For centuries, publishers have wrestled with one simple but crucial question upon which their success often depends: How many copies should we print? On one hand, the fundamental economics of printing encourage publishers to produce as many copies as possible to achieve better economies of scale and lower per-unit costs. Meanwhile, the cost of unsold copies can also erode profit margins, let alone taking up valuable storage space!

Publisher's Choice® has had enormous benefits for our customers, no matter how large or small. Some the largest publishers have have seen their warehouse inventory reduce by over 10% in the last two years and for our smaller publishers it has made the difference as to whether they can afford to publish a new title or reprint.

Adopting Publisher's Choice® throws open the possibility of quickly increasing supply to meet demand on unexpectedly fast-moving titles, enabling you to fully exploit every sales opportunity without having to pay extortionate unit costs that print on demand usually incurs. On the other hand, you could experiment with higher risk titles, try out new authors or simply price books more competitively.

How does it work?

Publisher's Choice® titles are produced on our Kodak Prosper 1000 digital web press which prints superb quality black and white text or text with black and white line drawings and sporadic black and white photographs. Books are printed in 12 or 16 page sections (depending on the size) and binding is usually slot perforated (perfect bound or PUR perfect binding available on request) for both paperbacks and hardbacks from folded and gathered sections.

Our Kodak inkjet produces produces good quality line drawings, graphs, photographs and halftones. Books with a high level of black and white photographs throughout can be produced on our Xerox iGen press which produces an excellent quality of halftone reproduction.

If you are looking to add a section of either colour or black and white photographs (plate section) then this can be produced as either one group of 8 or 16 pages and will be printed on a 130gsm gloss art paper. Please note that a plate section must fall between a printed text section as sections can't be broken up during manufacture. Please check with us if you are unsure whether your plate section can be placed exactly where you would like it to be positioned.

Covers, jackets and printed paper cases, which can be finished with matt or gloss lamination, are printed 4-colour CMYK process on our Xerox IGen3 digital presses. Both paperback and hardbacks can be produced using Publisher's Choice®.

Digital or Litho - which is the right production route for me?

Our wide range of digital printing presses allows us to offer a flexible and responsive service. Although we have an enviable reputation in the market-place for the high quality of books that we produce – almost comparable to litho printed books – digitally printed books will have a different look and feel to what you might expect from litho production. We are always happy to advise you on the best technology for your project to ensure that we will meet your expectations of the finished article.