EVENTS | NEWS 18 website: www.printmonthly.co.uk January | February 2026 - Issue 358 The Power of Print seminar took place last November with over 200 representatives from print, paper, publishing, packaging, and media attending the event. The seminar, organised by Two Sides and the British Printing Industries Federation (BPIF), in partnership with Canon, returned to the historic Stationers’ Hall venue for its 15th edition. A range of keynote speakers discussed what the future holds for the UK print and associated industries, with topics as diverse as the state of the economy, utilising AI and behavioural data, and how to calculate and utilise consumer trust. In his opening address, Jonathan Tame, managing director of Two Sides UK, said: “This is our opportunity to provide a day of education that will inform and inspire you with ideas on where print sits within the world of multimedia communications.” Charles Jarrold, chief executive officer of BPIF, began with an overview of the current state of the UK print industry. Among his insights, which were identified as part of the BPIF’s ‘State of the Industry’ and ‘Quarterly Report’ research papers, Jarrold highlighted that although “our industry has been through so much significant change”, many sectors have bounced back in recent quarters. Tom Ridges, chief executive officer of Herdify, followed up with a joint talk alongside Ben Briggs, managing partner of Join the Dots. The two software and media planning specialists talked through how companies can harness AI software which can track offline social influence, allowing them to understand where their brand is gaining traction and therefore provide more targeted, bespoke advertising. The Herdify concept, which is aimed at brands with smaller marketing budgets, is based on the principle of "herd mentality," which suggests people are highly influenced by the purchasing decisions of those they know and trust in their local area. Another highlight of the event was from Clive Booth, a filmmaker, photographer, and brand ambassador for Canon. He discussed his latest project, ‘The Silence After Applause’, which captures raw, intimate portraits of Birmingham Royal Ballet dancers moments after leaving the stage. While speakers such as Greg Brooks from software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform, io.tt, and the aforementioned Ridges and Briggs championed the many exciting and revolutionary uses of AI, Booth’s mention of the struggles of creatives should serve as a warning that this revolution should work in tandem with the continued support of human endeavour. Another example of this balanced approach came from Roger Wright, waste strategy and packaging manager at Biffa. While his speech praised the increasing industry push for recyclable materials and reduced waste, he also noted that a lot of materials and packaging manufacturers still don’t go far enough to create what he labelled “an inclusive, harmonised system with the circular economy in mind.” Among the other important messages at the event, Trewin Restorick, founder of social enterprise Sizzle, spoke about how difficult meaningful sustainable actions are in a time of disruption, scepticism, and political backlash against environmental practices. AI came into Restorick’s topics of discussion as well, with him noting its transformative influence while also pointing out the gigantic energy cost of creating such complex computational systems. As Tame said in his closing address at the tail-end of the conference: “It’s up to us tell our story.” If the Power of Print is anything to go by, the print industry still has many inspiring stories to tell, with industry innovations and changes happening faster than ever and an engaged community pushing to stay right at the cutting edge. Inspiration takes centre stage at Power of Print 2025 By Jonathan Pert Prints from Canon ambassador, Clive Booth, were displayed as part of the event Eve Stansell, planning director for Marketreach, spoke about a campaign calculating consumer trust for print printmonthly PrintMonthlyMagazine printmonthly_signlink
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