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Moe Segura stacks blank envelopes into an envelope press, which prints them at a pace of up to 70,000 per hour, at MidAmerican Printing Company.
J. GEIL/Staff Photographer

As a proud player in Chicago’s rich 19th and 20th century commercial history, much of the printing industry has suffered under the twin blows of economic recession and the electronic revolution.

MidAmerican Printing on South Jefferson Street is one of the largest companies still printing in downtown Chicago and they’re hanging tough by embracing the same technology that has threatened the industry with an approach goes well beyond plate, ink and paper by offering customers a total project package, such as direct marketing. MidAmerican works to provide the marketing strategy as well as the printing.

“We may recommend a postcard as the first touch, an email blast as the second touch and some sort of telemarketing inquiry as the final touch,” MidAmerican president Jerry Freund said.

MidAmerican’s approach is the kind of thing commercial printers are going to have to do more to survive in modern times, said Joanne Rock, president and CEO of the Printing Industry of Illinois/Indiana Association.

Though Chicago remains the printing capital of the nation, the one-two whammy of the Internet and recession has reduced the ranks of area printers. Many companies have gone belly up or swallowed by mergers and acquisitions, Rock said.

Over all print sales in metro Chicago have dipped from an $8.9 billion industry in 2008 to $6.9 billion a year later. Rock said roughly 15 percent of companies in the Chicago metro area closed as credit dried up and “digital printing” builds upon its foothold. By 2020 Rock estimates that 25 percent of all printing will be done digitally.

“The media mix is changing,” Rock said. “The one’s who are going to survive are diversifying from traditional ink on paper into other added value services for their customers.”

As the big industry swing continues through the next decade ancillary services such as project management, web design and consulting will also become more important.

Freund launched the firm that now occupies 45,000 square feet in a four-story fortress-like building on 400 S. Jefferson from his brother’s apartment after leaving a job as a print broker in 1985.

With a workforce of 42 people, MidAmerican is on track to earn $8 million in 2010, said Freund. He’s quick to credit a loyal customer base, which includes large financial services firms, government agencies and universities, as well as a plethora of small businesses, from quick shops to beauty salons.

About four or five years ago, MidAmerican began to embrace the possibilities opened up by digital technology. It was a process that grew naturally from customer relationships and found the company archiving hundreds of thousands of digital images every year, said Freund.

Barbara Mollo, director of operations and marketing for the Government Finance Officers Association, has worked with MidAmerican since the company’s creation.

She credits the staff’s wealth of knowledge about mailing with helping her organization to save thousands of dollars on postage by resizing their brochures and newsletters.

“I can’t say enough,” said Mollo. “It just seems they’re as vested in some of our products and programs as we are.”

MidAmerican is now well positioned to reap the dividends of digital printing with two Xerox DocuTecs printing about 180 sheets per minute in black and white. The star of the digital line-up, the Xerox I Gen 3, can produce full color and is one of the most “robust” digital engines on the market today, said Freund.

Without printing plates, costs drop and the digital printing process allows for the easy swapping of images and text shaving more production costs in time. Together the advantages generate something Freund calls “audience of one” technology.

“We can program pieces differently to speak exactly to your demographic,” said Freund, holding up a full-color flier. “If you’re a travel agent trying to sell cruises, for example, this picture could be a club med vacation for the 25-and-under crowd. If you’re over 50, this might be an Alaskan cruise.”

With its embrace of new technology, MidAmerican can undertake projects with varying degrees of complexity.

The bread and butter of the operation still comes from projects printed on a full color offset press running two shifts a day. On-site finishing machinery to cut, fold and staple and a large mail sorting facility make this a one-stop shop.

Even there, innovation has been significant. Freund said he’s proud that his company has attained a G-7 certification for its offset printing.

“That means that our presses have been calibrated with proofing output devices to ensure that the end result that comes off in our presses will look exactly like the proof that we rendered to you,” said Freund. “That’s been a huge relief for our customers because they don’t have to come here for press approval.”

For one client, a financial services firm whose sales force gives presentations on wealth management throughout the country, Freund’s company produced specialized marketing kits based on a data feed about the company’s product sales. The staff filled up 60 kits with prospectuses and other personalized documents and then sent them directly to a hotel. When the sales staff arrived at the hotel, the customers had their kits in hand and were ready for the pitch, said Freund.

Though many printing companies have long relocated to Elk Grove Village and unincorporated areas for cheap land and low taxes, its South Loop location gives Mid-American a strong geographical advantage.

“We can get to the Sears Tower in 10 minutes,” said Freund. “These orders aren’t being held hostage on the Eisenhower or the Stevenson.”

Changed and pared down the printing industry has not seen the end of the recession, according to Freund. A low debt load kept his company in good shape heading into the recession. With that cash advantage, MidAmerican hasn’t escaped the recession. Revenue is down from the $11 million mark of 2008 and Freund said the company has instituted lay-offs and furlough days. Even senior management took a recent pay, he said.

But Freund remains optimistic about the future of his industry. “Are we out of the woods yet, I don’t think so. But I do have the sense that things are improving,” said Freund.

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