I believe the saying is something like “A cobbler’s children have no shoes” and the same could be said about the yearly production of the company catalog.
As a printing company, we all know all the steps and timelines associated with a project of this magnitude. But customer work always comes first, and despite the best of intentions, this one usually starts early and then finishes right at the last second.
Designed in InDesign using tables linked with Excel spreadsheets, this catalog is the calling card of the company. The same information is also used on the company website, which requires a few tricks to spin out usable HTML for that project (which is the subject of a different portfolio post).
In addition to organizing products, updating the pricing tables and creating a current table of contents, each year we try to include a production/design detail that showcases something special we can offer our customers. In the past, we’ve printed on unusual material, included custom die cut pieces or fancy mylar colors. Experiments with variable printing have also been used to create very custom mailing labels for the catalog follow up packages that go out after trade shows.
Design elements from the catalog are carried through trade show banners, marketing materials and email blasts throughout the year.
Tools Used: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Microsoft Excel, Adobe Acrobat.
