Print Services from Porter and Woodman

An Eventful Year to Come!

2012-02-10T01:01:00.000-08:00

With the Olympics in London, the Euro Championships on the horizon and the Queen's Diamond Jubiliee, 2012 is set to be an eventful year, full of opportunities to promote your business.

With this in mind, Porter & Woodman Group has printed its own stunning A2 event planner for 2012. Designed by our own Print Services department, the planner includes all the major holidays, celebrations and sporting events coming up this year.

The Group offers a number of services to help you promote your products - whether it be design & print, chalkboards & POS or wooden packaging.

If you'd like a FREE copy of the event planner, call us on 01384 445844 or e-mail sales@printservicespandw.co.uk

Conference Season Begins

2012-01-09T01:51:00.000-08:00

It's early in the New Year and conference season is already underway.

At Print Services we provide a comprehensive range of conference products, including branded delegate folders and wallets, pens, pads, promotional items and corporate gifts.

Call us on 01384 445844 for more information.

Merry Christmas from Print Services

2011-12-15T03:18:00.000-08:00

Christmas will soon be here, bringing to an end one of the busiest years we can remember at Porter & Woodman Group.

At Print Services, we have added new customers throughout the year, seeing an upturn in work from engineering and recruitment companies. We have also consolidated our position as a leading supplier of POS and printed matter to the publishing industry.

Print Services has also been busier than usual this year with the marketing requirements of the rest of the Group, which has played no small part in the success we have seen this year across all areas of the business. We have also invested in new equipment. The introduction of the Magic Touch heat transfer system has opened up the possibilities for printing onto different materials and allowed a more efficient running of our personalisation services for Corporate Wine and Hamper Gifts.

The last three months of the year are always busy for Corporate Wine and Hamper Gifts. This year, we have been spreading a bit more Christmas magic than usual in the business world - hopefully a sign of more positive times to come.

Chalkboards UK continues to grow. Our off-the-shelf products are more popular than ever; and this year has seen more ambitious bespoke projects for clients with the investment in our CNC Router, allowing us to cut evermore complex shapes for chalkboards and wooden packaging products.

We have also increased the range of products from WoodenBox UK, which has been supported by a marked increase in marketing activity. This has led to a very successful year for our wooden packaging division.

We would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy & Prosperous New Year, from everyone at Porter & Woodman Group.

New Transfer Print System

2011-12-06T02:37:00.000-08:00

At Print Services we're constantly looking for ways to expand our range of services for customers and the rest of the Group.

We have recently invested in a new heat transfer printing system from Magic Touch. The set-up consists of a laser printer, specially adapted to print onto transfer material and a manual heat press.

The new system allows us to print onto many different materials and thicknesses up around 10mm. This has been especially important this year for our Wine and Hamper Gifts department. The build up to Christmas is always a hectic time for us, with the Screen Print department stacked out with corporate branding onto our wooden gift tags and lids. We're normally limited to a 2 colour spot print, but this year we have had requests through for more complex, full colour prints, which the Magic Touch system handles with ease.

It has also allowed us to offer gift personalisation, with individual messages added to the tags or lids. This would have been very time consuming using our traditional screen print.

In the New Year, we will be looking to run this system out on Chalkboards as well, testing it on all the different materials we use to manufacture our chalkboard products.

If you would like any more information on this service, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01384 445844

Going Into Autumn

2011-10-13T01:15:00.000-07:00

As we go into Autumn, we face our busiest time of year at Porter and Woodman Group - the build up to Christmas with our Corporate Wine and Hamper Gifts.

It has already been one of the busiest years we can remember, with Print Services, Chalkboards UK and WoodenBox UK all seeing upturns in business throughout the year.

For Print Services, it has been a case of getting out there, meeting new customers and developing stronger partnerships with existing customers. This hard work has established us as one of the leading suppliers of point-of-sale material and managed print services to the Publishing Industry. We've also seen a rise in the level of business from Recruitment and Manufacturing - which is good news for us all.

Print Services has also been busier than usual this year with the marketing requirements of the rest of the Group, which has played no small part in the success we have seen this year across all areas of the business.

Our main focus now is on Corporate Wine and Hamper Gifts. The new Christmas brochure was launched at the beginning of September and we have already seen a rise in enquiries and order levels compared to this time last year - a clear sign that we are heading towards some sort of recovery.

If you would like any more information about any of our services or products, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01384 445844.

Christmas Wine and Hamper Gifts Brochure Launched

2011-09-02T02:44:00.000-07:00

The beginning of September sees the launch of Porter and Woodman's 2011 Christmas Wine and Hamper Gifts brochure.

It's the culmination of work that started in April - designing and bringing gifts together, followed by weeks of product photography, designing of the page layouts and finally going to press.

This year's brochure contains a comprehensive range of gifts that are ideal for saying 'thank you' to clients or staff as we approach the festive period. A PDF version of the brochure as available by clicking here.

The launch of the brochure will be supported by the updated website; e-mail news; blog, Twitter and Facebook updates; as well as the launch of a new Linked In company page.

If you would like any more information about Porter and Woodman's range of corporate wine and hamper gifts, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01384 445844

The Year So Far at Porter and Woodman

2011-07-07T00:21:00.000-07:00

We're halfway through 2011 and we've fitted so much into the first six months at Porter and Woodman Group.

The Big Tidy Up
We've now finished the refurbishment of our offices in Stourbridge. The decorating is done and the new chalkboard signage looks stunning!

A Good Year for Print
It's been a great year for the Print Services department, beating every month year-on-year so far in 2011. Publishing continues to be our top business sector, with our expertise in POS and distribution in very high demand. We're pleased to announce that Engineering is once again becoming an important sector for us - perhaps the sign of positive times to come for us all.

Print Services has also been busy with the Group's marketing needs. There's the new format e-news and print newsletters launched this Spring and we've just completed the Christmas Wine and Hamper Gifts brochure, which will be on press next week.

The Star Performer
The Chalkboards UK department continues to be the star performer of the Group in the early part of the year. The new website was launched back in March and has proved to be much easier to navigate than the old site. We've also spent a great deal of time developing new chalkboard products, with our new Home Range proving to be very popular.

'Tis the Season for Wooden Packaging
Summer is when our wooden packaging offering, WoodenBox UK, springs into life. To support this busy selling period, we've re-vamped the website and put in place a '5 for 4' offer for the whole Summer! The Wood Shop has also seen a major investment this year with the introduction of a CNC Router. This investment opens up the possibilities of what can be produced for WoodenBox UK, Chalkboards UK and Wine and Hamper Gifts - more details on the WoodenBoxUK blog coming soon.

The Build Up for Wine and Hamper Gifts
Corporate Wine and Hamper Gifts has been steadily working away in the early part of the year, providing a wide range of gifts for internet promotions, staff incentives and apology gifts. The Summer sees us preparing the main Christmas brochure, which is nearly ready to go to press and will be available as early as the beginning of August! More details on the Wine Hampers blog coming soon.

If you would like anymore information on any of the services provided by Porter and Woodman Group, please do not hesitate to call on 01384 445844.

We're on the Up!

2011-06-15T06:30:00.000-07:00

In the last few weeks Porter and Woodman Group has launched its new range of Summer newsletters for Chalkboards UK, WoodenBox UK and Wine & Hamper Gifts.

The new family of newsletters are called Chalk It Up!, Box It Up! and Wrap It Up! with Print It Up! for Print Services following soon. The newsletters detail new products and services, as well as special offers from each department. All of the newsletters are available as PDF downloads.

There's also new style e-mail newsletters, with the Chalkboards UK version into it's 2nd edition and Print Services version launched on Wednesday 15th June.

Happy 6th Birthday Print Services!

2011-06-07T06:48:00.000-07:00

In June 2005, Porter and Woodman set-up the Print Services Department to create a new revenue stream for the business supplying design and print to other businesses throughout the UK.

In the last 6 years, the department has grown from strength to strength, serving an ever-increasing customer base, designing and printing products from simple business cards, through to complex marketing campaigns - even managing the distribution of the campaign for the client.

Some of the industries served include: engineering, retail, recruitment, PR agencies and our biggest sector - publishing.

The Print Services department also manages all of the marketing requirements for the rest of the Group, as well as designing and preparing artwork for printed chalkboards, wooden boxes and corporate gifts.

Happy 6th Birthday Print Services!

Can't See What You Want?.... Just Ask

2011-05-23T01:50:00.000-07:00

Over the past 6 years, Print Services has built up its reputation within the Magazine Publishing Industry as one of the best suppliers of publishing point-of-sale (POS) material in the UK. In 2010 this resulted in Print Services being awarded the contract to supply a consortium of Publishers and Publishing Distributors with POS and promotional material for their 'Just Ask' Campaign.

The idea of 'Just Ask' is to promote the idea to consumers that if they can't see the magazine title they want, all they have to do is JUST ASK!

Print Services was asked to supply shelf unit POS, window surrounds, promotional T-Shirts, badges and other items of POS to distribute out to independent newsagents across the country.

There's a more detailed case study on the website, along with many more case studies on the wide variety of work carried out by the Print Services department.

Marketing May!

2011-05-17T08:05:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy couple of months for Print Services and on top of our usual range of print management work, we've also produced a range of marketing material for the Group.

Most of this has been for Chalkboards UK, with several e-mail news, the May edition of the Chalk It Up! newsletter and a new trade presenter all going out in early May.

Roll on June, when we'll be starting to think about designing the new Corporate Wine & Hamper Gifts brochure for the Christmas gifts build up! We'll also be working on marketing for new launches in our WoodenBox UK range.

Chalkboards UK Launches New Website

2011-03-29T01:35:00.000-07:00

Over the past few months, Porter & Woodman Group has been working hard to launch its new Chalkboards UK website.

We're proud to announce that the wait is now over as the new site went live on Friday 25th March.

The whole Group has contributed to the launch, writing copy, developing new products, taking pictures and formatting them for the web.

The new site is easier-to-use and has a much cleaner design, with clearer sections, helping visitors find what they're looking for much faster.

Print Services has also re-designed the Chalkboards UK newsletter - Chalk It Up! and a new Chalkboards presenter will be completed soon, reflecting the look and feel of the new site.

P&W Group Update

2011-03-22T08:50:00.000-07:00

Spring is finally here, we're already three months into 2011 and it's been a hive of activity at Porter & Woodman Group!

The Big Tidy
Work continues on the BIG tidy-up of our Stourbridge offices. The Print Services and Chalkboards UK departments have combined their resources to transform the reception area and office spaces, with work beginning on the signage for the outside of the building.

We hope that the end results will showcase the capabilities of the Group to all our visitors.

Print Services
This is usually a quiet time of year for Print Services, but with new contracts in place from the publishing industry, it's been a busy start to 2011. Higher activity on large format and poster printing has also led to a reduction in prices for this service and we're currently offering a '3 for 2' on all our indoor posters.

Chalkboards UK
This is the time of year that business owners are preparing their bars, restaurants and shops for the busier times ahead, so it's a hectic time for Chalkboards UK. To make the most of this key selling period, we have been working hard to launch a new look website, which is close to completion.

To compliment the new site, there's a new design for the newsletter, Chalk It Up! and a comprehensive sales presenter will be completed in the next few weeks.

Corporate Wine and Hamper Gifts
The Wine and Hamper Gifts department is proving that 'a hamper isn't just for Christmas'. Since the New Year, we've been busy with a number of corporate promotions for the automotive industry, retail, law firms and financial institutions. The promotions have ranged from internet incentives and customer thanks you's to staff gifts in time for the end-of-year figures.

WoodenBox UK
The wooden packaging department doesn't normally gear up for action until late Spring, but this year there's been higher than usual enquiries and orders through the website. We've also launched our School Keepsake boxes, which are proving very popular with local Primary Schools. This product is featured on the current WoodenBox UK blog.

It's been a very positive start to 2011 for Porter & Woodman Group and we're hoping that it's a sign of exciting times to come this year for all businesses.

Fairtrade Banners for Stourbridge

2011-03-07T22:13:00.000-08:00

As part of Fairtrade Fortnight, Stourbridge & District Chamber of Trade has been awarded 'Fairtrade Town' status for its work in promoting Fairtrade products throughout the Town.

For the celebrations, Print Services was asked to design and print two simple, but striking pull-up banners. The banners were initially put on display in the local church hall, where the festivities began for Fairtrade fortnight.

They were seen by local business people and dignitaries, including the local MP, Margot James. David Harcourt, Waitrose Deputy Manager and representative of the Chamber, commented: "Every single guest voiced their approval of your work. The pull-ups certainly looked magnificent."

The banners are now on display in the local mall to let all visitors to the Town Centre aware of its Fairtrade status. Print Services was very pleased to be asked to help with promoting this prestigious event and even more pleased with the response from the people who saw our work.

Prices Reduced for Poster Printing

2011-02-28T01:58:00.000-08:00

Thanks to increased volumes in recent months and an improvement in the price of materials, Print Services from Porter & Woodman has been able to drop the price of its poster printing.

Print Services has been supplying large format printing for the last 5 years at very competitive prices, but higher volumes of print have led to an incredible drop in prices!

Posters are printed using an Epson 9600 inkjet on 190gsm silk art paper to photo quality. The new prices excluding VAT are as follows:

A1 - £12.00
A2 - £7.00
A3 - £4.00
A4 - £2.50
Double-Crown (30" x 20") - £10.00
There's also a 10% discount on these prices if you order 10 or more posters.

Water-resistant dye-sublimation posters are also available for outside use - prices on application.

Our ChalkboardsUK division also offers a comprehensive range of poster holders and display solutions that compliment perfectly the poster printing offered by Print Services.

For more information on any Porter & Woodman Group products, please call us on 01384 445844.

Porter & Woodman Gets a Face-Lift

2011-02-09T03:20:00.000-08:00

It's a fresh start for Porter & Woodman Group in 2011, starting with our signage and reception areas.

Print Services and Chalkboards UK have combined their resources to create a fresh new look for visitors to our Stourbridge offices; with new signage on the outside of the building using printed chalkboard material, and colourful A1 hanging acetate displays in the reception area.

The Sales and Print Services offices are also being transformed using simple A2 snap-frames available from the Chalkboards UK website. In the Sales office they are being used to brighten up the area with advertising posters and useful information used everyday by the Sales Team. In the new Print Services office, examples of our portfolio of work are now on display on every wall.

If you'd like more information on how we can brighten up your image, please give us a call on 01384 445844.

Spring Season Starts with Valentine's!

2011-02-01T03:33:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day is less than two weeks away and Wine and Hamper Gifts has just launched its range of exquisite gifts for this special occasion.

The range includes chocolates, sparkling wines, Champagnes and a Valentine's hamper tray for your loved one. This year there's also a small range of gifts for 'Him', including beers, lagers and a new Bourbon gift (featured here).

All gifts can be personalised with a message slip or a beautiful wrap produced by the Print Services department. You can order from the website, with delivery direct to your loved one on the day.

Conference Season on the Way!

2011-01-21T04:36:00.000-08:00

The Conference Season gets into full swing in just a few weeks time and at Print Services we've already had higher than usual levels of enquiries for our Conference Products.

Print Services offers a wide range of items to help with the organisation of any conference or business seminar - conference delegate folders, polypropylene wallets, pens, pads, POS, posters and badging systems to name but a few.

If you would like any more information on our range of conference products, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01384 445844, or click here to see the range on the website.

New Face at Print Services

2011-01-10T05:48:00.000-08:00

Following the increased activity we enjoyed at Porter and Woodman Group in 2010, we're pleased to announce the creation of a new position in the Print Services department.

Richard Basterfield joined the Print Services team on Monday 10th January 2011 as a Graphics Artist, helping to relieve the pressure in this department.

His duties include creating artwork on Print Services projects; proofs and artwork for Chalkboards UK, Wine & Hamper Gifts and WoodenBox UK; as well as managing some of our online marketing and social media content.

Richard's appointment is an indication of the positive and exciting times to come at Porter and Woodman in 2011.

Positive Start to 2011

2011-01-06T05:56:00.000-08:00

Christmas seems an age ago now and we're already busy with our work for the New Year at Porter and Woodman Group.

The hard work that we put in prior to Christmas on a major distribution project, has led to a new monthly contract for Print Services for 2011. Great news for the New Year!

At Print Services, we're straight back to it with design work for Chalkboards UK and WoodenBox UK, as both departments have hit the ground running after the break.

Wine and Hamper Gifts is also showing that 'a gift isn't just for Christmas', as we're already working on some promotional gifts for various customers that will carry on throughout the year.

After only a few days back, it's been a very positive start to 2011, let's hope it continues.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-22T06:47:00.000-08:00

There's only a few days to go to Christmas and the final deliveries are going out the door - despite the snow!

It's been a real challenge in 2010 for all of us in business. At Porter and Woodman we have worked hard all year and hopefully laid the foundations for a much better 2011.

We would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Prosperous New Year.

It's All About Delivery for Christmas

2010-12-13T22:51:00.000-08:00

There's only week and half left until Christmas and in that time, it's all about delivery for Porter and Woodman.

In the last few weeks the order deadlines for first the printed, then the plain Wine and Hamper Gifts have passed us by. We've been busy processing orders, packing gifts, sending out proofs for corporate branded gifts, then printing the tags and lids for those gifts.

While all this is going on for Wine and Hamper Gifts, WoodenBox UK is still making and printing wooden packaging for other hamper companies; wine, beer and spirits merchants; and retail groups. Chalkboards UK is busy with it's special offers for customers in the build up to Christmas, supplying chalkboards, blackboards, bar accessories and point-of-sale to a wide range of retailers and the bar & restaurant trade.

As well as designing the corporate branding for Wine and Hamper Gifts, WoodenBox UK and Chalkboards UK; Print Services has also been busy with managing the design and print for its own client base. The last month has seen us producing Christmas Cards, Calendars, Monthly Mailings, Quarterly Mailings, Sales Brochures, Prayer Cards, Conference Folders, a Prospectus, POS, Airport Signs for a Taxi Co., Programmes, Stationery, Websites, material for a major international trade conference and designs for a major project that will take us into 2011 with a new monthly contract.

All that's left now is to deliver (before Christmas!) and at Porter and Woodman all departments become one as we work together to deliver in our busiest two weeks of the year. And we do just that - DELIVER!

It's All Going on at P&W for Christmas!

2010-11-05T09:56:00.000-07:00

The leaves are now in free-fall, Halloween has passed us by, it's Bonfire Night tonight and Remembrance Day is less than a week away - that means that we're well into Autumn, Christmas is just around the corner and Porter and Woodman Group is a hive of activity.

At this time of year, it's mainly our Wine and Hamper Gifts division that is busy. We're taking orders, printing corporate branded gifts in a multitude of ways, receiving products in, packing and distributing. There's really no let-up until we close the doors the day before Christmas Eve. Pictured here is an example of our new H01 Christmas Chest lid with corporate branding in place.

Our WoodenBox UK division is also busy manufacturing and printing wooden packaging for wine merchants, retailers and companies that source their own gifts. Traditionally, this has been a Summer business, but this year orders are running well into Autumn - a positive sign that things are starting to pick up again.

The main selling season for Chalkboards UK has always been early Spring through to the first few weeks of Autumn. 2010 has been a record year and the launch of our 'Christmas Crackers' newsletter has ensured that interest in Chalkboards has carried on into the Autumn months.

Christmas is an important time for restaurants, bars, pubs and retail in general; and promoting footfall with Chalkboards is a great way to encourage extra sales.

Print Services is busy helping all of these departments. Whether it's creating marketing collateral, like the 'Christmas Crackers' newsletter, or putting the corporate branding together for gifts, wooden packaging and chalkboards, it's always a busy time of year for us.

On top of that we have a our own customers to service, printing all the usual work for them as well as the seasonal requirements such as Christmas Cards, Calendars and Desk Pads.

If there's any more information you need on any of the services we provide, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01384 445844 or e-mail sales@porterandwoodman.co.uk

A Positive Spin

2010-10-14T23:16:00.000-07:00

Despite the backdrop of one of the worst recessions in our history, Porter and Woodman Group is able to report some positive results. So far, 2010 has seen growth in all areas for the Group, which is the result of a great deal of hard work and increased marketing activity.

Print Services has steadily been increasing its customer base over the last 5 years. This has been done through a mixture of internet marketing, networking and the best advertising of all, a 'word-of-mouth' reputation for quality and service.

ChalkboardsUK is the rising star of the group, seeing an amazing level of growth every year since it was started 6 years ago. This has come about through a lot of work on the e-commerce website and developing links with a number of large users of chalkboards. Chalkboards UK manufactures and prints chalkboards, blackboards, menu holders, posters holders and point of sale for a variety of trades; all from our own Stourbridge base.

WoodenBox UK has also seen steady growth over the past few years. The launch of a new e-commerce website has helped with this, but Porter and Woodman has always had a good reputation for manufacturing and printing quality wooden packaging for the wine, beer and hamper trades; and retail in general.

Porter and Woodman's Wine and Hamper Gifts division is the 'old lady' of the Group. Established in 1992, this area saw decline in 2008 and 2009 as the recession really took hold. However, as we head towards recovery, Wine and Hamper Gifts has seen a revival in 2010. The brochure was launched in early September and we have already seen an improvement in sales over the previous 2 years, with enquiry activity higher than ever.

Let's hope that this is a sign that recovery is here to stay!

Heading for the Wharf

2010-10-06T10:53:00.000-07:00

News on the Wharf, a chain of newsagents based in Canary Wharf, recently launched a special promotion - 'Buy Any 2 - Save £1!' for a selection of Current Affairs titles and asked Print Services to design and produce the advertising and POS.

The titles included in the promotion are: Private Eye, The Economist, The Spectator, New Statesman, Newsweek and Investors Chronicle.

Print Services provided A5 hand-outs, Shelf Talkers and Header Boards for the magazine display units, A3 posters and large backlit posters for the Centre's walkway displays.

For more information on Print Services' advertising, POS and general print work, please do not hesitate to contact us on sales@printservicespandw.co.uk

Trick or Treat!

2010-10-03T03:56:00.000-07:00

Autumn is well underway, the nights are drawing in and it will soon be Halloween.

With this in mind, Print Services has designed a new box lid for the Retro Sweets box from our Wine and Hamper Gifts department - re-branding the gift as the 'Trick or Treat Sweet Box'.

The box lid can also have your corporate branding included and make an ideal promotional gift for customers or staff during the Autumn months.

For more information, call us on 01384 445844 or e-mail sales@porterandwoodman.co.uk

3000th Print Job!

2010-10-01T02:46:00.000-07:00

Our thanks to the Fore Partnership for notching up Print Services' 3000th print job.

The job was started in the middle of September, involving print, fulfilment and multiple delivery requirements. Completion of the job will be in early October.

Fore Partnership have received one of our Wine and Hamper Gifts Champagne and Chocolates as a thank you for helping us reach this milestone in just over five years of business.

Christmas Gifts Brochure Launched!

2010-09-29T22:13:00.000-07:00

Summer now seems a distant memory, September is nearly over and Autumn has arrived. That means the Porter and Woodman Wine and Hamper Gifts Christmas 2010 brochure has arrived on clients' desks!
All over the Spring and Summer we have been working on the gift selection, packaging design, photography, design and layout of the pages, proof checking, signing the pages off on press and finally sending the brochure out using our own fulfilment facility.
We feel it's the best selection of gifts presented in the best brochure we've ever produced. If you haven't received your copy, e-mail sales@printservicespandw.co.uk with your details and we'll get one in the post to you.
If you can't wait that long, you can download a PDF of the brochure by clicking here.

Corporate Newsletters - A Speciality

2010-07-28T14:01:00.000-07:00

Amongst the wide variety of design and print solutions that we offer at Print Services, the design and print of newsletters is something of a speciality for us.

Changing times for newsletters
Newsletters are a very traditional way of getting news about a company to customers and suppliers. They have usually been printed, mailed out to a database, handed out by reps, or used to decorate the reception of head office.

These days the print runs are getting shorter and customers are finding news ways to reach their audience. Some copies will still be sent out in the post and are useful for the reps to carry, as they give up-to-date news on what the company is doing. However, more and more are being distributed electronically, like this one for Opening Doors and Venues that we've recently completed. A short, digital print run has been delivered, but there is also a PDF version with relevant weblinks embedded into the stories. This PDF can be e-mailed out or included on the website for customers to download.

HTML Newsletters
Sometimes, PDF files sizes are too large to be e-mailed efficiently, so the customer will ask for an HTML version. This involves creating HTML pages for them to upload to their website and a one page e-mail news that can be easily distributed and links to the stories on the site.

Whatever your requirement is in a newsletter, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01384 445844 or e-mail us on sales@printservicespandw.co.uk

Corporate Branding at Porter and Woodman

2010-07-23T02:31:00.000-07:00

The Print Services department at Porter and Woodman Group covers many roles within the organisation, not least of which is the design and application of corporate branding onto the wide variety of products offered by the Group.

Printing on Different Materials
With the requirement to print onto so many substrates, Print Services has its work cut out to get the balance right between what the client wants and what the product will allow.

One day we can be looking at printing a complex full colour design onto one of our chalkboards, like the Grolsch board pictured here; the next a plywood box lid for a bespoke beer gift, like the one pictured below for BMW Group.

A Variety of Print Methods
To do this Print Services has to use a number of methods, from screen printing up to four colour process, applying digitally printed vinyl stickers, digitally printing directly onto materials, thermal transfers, litho printed gift tags or inserting digitally printed bespoke compliments slips into a gift.

For more information on the corporate branding, design and print available at Porter and Woodman Group, call us on 01384 445844 or e-mail mark@printservicespandw.co.uk

On The Horizon - 3000th Job

2010-07-02T00:06:00.000-07:00

Only last month, Print Services was celebrating its fifth anniversary of leading the way in quality and service in print. Now there's another champagne moment on the horizon - its 3000th job!

That means we've been producing nearly 600 jobs a year for our customers, which doesn't include all the design jobs we do for the rest of the Group.

Job numbers are allocated as the jobs come in, so we don't know who will notch up job number 3000 yet - but whoever it is, they'll be receiving a Porter and Woodman Champagne and Chocolates gift to celebrate!

As soon as we know who has won the Champagne, we'll let you know on the blog, twitter, facebook, linked in and the e-mail news.

PGA Midland Region Captain's Day

2010-06-24T13:31:00.000-07:00

In 2009 Print Services supported the PGA Midland Region's Captain, Finlay Clark, with marketing material and application forms for his Captain's Day at Blackwell Golf Club on Monday 19th October.

The proceeds from the day were donated to the Breast Cancer Campaign, which has touched Fin's and Mark's lives, both losing their Mothers to this terrible disease. The day was a great success and raised a substantial amount of money for the charity - a case study can be viewed on the Print Services website.

This year Fin's brother, Cam Clark, has taken over the reins as the region's Captain. His Captain's day will be held at his club, Moor Hall in Sutton Coldfield on Tuesday 12th October 2010. As Cam is Mark's best friend's brother, we have agreed to support his day with the same amount of marketing material and forms.

The proceeds from this year's day will be split between two children's charities - Birmingham Children's Hospital and Acorns Children's Hospice - both very deserving local charities, doing everything they can for seriously ill children.

To register a team for the day, please contact Cam at Moor Hall Golf Club - cam@cameronclarkgolf.com

Print Services' Champagne Moment

2010-06-16T13:38:00.000-07:00

Print Services is celebrating a Champagne moment this month - it's five years old!

The department was set up as a part of the expanding Porter and Woodman Group in June 2005, servicing the design and print needs of a small customer base, as well as managing the modest marketing requirements of the rest of the Group.

Five years on and the Print Services customer base has expanded beyond all recognition, along with the variety of work. One moment we can be designing a simple business card for a local business, the next managing a full-scale mailing campaign for a major national company.

And the variety doesn't stop there! We also manage all of the print requirements for the other Porter and Woodman departments, which now includes Wine and Hamper Gifts, Chalkboards UK, WoodenBox UK, Contract Packing, and Mail-out & Fulfilment. This requirement includes all of the design and artwork for the printing and corporate branding of our chalkboards and wooden packaging, as well as the design and print of each department's marketing material. So there's never a dull moment at Print Services!

To top it all, our Director of Print Services, Mark Denison, is 'celebrating' 25 years in design and print - far too long in the trade!

Mel Williams Memorial Cup

2010-06-10T10:03:00.000-07:00

Stourbridge Rugby Club is hosting the inaugural Mel Williams Memorial Cup. Mel was a most popular and highly respected member of the club, who had distinguished himself on and off the field since his schooldays at King Edward’s, Stourbridge.

Following a long, memorable and enjoyable career on the wing at all levels in the club during what we now see as our amateur period, Mel contributed greatly to the administration culminating in his Presidency 1989-90. His family and friends are delighted to support this charity event in his name. The Fun Day starts at the Club at 10:30 and all are welcome.

Print Services is proud to have been asked to design and print the programme, which contains details about the day and the work that the Club and its members have done through out the year for the local community and various charities. Print Services has also contributed towards the cost of production.

The content - as usual with Stour, was given to us at the last minute and pulled out of the bag, just in time! Lisa Davies, the Event Organiser, is thrilled with the way the programme has come together.

The Great British Bank Holiday

2010-05-28T00:36:00.000-07:00

It's another one of our Great British Bank Holidays coming up - the Late Spring Holiday, or Whitsun as it used to be called. At this time of year, Print Services is gearing down, as the traditional week's industrial break means that very few people are ordering print.

However, that's not the case for the other Porter and Woodman departments, who are very much 'gearing up' for increased activity. WoodenBox UK is just entering its busiest period of activity supplying wooden packaging to hamper companies and major retail chains.

Wine and Hamper Gifts has just launched its new Summer Newsletter, designed and printed by Print Services, of course. The newsletter is packed with great offers on corporate branded wine and hamper gifts for the summer. We've also started work on the main Christmas brochure, with gift selections already designed, new branding and personalisation techniques being decided upon, photography underway and copy being written.

The busiest department as we build up to the holiday season is Chalkboards UK. With businesses all over the country trying to attract our holiday pounds, Chalkboards prove to be an ever more popular way of promoting footfall into shops, cafés, heritage sites, pubs, restaurants, museums, national parks, juice bars, art galleries, country estates, bars, fishing & boat trips and even Cup Cake stalls in Selfridges on the BBC's Junior Apprentice.

Chalkboards UK is constantly updating and improving its range with new products. The 'Tall-Thin' A Board has recently been introduced. Inspired by an idea from Print Services after another trip to Dartmouth, where the streets can be fairly narrow and full width chalkboards are impractical. The 'Tall-Thin' A Board is already proving very popular for businesses where space is hard to come by, or local councils have to be appeased.

For more information on any of our product ranges, visit www.porterandwoodmangroup.co.uk or phone 01384 445844.

Rugby! Rugby! Rugby!

2010-05-21T03:57:00.000-07:00

As our Director of Print Services, Mark Denison, is an old retired crock of a loose-head prop from Stourbridge RFC, he manages to keep his hand in with the Club by doing most of their print work - some of it for FREE!

Throughout the season Print Services has produced posters to promote the matches, programmes for international games, advertising leaflets to attract sponsorship and membership, letterheads, business cards, tickets, a menu of beers for the Stourton Park Ale Festival, and a full-colour menu for their Charity Luncheon, amongst other things.

Although the season has finished (with Stour leaving it to the last but one game to save themselves from relegation), Print Services is still working on design and print jobs for the Club. In a few weeks time we'll be printing the Annual Dinner Menu, there's a programme to design and produce for a charity fun day in June, the fixture card has to be completed before the end of July, and the annual newsletter will be put together in time for the AGM notices. No doubt, there'll be a last minute order for letterheads to send the notices out on!

For just one relatively small organisation, Print Services provides a wide range of design and print products. If you'd like any more information on what Print Services can do for you, please don't hesitate to contact us on 01384 445844.

Design and Print for Chalkboards UK

2010-05-11T03:02:00.000-07:00

At Porter and Woodman, all departments work together to provide the best services possible.

The relationship between Print Services and Chalkboards UK is particularly close, with Print Services providing all the design and artwork facilities to produce printed chalkboards. There are a few examples here of our work together, but a much bigger range of printed work can be seen on the Chalkboards website.

Print Services also provides the design and print facility for all other departments' marketing requirements, including Chalkboards UK's Chalk It Up newsletter.

All of the graphics and pictures for the Group's websites are also created by Print Services.

Case Studies Say it All!

2010-04-27T04:39:00.000-07:00

Sometimes in design and print, it's not that easy to get across to customers the variety of work you are able to produce.

One minute you can be printing point-of-sale material for a magazine launch, the next, corporate stationery, rugby programmes, sales brochures, pens, conference pads, etc, etc.

Case studies can illustrate a range of services far better than trying to tell your audience everything you can do. The Print Services web site has an extensive portfolio of case studies, with two new studies recently added for COMAG's Election Fever campaign and the PGA Midlands Breast Cancer Day at Blackwell GC.

The case studies and other news from Print Services are covered in our latest e-mail news.

More will follow soon including: Smiths News World Cup, Rugby Programmes, Howdens Joinery, Speed Wm Dinner and Music Programmes. So watch this space!

...for Harry, England, St. George and a Quart of English Ale

2010-04-07T01:55:00.000-07:00

At Print Services we like to celebrate St. George's Day every year by giving away some English Ale.

If you place an order for £500 or more, that's invoiced between Easter and Friday 23rd April (St. George's Day), we'll send you 2 bottles of premium English Ale in a presentation box.

Referrals
Not only that, but if you refer a new client to us and they order over £500's worth of goods before Friday 7th May, you'll also qualify for the same gift.

Call us on 01384 445842 or e-mail sales@printservicespandw.co.uk for more details.

Wine and Hamper Gifts
Why not do your own St. George's Day promotion with the exquisite range of gifts available from our Wine and Hamper Gifts site.

Less is More! The 20 Second Spiel.

2010-04-02T05:17:00.000-07:00

I attended a Business Link seminar a few weeks ago on 'Marketing on a Shoestring'. One of the things we were asked to do, was introduce ourselves and what we do in less than 60 seconds to the rest of the delegates at our table.

It was a difficult thing to do, especially considering the diverse nature of the Porter and Woodman business and my role within it. In fact, half the table couldn't focus their thoughts into less than 60 seconds.

Then I started to think, if you can lose an audience if your opening spiel is longer than 60 seconds when you're talking to them, how quickly would you lose them if they're reading about you on a web page or blog!

I guess I'm not too different from most business people these days, having to wear different hats depending on the circumstances. There aren't that many of us who can just say 'I'm a ....lawyer, ....banker, ....politician', that's usually enough said and will usually cost if they say any more!

So I think a 20 second spiel should be enough, here's mine...

'Porter and Woodman is a diverse business, covering Wine and Hamper Gifts; Chalkboards and Point of Sale; Wooden Packaging; Contract Packing, Fulfilment, Mailout and Distribution; and my area - Print Services.

'I manage the design and print requirements for a broad customer base, as well as supporting the marketing requirements for all Porter and Woodman's departments across the ever increasing marketing mix.'

That should take you 20 seconds to read, so what's your 20 second spiel!

by Mark Denison
mark@printservicespandw.co.uk

Chalk It Up! New Chalkboards UK Newsletter Just Launched

2010-03-31T08:05:00.000-07:00

The new Chalkboards UK newsletter, Chalk It Up! has just been signed off and gone to press and will hopefully be on customers' desks shortly.

Designed and printed by Print Services, the newsletter will be a regular mailing, containing details of all the current chalkboard and point-of-sale offers, as well as news on new products and services.

A PDF of the newsletter is available by clicking here....

Chalk It Up! is another example of Porter and Woodman departments working successfully together on marketing projects.

Events at Porter and Woodman

2010-03-29T01:05:00.000-07:00

Friday 2nd April to Tuesday 6th April - Easter

With the end of the financial year coming up for many businesses and a big opportunity for businesses to get footfall through the door over the Easter break, the build-up to the holiday is always a busy time for us at Porter and Woodman. Wine and Hamper Gifts is busy with last minute Easter Gifts, Chalkboards UK is snowed under with getting late requests for printed chalkboards and POS out of the door; and at Print Services, we are dealing with getting print jobs finished before budgets run out at the end of the month.

Wednesday 7th April - Chalk It Up! Launch

When we return from the Easter break, Chalkboards UK will be launching its new regular newsletter, designed and printed by Print Services. The newsletter will be available via the post or off the web as a PDF.

Every issue will contain only a small sample of what's available on the main website, but the PDF will have links to all of the relevant pages. The newsletter will also let you know about the special offers available.

Friday 23rd April - St. George's Day

Watch this space to see how we decide to celebrate St. George's Day this year at Print Services! We always find a way to reward customers for spending with us at this time of year.

Monday 3rd May - May Day

Tuesday 18th May to Tuesday 25th May - IPEX 2010

One of the world's largest print exhibitions, which is held at the NEC every four years. Print Services will be attending to look at new litho and digital print technologies and proofing techniques.

Monday 31st May - Spring Bank Holiday

More news - you can get all the latest updates on what's happening at Print Services by following us on Twitter or by becoming a fan on Facebook.

The World Cup - Collaborating Departments

2010-03-25T06:43:00.000-07:00

The countdown to the Football World Cup is well underway with 11th June 2010 the date we're all looking forward to.

At Porter and Woodman, we've been preparing for this event for the last few weeks, with Print Services collaborating with our Chalkboards UK department to design a range of World Cup products to help our customers encourage footfall during the tournament.

Over the next couple of months, we will be adding to the range which now consists of vinyl stickers, changing display boards, large PVC banners and A Boards.

If you have any ideas for products that you'd like to use or that we should be selling, please let us know by phoning our Sales Department on 01384 445844 or e-mailing sales@porterandwoodman.co.uk

The World Cup products compliment the diverse range of chalkboards, signage, point-of-sale, large format printing and conference and exhibition products already provided by Porter and Woodman.

The Conferences Keep Coming!

2010-03-18T08:00:00.000-07:00

As Spring trundles ever closer, we're getting busier with our Conference and Business Seminar work.

The SPEEDing to Success Dinner is being held tonight (Thursday 18th March) at St. Martin's in the Bull Ring, for which we've produced programmes, tickets, e-mail invitations, display graphics, A1 table plans and lectern graphics.

We're well underway with work for The 2nd Radio Production in the North Conference, being held on Tuesday 23rd March in Manchester. We've already produced the lectern graphic you see illustrated above, the e-mail invitation and will be printing the programmes for the event on the actual day.

West Midlands Golf Rookies
Don't forget, if you're in business and want to learn golf with a group of like-minded people, visit the West Midlands Golf Rookies page on the website, Facebook or Linked In.

Spring is in the Air!

2010-03-15T13:41:00.000-07:00

Spring is almost upon us and the Conference, Business Seminar and Exhibition season is well underway.

At Print Services we have been busy producing pens, conference delegate folders, exhibition pop-up stands and pull-up banners, conference pads, promotional gifts and a number of other products for this busy period.

We are currently working on items for the SPEED WM Dinner at St. Martin's in the Bull Ring on Thursday 18th March. This prestigious event brings together eight regional Universities, the young businesses they are supporting through the scheme and key people from local and European funding agencies.

We have already produced an e-mail invitation and tickets for the event, and are now in the process of printing the programme, display boards and lecturn graphics for the night.

Buzzin About Print
The new format e-mail news for Print Services - 'Buzzin About Print' is now online and will be sent out to our database on Tuesday 16th March.

The e-news covers the main blog story 'Spring is in the Air', as well as news about our new Environment page, the launch of West Midlands Golf Rookies, our social networking channels such as Twitter, Facebook, Linked In and of course the blog. Also covered is the new business news service, The Business Desk.

If you require any more information on any of these stories, please call 01384 445844 or e-mail sales@printservicespandw.co.uk

Print Services Lands England Job!

2010-03-12T04:32:00.000-08:00

On Friday 26th February 2010, Stourbridge Rugby Club hosted the international rugby match between England Counties and AIB Ireland Clubs.

Print Services was asked to print promotional posters and the match day tickets and programmes. All items were delivered ahead of schedule, to a higher quality than expected and within budget.

The RFU representatives commented that: "It's the best programme that England Counties has been provided with by a host club."

Ian Wilson, Commercial Manager at Stourbridge RFC, said "Just a quick note to say thank you for all your help with the Counties game promotion. From a commercial point of view, I can report that it was a very successful evening for the club."

At Print Services, we were happy to have been part of the build up to the game and to get such a positive response to our work from the people involved in organising the match.

It was also a great night, with a fantastic atmosphere at Stourton Park and England coming out on top of a closely fought game, 29-25. Well done England!