Gloss Paper is GONE...

[kdw75]

We have had trouble getting paper all along, but if I was persistent for a few days I could always snag a skid here and there to keep everything we use in stock. Now is the first time that I can't find any text or cover weight gloss papers in 80# or 100#. We have had to shift everything over to uncoated sheets. I have been checking inventory for a week now and nothing has shown up. We buy from Veritiv, Roosevelt and Clampitt paper. We are in the state of Missouri and I wonder if everyone else is experiencing this or if it is regional. We don't seem to have any issues ordering jobs on gloss paper from trade printers.

 

[TJPrinter]

Paper as a whole is very challenging here on the East Coast but coated is the worst. I get what I can when I can and hope it's enough to get me through until stock comes back in. I've been keeping a lot more uncoated cover in stock just in case I can't get any coated. 14pt c2s is imposible to get right now here. It's very frustrating and time consuming.

 

[pippip]

In Ireland I mainly deal with three suppliers and like that it's a complete gamble as to who has what and at what price.
I order certain stocks from certain suppliers, generally based on price.

Trade houses are generally ok as here they tend to buy direct from the mills so are probably getting stock that would otherwise have been going to your general paper suppliers.

I was looking to order copier last week and one supplier said "oh you don't generally order copier from us, we're holding our stocks for our customers who do".
I'm wondering if this tactic is being used across multiple stocks and they're just telling people they are out of it when they're just holding for their "important" clients.

 

[kslight]

I am also in Missouri and use the same vendors, have been fighting the same issues for almost a year depending on the stock…I am just persistent and sometimes I get lucky, and I do some creative rationing and substitute. I am just happy I only have to feed one printer.

 

[ID13]

We haven't been able to get anything glossy since last november

 

[Stickman42]

Are any of your paper distributor reps able to guide you? For example, my Lindenmeyr rep suggested that I place (back)orders even when they show no stock. It eventually shows up - sometimes weeks later, sometimes next day. This is probably due to their network of warehouse locations. It's definitely more unpredictable, and the concept of next day delivery of whatever we needed is mostly gone. We've had to plan and forecast much more than ever before. We are loosely limited to our buying volumes from the past.

 

[kslight]

Are any of your paper distributor reps able to guide you? For example, my Lindenmeyr rep suggested that I place (back)orders even when they show no stock. It eventually shows up - sometimes weeks later, sometimes next day. This is probably due to their network of warehouse locations. It's definitely more unpredictable, and the concept of next day delivery of whatever we needed is mostly gone. We've had to plan and forecast much more than ever before. We are loosely limited to our buying volumes from the past.

My paper distributors are not accepting backorders on coated stocks, they basically say to check every day / they don’t know when specific paper is coming in.

 

[jdodoubleg]

We don't buy by the pallet usually, but I was able to get 22k parent sheets of gloss within 3 days of ordering. I'm west coast though. Haven't had issues with paper. My problem has been with synthetics like Synaps, I usually have to wait 2 weeks to get 1000 sheets.

 

[ThunderGraphics]

We have had trouble getting paper all along, but if I was persistent for a few days I could always snag a skid here and there to keep everything we use in stock. Now is the first time that I can't find any text or cover weight gloss papers in 80# or 100#. We have had to shift everything over to uncoated sheets. I have been checking inventory for a week now and nothing has shown up. We buy from Veritiv, Roosevelt and Clampitt paper. We are in the state of Missouri and I wonder if everyone else is experiencing this or if it is regional. We don't seem to have any issues ordering jobs on gloss paper from trade printers.

Every day, every week it's something different. Our vendor was out of #10 regular envelopes for 2 months back in the spring. Now it's 11x17 20#white. All we can do is clean up and hope to find a stash or two somewhere and let our customers know to ORDER AHEAD.

 

[nuvera229]

We have had trouble getting paper all along, but if I was persistent for a few days I could always snag a skid here and there to keep everything we use in stock. Now is the first time that I can't find any text or cover weight gloss papers in 80# or 100#. We have had to shift everything over to uncoated sheets. I have been checking inventory for a week now and nothing has shown up. We buy from Veritiv, Roosevelt and Clampitt paper. We are in the state of Missouri and I wonder if everyone else is experiencing this or if it is regional. We don't seem to have any issues ordering jobs on gloss paper from trade printers

Every day, every week it's something different. Our vendor was out of #10 regular envelopes for 2 months back in the spring. Now it's 11x17 20#white. All we can do is clean up and hope to find a stash or two somewhere and let our customers know to ORDER AHEAD.

Im from Minnesota, and we deal with two different paper houses. Typically they get glossy text allocated once a month, and we usually have to think ahead and back order for the next month. We can get 100 # gloss cover every other month, 80# every month and 100# gloss text once a month. Colored papers are pretty non existent, and anything over 100# we cannot get.

 

[LabelMaster]

I'm trying to buy from Mac Papers here in FL but since they sold to new owners the customer service and nothing in stock has me looking else where. Does anyone have suggestions for new paper vendors?

 

[Dmiller35]

The issue is really with the mills and not necessarily the distributors.
The coated mills are still a mess. We primarily deal with Mac Papers and the best luck we've had is getting Sappi EuroArt (branded as MacGregor) from overseas.
Since we're not in a large market, most of the domestic supply doesn't reach our local warehouse. Sappi is primarily focusing on larger markets. So, unless you're in New York, Atlanta, Chicago, etc. it could be hard to get paper from them. Also doesn't help that Verso got bought and closed a mill during all of this.

 

[warlegs]

In Ireland I mainly deal with three suppliers and like that it's a complete gamble as to who has what and at what price.
I order certain stocks from certain suppliers, generally based on price.

Trade houses are generally ok as here they tend to buy direct from the mills so are probably getting stock that would otherwise have been going to your general paper suppliers.

I was looking to order copier last week and one supplier said "oh you don't generally order copier from us, we're holding our stocks for our customers who do".
I'm wondering if this tactic is being used across multiple stocks and they're just telling people they are out of it when they're just holding for their "important" clients.

Absolutely!!

 

[Craig]

Not getting better any time soon...

https://www.paperage.com/2022news/08-31-2022lessebo-paper-electricity-costs.html

https://www.paperage.com/2022news/08-31-2022metsa-tissue-high-energy-costs.html

https://www.paperage.com/2022news/08-30-2022nordic-paper-greaker-mill.html

 

[PricelineNegotiator]

Not getting better any time soon...

https://www.paperage.com/2022news/08-31-2022lessebo-paper-electricity-costs.html

https://www.paperage.com/2022news/08-31-2022metsa-tissue-high-energy-costs.html

https://www.paperage.com/2022news/08-30-2022nordic-paper-greaker-mill.html

It's really unfortunate to see Europeans suffer because their politicians are insistent on changing things in a fragile manner. Decentralized power generation methods are needed, badly, especially as more transportation methods are powered by electricity. Hope Europe can put on big boy pants and unroot their evil politicians causing this mayhem.

I'm serious - these issues only occur because the feedback loop for governance is effectively gone in Europe (and the Americas).

 

[mulo_g]

We are in the state of Missouri and I wonder if everyone else is experiencing this or if it is regional.

To me it seems to be world over

 

[Robohopar]

In CA we see paper trickle in but our distributor sometimes plays favorites and gives the larger shops the edge. They sell us 5 cases at a time. I got to buy a pallet of 100lb gloss text parent sheets luckily. I’m just cutting them down and using them as needed. We run a lot of 16pt as well and that’s super tough to get. Our uncoated stock dry though from what I see.

I wish I can buy from different states but the freight is just too costly.

My trade printer (4over) conveniently used 80lb gloss text instead of the 100lb gloss text on a trifold without saying anything and shipped it out to my client. All cut and folded incorrectly. SMH. Rough times.

This has cause me to buy more equipment to just run most my jobs in house now.

 

[Craig]

In CA we see paper trickle in but our distributor sometimes plays favorites and gives the larger shops the edge. They sell us 5 cases at a time. I got to buy a pallet of 100lb gloss text parent sheets luckily. I’m just cutting them down and using them as needed. We run a lot of 16pt as well and that’s super tough to get. Our uncoated stock dry though from what I see.

I wish I can buy from different states but the freight is just too costly.

My trade printer (4over) conveniently used 80lb gloss text instead of the 100lb gloss text on a trifold without saying anything and shipped it out to my client. All cut and folded incorrectly. SMH. Rough times.

This has cause me to buy more equipment to just run most my jobs in house now.

That's why IF we send out jobs we ALWAYS have them shipped here and we inspect before the client receives them.

 

[Robohopar]

Since i'm local to them, I pick them up most of my jobs and clients pick up from here. but i find it super inefficient to do that since almost everyone is in a rush already for their jobs. I let them know they're printed offset/offsite so we cant check it before it leaves but we offer reprints of course.

I got word that most types of paper is trickling in now slowly. first time in a long time i heard that the warehouse has stock and they can ship any qty i want....interesting news

 

[TJPrinter]

My trade printer (4over) conveniently used 80lb gloss text instead of the 100lb gloss text on a trifold without saying anything and shipped it out to my client. All cut and folded incorrectly. SMH. Rough times.

This has cause me to buy more equipment to just run most my jobs in house now.

For most of these trade printers you are just a job number. Even if they admit to messing up a job they will just put the job back at the end of the line for reprinting. If I mess up a job it goes to the head of the line to resolve the problem as quick as possible.

I do use several different trade printers for larger runs and it seems that for the most part they have more stock than us small local guys. But I never have anything drop shipped.