Asked and Answered: Why Don’t You Want to Print on Paper That I Supply to You?

Why don’t you want to print on paper that I supply to you?

A Mr. Mike Mendoza from Baltimore, Maryland writes and asks:

Q: I have a project and I want to give you my own paper to use; why might that be a problem?

A: Thank you for contacting us about your print project, Mr. Mendoza! This is a fascinating question, and I’m happy to tackle it for you. Paper is very interesting (at least, WE think so!). There are hundreds, if not thousands, of brands, finishes, weights, grains, sizes and even shapes of paper. Not every type of paper will run properly or well through every type of printing or digital equipment. The size of your paper may be too big or too small for us to run. The weight of your stock might be too thick or too thin. The finish might be too porous or too slick. Your supplied stock might have a deckled edge which would end up getting mangled in our equipment.

Maybe you need 50 good sheets and only bought 50 sheets, when we need a certain percentage “over” for waste/spoilage when printing? Perhaps the stock you bought because it looked nice won’t really serve the purpose you need it for? Were you simply trying to save some money by buying your own stock? If so, you might actually be inadvertently driving up the price of your printing job, depending on how we end up running your job. We might be able to get more finished pieces “out” of a larger size sheet than you are providing, allowing us to charge you a lower price than if we have to use your smaller sheet size. Or you might have to buy so many “overs” that the additional cost wipes out any savings.

And how about the condition of your paper? Have you stored it in a place with correct humidity? Is it free from “dings,” dents, and crunched corners? Did you count to make sure you have the right amount? All of these factors may affect how your project runs through our equipment and ends up looking.

As a premier printer in Baltimore, a huge part of our job is paper management, ordering, inventorying, and storing. We know paper inside and out, upside down too! We like to consider ourselves paper experts. We can make suggestions for the best stock to use, depending on your needs. How long do you want the piece to last? Are you on a tight budget? What does your artwork look like? How many do you need? What is your deadline? What type of bindery needs to be done?

All of these questions will allow us to hone in on the absolute perfect paper for your particular project. Let us give you the excellent service you and your custom project deserve. You might be attracted to a certain paper, or want to try to save a few dollars, and buy it yourself for us to run, but that is rarely a good idea in our experience for all of the above reasons. At Curry Printing, we are your paper experts!

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