While there is plenty of uncertainty circling the U.S. book printing industry, speakers and attendees at the Book Manufacturers Institute’s annual meeting held November 2 in St. Augustine, Fl., felt that all things considered, the industry is in a pretty good place.

For starters, the association’s finances are in good shape, reported Midland’s Bill Rojack, who is BMI treasurer. Rojack recommended that BMI should use some of its funds to create a campaign to improve the image of the printing industry and the book business in general, an idea later endorsed by executive director Matt Baehr.

Baehr had his own good news, saying that at 112, BMI’s membership was at its highest in more than 10 years despite years of consolidation.

Speakers brought their own mixed messages. Julie Philip and Cameron Seward of the consulting firm ACG Advocacy addressed some hot button Washington, D.C., issues. The two agreed that while Trump’s tariff policy will continue to shift, no changes are likely to impact books. At present, books are largely exempt from tariffs, with the exception of China where trade books are subject to a 7.5% tariff. There is slight risk, the two said, that rate could go to 15% at some point. For the most, Seward said, Trump is using tariffs to help him with his foreign policy objectives.

Philip pointed out that the crackdown on illegal immigrants, which she said had resulted in some 2 million people leaving the country, is likely to continue. That policy has exacerbated the ongoing challenges printers that have in attracting people to work in their plants, members of the audience said, and there appear to be no new solutions to counter that trend in the current environment.

The big topic at last year’s annual meeting was the pending implementation of the European Union Deforestation Regulations, the objective of which is to prevent forest degradation by mandating that only "deforestation-free" products, including books, can be sold in the European Economic Area. Shortly before that meeting last year, implementation was delayed from January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2026. With that date fast approaching, many questions still remain. At present, most European countries expect large companies to meet the requirements by the start of the year, with smaller publishers given until the middle of the year. At a panel of paper manufacturer executives, all said their companies were ready to go, although they also all said they expect there to be some last-minute changes to the regulations and possibly to the timetable for implementation.

Away from EUDR questions, the paper suppliers all agreed that the dominant trend they are seeing this year is that publishers are prioritizing maintaining low inventory, but expecting quick turnaround times, something that printers need to adjust to.

Shelley weighs in

Hachette Book Group CEO David Shelley delivered the meeting's keynote address. Shelley covered a number of topics, including ways to address the reading crisis around the world. HBG has its own initiatives to encourage reading, and Shelley said he had the sense that the manufacturers in the room were interested in addressing the issue, perhaps as part of a campaign mentioned by Rojack earlier in the morning. Such a campaign could highlight the benefits reading for pleasure can bring to children as well as adults, Shelley said.

He also addressed the issue of publishers and printers working together in a spirit of partnership. He said while publishers are always looking to save money, he recognizes that for a healthy industry ecosystem, printers, authors, and booksellers all need to make money as well.

On current trends, Shelley said HBG is seeing good hardcover sales and continued interest in books with decorative paperback covers, but that sales were soft for traditional trade paperbacks, likely due to consumers being more careful with their spending. HBG will keep pressing ahead with special covers, Shelley said, citing the recent release of a deluxe collector’s edition set for the Twilight series.

Shelley said he is feeling good about the outlook for the rest of the year, though with a caveat. “For books that really hit, there are good prospects,” he said.