GAMAA and Printing Industries is ploughing an extra $70,000 into the event to ensure it is not just a ‘must see’ destination for print service providers, but also a successful platform for the promotion of print.

The aim is to a ‘single voice’ to promote print to advertisers and designers, marketers and corporate print buyers, government, students and other key markets.

Board chairman Mitch Mulligan says there is no question that print has been under attack for a long time, “yet those of us who operate in the industry know that it is not only a vital channel in today’s increasingly diverse media mix, but also one of the most effective, cost-effective and sustainable communications media available.”

He says despite acknowledgement of the need to unite as an industry to counter misinformation and promote print – and “excellent work” by individual bodies – very little has been done to present a united message.

PrintEx is the best opportunity, and its board believes industry promotion is so important that it has set aside additional budget and resources to make it happen.

The campaign will run under the exhibition’s ‘unofficial theme’ of the Power of Print, and involve strong promotion of print’s key benefits, an emphasis on sustainability, examples of effective print products and campaigns, illustration of the scope for creativity, and examples of the integration of print into multichannel campaigns.

“We have some exciting promotional ideas in the pipeline and we are also looking forward to working with industry associations including APIA, FSC to demonstrate the many positive benefits of print and the innovative ways in which it can be used within today’s diverse media mix,” Mulligan says.

The trade show is planned for May 4- at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre at Darling Harbour.