Leszno Printing & Advertising Cluster

small and family businesses - printing-hauses and advertising agencjes

Industry: printing industry, advertising, production of packages, paper-making industry

Establishment of Leszno Printing & Advertising Cluster was a result of existence of informal relations among the entities of printing industry and advertising, noticing favourable impact of cooperation on eff ectiveness of their operations. Members of the Association established in 2006 are natural persons representing companies, active in the printing industry and advertising. They represent: printing houses, advertising agencies, contractors of visual advertising, advertising gadgets and sports tro-phies, manufacturers of packages and paper articles as well as printing prepress. The companies are located in the county of Leszno, Rawicz, Gostyń, Wschowa and Góra.

The Association has created a partner structure including: Research & Development Centre for the Graphic Arts (COBRPP), Municipal Office of Leszno, Centre of Innovation and Transfer of Technologies in Leszno, Complex of Electronic-Telecommunication Schools in Leszno, Entrepreneurship Incubator Foundation of Kalisz, County Office of Leszno and Foundation of Adam Mickiewicz University - Science-Technological Park of Poznań , Regional Chamber of Industry and Trade in Leszno, Promotion and Development of Civil Initiatives Association (PISOP), with which it implemented or implements actions for the benefi t of the cluster development.

The statutory purpose of the cluster’s activities is to increase competitiveness of the sector, popularize pro-innovative attitudes, improve technological level of provided services. Operations of the Association also include agency in exchange of information among entrepreneurs.

The Association started collection of data for identifi cation research of the cluster. The area of research covers 8 counties: of Gostyń, Rawicz, Krotoszyn, Kościan, Wolsztyn, Wschowa and Góra. (6 counties in Greater Poland, one from Lubuskie Province and one from Lower Silesia): Leszno (land and county). In 6 counties in Greater Poland there have been identifi ed 173 business entities registered in NACE 21 group – Manufacture of pulp, paper and paper products, as well as in NACE 22 group – Publishing; printing and reproduction of recorded media, with indication of the main operations.

Coordinator

The Association of natural persons - Leszno Printing & Advertising Cluster - associates owners of companies, co-owners and key employees of 26 companies running operations in printing industry and advertising: 24 of them are classified as microenterprises, 2 of them as small enterprises. The organization started its activities in September 2006, as an informal group. The Association was registered in September 2007, gaining legal personality. So far the Association has not benefi ted from public fi nancial assistance, and implements its activities using membership fees and through non-profit work of the Association’s members. Small budget of the Association covers costs associated with: members’ business trips to conferences, workshops and seminars devoted to the issues of clustering, innovation and transfer of knowledge and technologies, organization of business environment meetings (working meetings), integration events as well as promotional-information activities (publications, Internet portal).

Activities and offer of the cluster

Activities of the Leszno Printing & Advertising Cluster are focused on the pursuit of four most important objectives: intra-cluster cooperation, stimulation of the development of business environment, increase of the market and development of human capital. As a result of building appropriate partner structures, cluster members have an easy access to scientific research units and business environment institutions, get support with regard to acquisition of assistance measures as well as transfer of technology.

The most important group of activities undertaken by the association is integration of the printing industry and advertising environment in the subregion of Leszno through strengthening of business relations among economic entities of this sector.

Membership in Leszno Printing & Advertising Cluster is an excellent possibility of increasing competences by entrepreneurs of the industry. The Association has established cooperation with the Central Research-Development Centre of Printing Industry (COBRPP), with which the entrepreneurs of the cluster have implemented 7 research-development projects fi nanced from PARP program Voucher for innovations. The Association organizes free specialized trainings for member companies. The ones that have taken place include, among others:

• Designing with the use of Adobe Photoshop
• The issues of colour representation
• Marketing and sale of printing products and services
• Brand - logo or image?
• Writing as a basic element of information in advertising.

Leszno Printing & Advertising Cluster actively participates in the process of adjusting the educational offer of public education to the needs of the industry labour market. The result of activities was organization of a conference in 2010, along with the Marshal’s Offi ce of the Province of Greater Poland, entitled Educational needs and possibilities of the printing industry and advertising of the subregion of Leszno. Printing-advertising industry presented its needs in this respect as well as possibilities of implementation of new educational directions in the Complex of Electronic-Telecommunication Schools. Thanks to great commitment of the Association in the school year 2011/2012, a new class will be started, educating in the profession of an Advertising Organization Technician, and in the future a class in the profession of a Technician of Digital Graphic Processes will be created.

Cluster organization conducts marketing and promotional activities, takes active part in conferences, workshops, debates devoted to clustering, innovations, transfer of knowledge and technologies in Poland and abroad. During a study trip to Erfurt the entrepreneurs had the opportunity to become familiar with technologies applied in German printing houses of various sizes as well as to participate in cooperation negotiations arranged by the Chamber of Industry and Commerce from Erfurt.

During the conferences, workshops and seminars the cluster distributed promotional material Our verified ideas. An example of promotional activities is also the Internet portal www.poligrafia.leszno.eu as well as Information Bulletin issued since 2007. The purpose of the Bulletin is to inform about events important for the Association; every issue presents one of its entrepreneurs. Printed form of the Bulletin is distributed free of charge in the environment of printing and advertising companies, directly and by the agency of local governments and business environment organizations.