Digital printing has evolved to the point where label converters are realizing that digital is not just a “nice-to-have” but rather a “need-to-have” technology in order to be competitive, retain customers, enter new markets and grow their business. A digital press is no longer only a complementary piece of equipment to a flexo press, but is now considered a competing one, as brand owners are increasing SKUs, versions and personalization, coupled with demand for quicker turnaround times, decreased inventory, and superior print quality to differentiate their products. 

Converters that cite price as a main barrier for entry into the digital arena have the option of leasing or financing a new press. And in the case of Domino, the digital inkjet press manufacturer has launched a new program where converters can – after making affordable, spread-out payments – take full ownership of the press.

Domino’s in-house leasing program allows label converters of all sizes to easily add Domino’s N610i digital UV inkjet production press to their business, a press with more than 1,000 installations worldwide. As of June 2015, Domino became part of the Brother Group, a company with $8.6 billion in revenue. Brother’s financial strength and stability allows Domino to offer this program. Domino, with 2,800 employees, now has 25 subsidiaries and boasts 200 distributors in 125 countries and continues to build upon four decades of inkjet experience.

How it works
The in-house leasing program from Domino allows customers to pay for their new Domino N610i digital UV inkjet label press over a period of time, typically three to five years with fixed, monthly payments.

“Typically in the United States, it’s called a dollar buyout lease. In other parts of the world it’s called a finance lease, but effectively it’s a capital purchase with the payments spread over a term. So, at the end of that period, the customer would then take ownership of that press,” explains Mark Herrtage, finance director for Domino.

“It gives them the potential to upgrade their equipment, and we can include a service contract in that as well,” says Steve Taylor, business manager, Domino. “It gives the customer peace of mind because it gives them a fixed cost and a nice, comfortable feeling. 

Chris Gleis, president of Factor Forms & Labels Niagara, Ltd.  and leasing program participant, says, “The Domino N610i is going to allow us to continue to grow at double-digit percentages every single year.  This technology is best-in-class, and it’s going to allow us to print the absolute best quality for our customer base.”

Keep your Cash
The leasing program is designed to be a simple, easy way for label converters to get into Domino digital inkjet technology – without a huge cash outlay to get into the business.

Patrick Wafer and Ryder Fyrwald, owners and co-CEOs of Alros Label, explain, “One of the big advantages of the Domino financing program for us is the ability to invest in other things – sales, marketing, hiring new employees are all the ways that we’re going to grow the business, and with the financing, it allows us to do that. We don’t have the disposable cash to go out and buy one of these machines. So, having a financing option and ability to pay it down over time, along with really attractive rates, made it pretty much a no-brainer for us.”

Adds Herrtage, “Our leasing programs are very much geared to all companies, whether that be a small company that needs some financial help from us to large companies that just want to be able to protect their own cash flows or invest in other areas. We’re helping them with that.”

Domino emphasizes that label printer converters will find that its In-House Leasing offers competitive rates that are generally lower than banks or third-party leasing companies provide. Plus, printers are dealing directly with Domino, and no personal guarantees are required.

Christopher Stoehr, president of Southwest Label & Printing, discusses his experience with the Domino in-house leasing program. He says, “They came out to me, they brought the contracts, we went over everything and it was boom, boom, slam dunk, it’s done. It was awesome. You’re dealing directly with Domino. No banks involved. The relationship with Domino, not only on the equipment side, but with the leasing and the financing, it goes hand-in-hand and, in my opinion, it works the best because everything is together. Everything’s handled by one company. To me, that was the best choice I could have possibly made.”


Abbott Label’s ‘win-win’
Last year in February 2020, Abbott Label added the Domino N610i digital UV inkjet press to expand its digital capabilities. Soon after, COVID-19 led to a surge in variable data printing applications. Abbott Label again turned to Domino with the installation of the K600i dual bar digital UV inkjet printer.

John Abbott, president of Abbott Label, recently detailed his company’s growth, the impact of COVID-19, and how Domino digital printing has been instrumental in taking his label manufacturing business to the next level.

Abbott Label is a manufacturer of stock and custom pressure sensitive labels, carrying over 400 different sizes on its floor, ready to ship out the same day. For Abbott Label, the ability to come through for its customers is paramount. “Everything is a priority with us,” says Abbott.“The one thing that Abbott Label does better than anybody else is service. We’re strategically located in four manufacturing facilities across the United States. All plants run three shifts, 24-hours a day. Our home office is here in Dallas, TX, and we’ve got great people – and we focus on our people.

“Pre-COVID, we were at 163 employees. Now, we’re at 205 employees – 25% we’ve added to our workforce, so hiring has been a major focus on the corporation, as it has to be. We know our price is competitive, we know our quality is excellent. We’ve gone with quality vendors all the way through. We’ve got so many great accounts and great relationships over our 40 years of business – there’s really not much that we can’t do.”

According to Abbott, the Domino N610i press has been a “game-changer” for his business. “We were so impressed with Domino coming out of the gates, but at that time there weren’t a whole lot of Dominos out in the United States. There weren’t a lot on the floor. There’s one thing my dad told me, he said, ‘John, don’t ever be the guinea pig. Let other people hit their thumb with the hammer and then build off of that.’ So, we had the HP in first. It served its purpose, and I’ve got no issues with HP whatsoever. Great company, great service, great quality – everything.  But we were limited on how much footage we could run through the HP, and that’s where we brought the Domino in. We had a limit on the HP of about 5,000-7,500 feet, depending on the number of copies. And with Domino, we’re up to 35,000-40,000 feet. It’s given us such an ability to go a different direction volume-wise through the press. More than anything was speed. We were able to get twice as fast through the Domino as we were through the HP. The quality looked just as good – the quality is excellent. We’ve never had an issue with quality.”

The requests for variable data led to Abbott Label’s decision to go with the Domino K600i. The installation has helped with a wide range of needs, from QR codes to consecutive barcodes. “The reasons we went with the K600i are one, quality. The barcodes are unbelievable. And two, speed. That thing can go up to 492 fpm. You can run this stuff, and it verifies it. So, time is money. With the Domino, there’s no downtime. It’s heaven for us.”

Just as Abbott Label is committed to providing excellent service and support, the same can be said of the company’s suppliers. Abbott has emphasized Domino’s commitment to customer service in their partnership.

“Domino has always been a favorite of mine,” he says. “They’re great people that stand behind what they say. COVID had just struck, and the Domino guy literally loaded up his trailer, loaded up his car, drove down here, parked in our parking lot, slept in his trailer, and worked on our piece of equipment. I mean, how much more loyal and dedicated can you get in that point in time in life where an employee for them did that…drove down from Chicago. It was awesome, and it meant a lot.

“Domino is family, just great people,” he adds. “David Ellen is one of those vendors who is more than a vendor, he’s a friend. And to work with Domino is a blessing. It was just a win-win for Abbott Label and our customers.”


Lease Structure Flexibility
The lease can be be structured with deferred payments to allow the customer to “ramp up” their digital business – building their book of business to put on the Domino press, which can be done prior to making their first monthly payment.

“We even offer a Ramp-Up program, whereby they can have a press on a lease, pay nothing for the first six months. So, all they’re paying for is their ink. And after six months, they can then start to pay for the press through the margins they generated from what they’re selling using the Domino N610i,” says Herrtage.

Adds Emily Kroll, Domino account manager “We’re speeding the ramp-up process so that you’re making money as quick as possible.”

“Business in a Box”
“I get asked all the time, ‘Why should I buy a digital press?’” says Kroll. “With Domino’s leasing program, the question really becomes, ‘Why wouldn’t you buy a digital press?’ It includes service, maintenance, training, printheads. So, it’s really nice that customers get to have that fixed monthly amount. There are no uncertainties.”

“The monthly payment will cover the capital repayment of the press, but it’ll also cover the full service contracts. We can also bundle in Digital Solutions programs. For a few dollars, pounds or euros more, you can have a whole lot more included in your package,” says Herrtage, adding, “We provide all the resources to train their operators. If they want to train their sales staff, we can train their sales staff; we’ll teach management how you manage digital, and we’ll teach customer service how to estimate for digital. It’s basically a business in a box.”

Trade-In Guarantee, Future-Proof
The Domino leasing program is backed by the company’s trade-in guarantee. Herrtage explains, “If something new is launched and you want to move to that, we will take back the press that you have, and we will just recreate a lease for you. We have a very robust
trade-in program.”

Kroll puts the exclamation point on the key benefit of this program. “I think the main advantage to Domino’s leasing program is it allows your business to grow with the advancements that are made in digital technology. Digital is the future, and the Domino N610i and the leasing program that we’ve put together are revolutionary.”


MPS to reveal new corporate vision and brand identity
Following needs and market developments in the label and packaging industry, MPS is set to launch a new corporate vision and brand identity. With “Connect to Grow” as its new brand promise, MPS aims to enable customers to unleash the full potential from their printing presses to gain maximum performance and maximum return on investment.

Atze Bosma, CEO of MPS, states, “Label and flexible packaging printers nowadays face a rapidly changing market with increasing pressure on price and higher demands on quality and flexibility. At the same time, they must cope with different printing techniques, more changeovers, and a growing shortage of experienced operators. Whether printers are using a flexo, offset or a digital hybrid printing press, they strive for maximum performance and maximum return on investment. This requires expertise, use of unbiased data, real-time data from the actual printing press.” 

Bosma continues, “In the label and flexible packaging industry, printers rarely collect unbiased, real-time data from the actual printing press. This information is valuable; many machines run much less than what they can. In practice, we see relatively low printing speeds, high waste levels and long job changeover times.”

“Our mission is to enable MPS customers to unleash the full potential out of their MPS presses. It is about running robust, reliable, highly qualified and highly automated printing presses ready for 24×7 operations. And, we enable customers to achieve the best performance and maximum return from their MPS machine. Together we look beyond the machine by addressing all aspects involving the printing press.”