of packaging materials and printed products. Established in 1998, it has since become a leading provider of printing services to clients across various industries. The company offers a wide range of printing services, including paperboard packaging, corrugated boxes, gift boxes, bags, labels, and other custom-made printed products, primarily for cigarette trademarks. It makes use of advanced printing technology and techniques to ensure that its products are of high quality and meet the specific needs of its clients.
In addition to its printing services, Shantou Dongfeng Printing Co., Ltd. (SHA:601515) also provides design and packaging solutions to its clients, helping them to create eye-catching designs and packaging that will make their products stand out in the market.
6. Multi-Color Corporation
Market Capitalization: $3.3 billion
Multi-Color Corporation, formerly known as WS Packaging Group, is a premier global resource of packaging services and decorating solutions that ranks as one of the biggest label companies in the world in the following market segments: Beverage, Wine & Spirits, Food & Dairy, Personal Care & Beauty, Home Care & Laundry, Healthcare, Durables & Technical and Automotive & Chemicals. The company has more than fifty years of experience in printing and packaging with multiple facilities located across the U.S. and Mexico.
5. Quebecor Inc. (TSE:QBR.B)
Market Capitalization: $5.48 billion
Quebecor Inc. (TESE:QBR.B) is a Canadian diversified media and telecommunications company serving Québec, based in Montreal. One of Canada’s largest media companies and the largest newspaper publisher in the country, it owns both Osprey Media and Sun Media Corporation, with approximately 50 dailies and over 150 weeklies across Canada. Employing over 10,000 people the company became one of the largest commercial printers in the world when its printing division, Quebecor Printing, merged with World Color Press in 1999.
4. Toppan Inc. (TYO:7911)
Market Capitalization: $6.29 billion
Toppan Inc. (TYO:7911) is a Japanese global printing company whose printing division offers a wide range of products, including books, magazines, packaging materials, labels, and security products. The company has also diversified into electronic components, such as touchscreens and displays, as well as advanced materials, including semiconductor and battery components. The net sales of Toppan Inc. (TYO:7911) amounted to $11.37 billion in fiscal year 2021, which was the highest result recorded in recent years.
3. R.R. Donnelly & Sons Company
Estimated Market Capitalization: $7.66 billion
R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company, commonly referred to as simply RR Donnelley, is an American integrated communications company that provides marketing and business communications, commercial printing, and related services. Its corporate headquarters are located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The company’s commercial print segment provides various commercial printing products and offers a full range of branded materials including manuals, publications, brochures, business cards, flyers, post cards, posters and promotional items. In 2021, the annual net sales of RR Donnelley & Sons Company amounted to approximately $4.96 billion, up from nearly $4.77 billion in the previous year.
2. Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. (TYO:7912)
Market Capitalization: $8.43 billion
Established in 1876 and headquartered in Tokyo, Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. (TYO:7912), also known as DNP, is a Japanese printing company that engages in information communication, lifestyle and industrial supplies, electronics, and beverages. The company is involved in a wide variety of commercial printing processes, ranging from magazines to shadow masks for the production of displays, as well as out-coupling enhancement structures for LCD displays and scattering for display backlights. The net sales of Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. (TYO:7912) amounted to $9.82 billion in fiscal year 2022.
1. Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA
Estimated Market Capitalization: $19.95 billion
Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA is a German private multinational conglomerate corporation based in Gütersloh, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. One of the world’s largest commercial printing and media conglomerates, Bertelsmann operates a number of businesses, including Penguin Random House, one of the world’s leading English-language book publishers; RTL Group, a leading European entertainment company with television and radio stations; and Gruner + Jahr, which is a publishing house that produces magazines such as Stern and Brigitte. The company also has interests in the areas of music rights management, education, and digital services.
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Disclosure. None. 15 Largest Commercial Printing Companies in the World is originally published on Insider Monkey.
