While the price of paper has been rising for years as a result of the increase in the cost of the raw materials required to make paper, the inflated cost of energy and transportation, and the economic ramifications of Brexit, the industrial climate nurtured by the pandemic has exacerbated these price-rising conditions, making paper even more expensive over the last year.
In an article by the Fineline Printing Group, it was concluded that paper prices rising as a result of the pandemic could be attributed to several factors including: paper mills closing or scaling production in 2020, pandemic-caused issues with supply and demand and the increased price of pulp and transportation in 2020.
And, there’s no assurance that prices won’t increase further in 2021. They have risen 30% in our sector so far this year.
Why does this matter for businesses?
The rising cost of paper – which is forecasted to increase by 6-15%, depending on the papermaker – will significantly contribute to the overall costs of businesses, worldwide. Anti-dumping levies has also contributed to a re-shift of producers supplying different markets which has added to the mayhem.
In the majority of businesses, big or small, paper plays a crucial role: whether that’s the need for blank sheets of paper, notebooks and NCR pads, or the demand for till rolls and labels, which will similarly be affected by the rising costs.
As such, this means that costs for businesses will increase, reducing profits and making it more difficult to survive and thrive in the post-pandemic world.
How can Fortoak help?
Since the early months of 2020, Fortoak has adapted in every way possible to ease the journey of both consumers and businesses through the pandemic.
One of the ways the company sought to achieve this was by bringing out a selection of essential PPE products to help businesses keep their customers safe and their doors open as they prepared for a new, more cautious post-pandemic world.
Now, as lockdowns have been lifted completely and businesses have been allowed to reopen globally, they face new challenges as the long term effects of the pandemic linger on.
Across industries, the cost of materials, energy and transportation (shipping in particular) have risen and continue to rise, increasing costs for businesses across the board – at a time when businesses have little to spare – and one of the most significantly affected sectors has been the paper industry.
However, Fortoak are doing everything they can to protect their customers against the increase in paper prices by keeping their paper prices as stable as possible in spite of the changes. We have increased our reach in partnering with supplier in different currency markets. Plus the development of our manufacturing arm which us closer the final mile of the supply chain.
This means that businesses that need paper, NCR pads, labels and till rolls – of all types, from credit card and PDW rolls, to thermal till rolls, to cash register or custom printed rolls – can buy from Fortoak to help to keep business costs low.
More than this, Fortoak offer a number of low-paper alternatives such as linerless labels – labels without backing paper – which roughly halves the paper used and thus avoids being too affected by the rising paper costs. Plus adding to our ESG (Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance) by introducing coreless (and hence plastic less) to the main thermal roll product ranges to add to our carbon footprint reduction policy.
So, if you’re trying to figure out the best way to keep costs low for your business, consider benefitting from Fortoak’s affordable, competitive pricing when you need to stock up on paper, till rolls, labels, or even their wholesale packaging supplies and PPE products.