With only a few weeks left before back-to-back October elections in B.C., candidates are racing to get their names on lawns—and print shops are having to keep up. At Minuteman Press, signs, postcards and brochures are big sellers. John Roden, the general manager of stores in Surrey and North Vancouver, said orders from municipal candidates are winding down, just in time for the provincial election. “It’s probably the first time I’ve seen them back-to-back in the same year,” he said. Roden says the shop typically produces 200,000 to 400,000 marketing materials during a campaign period. Since NDP leader David Eby called the snap election Tuesday, Roden said he’s been fielding calls from provincial parties asking for quotes. “They’re all kind of scrambling to figure out how much they can spend on their budgets,” he said. It’s a tight turnaround, with orders needing to be in by next week, according to Roden. But the influx in business isn’t being seen at all print shops across Metro Vancouver. Mohammed Hussain, the managing director of Firebird Prints in East Vancouver said a campaign period used to mean a sales spike of about 60 per cent. Hussain added that’s not the case this year, due to a change in how some candidates advertise. “What we are seeing is lots of people are comparing against big online e-commerce stores,” he said. “And sometimes the price could be half of what a local print shop can offer.” While some voters may not be thrilled about heading to the polls twice in one week, Roden says it’s a welcome boost for his business. “I’m not going to complain about the extra orders,” he said.
