The BookPrint Story
BookPrint was established to help you produce books – having this core specialty makes the business more knowledgeable and more efficient than your traditional commercial printer. This gives BookPrint a competitive point of difference which keeps its people in full time work, so thank you. For you, it provides a great cost advantage, speedy delivery advantage, and a quality advantage!
BookPrint Ltd was incorporated in April 2013 after being soft launched one year earlier as a sub-brand of Copy Colour Ltd which itself was established in 1990. This came about after it’s founder Timmy worked on several book jobs within Copy Colour (his father’s business) and discovered a need amongst businesses and authors to have a trusted and knowledgeable partner to work with producing their books.
Like all good kiwi businesses, it originally operated from a converted garage/basement, but now has a fantastic library / showroom and production space in Unsworth Heights.
Meet Celes and David, your first contacts
Celes has overall responsibility for client service, design, and the print schedule, and is supported in this by David. Either of them will gladly discuss book printing and or book design with you. When you are looking for print they will help you choose paper stocks, binding style, specify any cover embellishments such as foiling or spot gloss, and answer your questions. They will also provide you with a written quote, organise an invoice and a printed proof, and once approved also place your book in the production schedule.
- Before joining Bookprint in 2023, Celes worked with the children’s book publisher Scholastic Asia – which cemented her passion for book making. Prior to Scholastic she worked in logistics and fulfillment, and completed a Malaysian university degree in various complex sounding business subjects. Following the footsteps of many working holidaymakers, she set foot in New Zealand and fell in love with her new found home.
- David’s son Tim created Bookprint while David ran a boutique commercial printing business for 10 years, and before that spent a much more stressful 20 years in strategy, development and management roles within Fletcher Building’s various NZ and offshore operations. David (along with Barby, Will and Kat) stepped up to continue the BookPrint journey when Tim and his family moved to the beautiful Wanaka in the South Island. David has qualifications in mathematics, business & ethics, and also coaches the Bookprint team.
Started with short-run book printing ...
The vision at the beginning was to help people by offering them a short-run book printing service. This is a relatively new market – made possible by advances in digital printing technology and short-run binding. These advances make it a fascinating time in both the print and book industry. Traditional book publishing would produce tens of thousands of books, put them in warehouses and ship them around the world. They would then; sell, not sell, get discounted or recycled. Short-run printing is in the middle of reforming publishing and enabling many more authors to get into print.
Meet Barby, our proofreader
Barby can read your document to find the typos and when needed provide more extensive editing services. Barby completed an English and Linguistics degree while raising three now adult children. Previously a physiotherapist, she now teaches English as a second language during term time. Bookprint also uses contract proofreaders with knowledge of different genres as needed.
Meet Sue, our prepress and visual expert
Sue has worked with books for over 15 years, in illustration, image and prepress file management, and printing. She worked with David in the boutique print business before they both joined Bookprint, and before that with a children’s book publisher offshore. Like many other aspiring artists, she loved drawing and earned her qualification in art. She’s a supermom who manages an extended family of 7 including herself.
Then added long-run book printing as well ...
BookPrint prints books in-house ranging in volume from single digits through to a couple of thousand. Whilst this was the original vision it became apparent there was a need for a knowledgeable and reliable partner to supply customers who needed higher volumes and/or very special specification books. Since launching this long-run service various offshore printers across China and South Korea have been carefully selected for their specific capabilities with particular book types, and their reliability. These now regular print partners, along with the multipoint quality managed process used, enable the fantastic long-run service – helping you get long-run printing with minimal risk.
Meet Will, our master book printer, for both short and long runs, in Auckland and Offshore
Serendipitously, Will walked into BookPrint looking for a book industry job – to support his family’s move to Aotearoa and becoming Kiwis. He had previously completed a university printing degree and worked for the large specialised Amity Printing Company in China. Given his industry expertise, commitment, enthusiasm, and offshore print supplies and printing contacts he not only joined the team that day, but along with his wife Kat have now become partners in the business too.
Will is responsible for BookPrint’s quality-managed offshore printing and supply process, including client liaison. In addition, he has responsibility for local book printing and book binding operations, so he is busy. Will, with support from his wife Kat, lovingly and expertly make your books.
Bookshop quality. Book design matters.
Even with fantastic printing (if we say so ourselves) some books can still end up looking pretty average. It was soon recognised that not everyone is an expert in book design, so BookPrint up-skilled and grew the team and started offering options for cover design, and for internal page layout / typesetting.
It has been a pleasure to work together with authors who choose this service, to increase the calibre of work produced. After all, first impressions count, and you see a book cover and glance inside before you read it. So the look is crucial to success whether it is a business comms piece, family history, or a book for sale. Check out BookPrint’s typesetting costs, cover design packages or get in touch to discuss something unique like catalogue or cook book design.
Meet Kat, logistics lead (bulk & single book fulfilment), and printing support
Kat followed Will to New Zealand, and to BookPrint, and as the business continued to grow, joined the team full time. Kat brings her logistic qualifications from the China Shippers Association, and her in depth experience managing inbound and outbound logistics for a large offshore book printer. With her superb ability to make things happen, she is now responsible for efficiently moving books around, and well as supporting Will with book printing and book binding tasks. Kat will supply your books – either in bulk to your home or store, or 1 by 1 to your customers in New Zealand and Australia if you are wanting a fulfilment service.
Great meeting you.
Well, now you know a little bit more about us – it would be great to get to know you too. So drop us a line and let’s make something amazing together.
- Use the handy form below 24/7 – we now target the same day (or at the latest next day) response.
- If you are a talker give us a call on 09 443 1775
- Or if you are local, book an appointment to come in, have a chat, and browse our collection of printed books.
