A New Chapter

I never planned to build a print business from a garden shed, but like many people in this industry, my journey started on the production floor. Long before sales meetings, business strategy and acquisitions, I was learning the trade properly, understanding machinery, deadlines, pressure and the reality of what it takes to get work out of the door on time.

After redundancy, I found myself at a crossroads. I had a young family, bills to pay and no real safety net. What I did have was experience, determination and a belief that customers still valued service, honesty and reliability. That was the beginning of Visual Print & Design.

What started as a small operation from home slowly grew into something far bigger than I could ever have imagined. Sixteen years later, the business had grown into a £1m turnover company with more than 1,000 customers across councils, universities, schools, charities and national brands.

But the reality behind growth is rarely as polished as people imagine.

Running a business teaches you resilience very quickly. There are sleepless nights, cashflow worries, staffing challenges, difficult customers, supplier issues and moments where you question everything. Especially in print, where margins can be tight and expectations are always rising.

One thing people rarely talk about in business ownership is the weight of responsibility that comes with employing people and managing cashflow. There were periods over the years where the pressure was enormous. Customers paying late, supplier costs increasing, unexpected machinery issues, economic uncertainty and still needing to make sure wages were paid on time at the end of every month. When you run a business, especially in print where margins can move quickly, that responsibility never really switches off. You carry it home with you.

Those moments taught me some of the biggest lessons of my career. Stay calm under pressure. Make decisions early. Communicate honestly with both staff and customers. Most importantly, build strong relationships because the customers, suppliers and people who genuinely trust you are often the ones who help you through the hardest periods. I think many business owners also learn the hard way that turnover alone means very little without strong systems and financial discipline behind it. Growth is exciting, but sustainable growth is something completely different.

The print industry has changed massively during my career. When I started, relationships were built over handshakes, site visits and face to face meetings. Quotes were slower, workflows were manual and customers expected longer lead times. Today, clients want instant pricing, automation, online ordering, sustainability credentials and faster turnaround times than ever before. At times, the pace of change has been relentless.

We have seen recessions, digital disruption, Covid, paper shortages, energy increases and enormous pressure on independent businesses. I think many people outside the industry underestimate just how tough print can be operationally. But despite all of that, I have always believed good businesses survive by adapting.

One of the biggest lessons I learned building Visual Print & Design was that relationships matter far more than transactions. We retained more than 90 percent of our customers over many years, not because we were always the cheapest, but because clients trusted us to deliver, solve problems and care about the outcome. That culture became the foundation of the business.

As the company grew, my role changed too. In the early days, I was doing everything myself, sales, account management, production, delivery runs and even building furniture in the office at weekends. Over time, leadership became less about doing everything personally and more about building a team, empowering people and creating consistency.

In the early years, I thought good leadership meant doing everything yourself and being involved in every detail. Over time, I realised that approach only takes a business so far. One of the hardest lessons for many founders is learning to let go, trust people and build systems that do not rely entirely on you.

That transition was not easy for me personally because when you care deeply about standards, customers and reputation, delegation can feel uncomfortable. But sustainable growth only happens when businesses move from reactive decision making into structured processes, accountability and scalable systems. I also learned that growth alone is not enough. Businesses need structure, systems and scalability if they are ever going to become genuinely sustainable or saleable.

Preparing a company for sale is probably one of the hardest parts of business ownership because it forces you to look at the company differently. You stop asking, “Can we grow?” and start asking, “Can this business operate successfully beyond me?” that is a huge mindset shift for many founders. Earlier this year, I sold Visual Print & Design and joined Solopress as Head of Partnerships Selling a business is a strange experience emotionally because from the outside people often assume it is simply a commercial transaction. In reality, it is letting go of something that has consumed a huge part of your life for many years.

You remember the difficult periods far more than the highlights. The risks taken. The customers who backed you early. The team members who helped build the culture. The moments where things could have gone badly wrong but somehow worked out. I think going through that process gave me a completely different perspective on business. Growth is important, but longevity, relationships and reputation matter far more in the long run.

Joining Solopress has opened my eyes to the scale of innovation now happening within print technology, workflow automation and AI driven systems. What excites me most is not replacing the human side of print, but improving the customer experience around it. Customers now expect the same ease and speed from print procurement that they receive in other sectors, and businesses that embrace technology intelligently will have a huge advantage over the next decade.

What has not changed though is the importance of people. Print is still a relationship industry. Trust still matters. Accountability still matters. Service still matters.

I genuinely believe print remains one of the most powerful forms of communication when done properly. It creates impact, credibility and permanence in a way digital alone often cannot.

For me personally, this next chapter is not about leaving entrepreneurship behind. It is about taking everything I have learned from building a business over sixteen years and applying it in a new environment with fresh opportunities ahead.

The industry is evolving rapidly, but that is exactly what makes it exciting.

And after more than 30 years in print, I still believe the best businesses in this industry are yet to come.

---

Author: Graham Hunstone

Business: www.solopress.com

Email: graham.hunstone@solopress.com

Photography: Headshot Toby