The tale of two sisters at Jak
Award trophies, medals and certificates exemplify Jak Printers. The 30-year old company has won around 282 national and 22 international awards. Mugdha Gangoli spends time with gen-next Zeenia Patel and Parvana Mistry to understand what their print genes are made of
26 May 2015 | 11376 Views | By Mugdha Gangoli
Mugdha Gangoli (MG): What is your idea of a perfect printing press?
Zeenia Patel (ZP): That would have to be a combination of knowledgeable staff and state-of-the-art machinery. Everything that Jak is!
Parvana Mistry (PM): A perfect printing press is to give your customer a solution to every idea and also be a communication provider.
MG: What is the current state of your press?
ZP: Innovating....
PM: Correct cost analysis for every product.
MG: Going forward, what is your goal for the next five years?
ZP: To become communication providers. Not only through books but also through digital media like e-books, apps and social media.
PM: To have a wider customer base pan-India.
MG: Which has been your firm’s greatest extravagance in terms of investment?
ZP: Complete one-shot automated Kolbus hard-case book block line plus casing in-line machine.
PM: The Heidelberg CD-102 seven colour plus coater with five interdeck UV lamps.
The Kolbus hard-case book The Heidelberg CD-102
block line
MG: A virtue that has held your company in good stead in all the years...
ZP: Pure honesty.
PM: Perpetual innovation.
MG: An area of improvement...
ZP: To be more aggressive on quality control.
PM: Better internal communication within our team.
MG: What is that one asset of your company which sets it apart from other print houses?
ZP: In-depth knowledge of utility of all the advanced machineries and technologies we hold in-house.
PM: Personalised attention to details, from the very initial stage of the job, through the pre-press and printing until final binding and packing.
MG: One thing you dislike about a customer...
ZP: Negotiation.
PM: Lack of creativity and wanting to play it safe.
MG: The question you most like from a customer ...
ZP: Can you create something you have not seen before?
PM: What new can you do?
MG: What do you value most in a print job?
ZP: Creating a new product everyday.
PM: To make sure your customer walks out with more than he/she expected.
MG: Which has been your favourite print job?
ZP: Land Rover – Tracking the Tiger by Bob Rupani.
PM: The Sacred India by Amit Pasricha.
It made me learn and appreciate a customer's attention to details. Having a keen eye on colours made it extremely challenging and exciting. To truly satisfy the customer made me feel a great deal of contentment.
MG: Which phrase is most widely used in your company?
ZP: Nothing is impossible at Jak!
PM: The hard part is done. Now just sit back and enjoy your book-making.
MG: Which is your treasured technology?
ZP: Balancing all the technologies correctly is what we treasure.
PM: Our team.
MG: Which talent do you seek in your team?
ZP: Passion.
PM: Dedication.
MG: Greatest achievement at Jak?
ZP: Being continuously appreciated and recognised by the numerous awards each year, by trying to outdo ourselves every year.
PM: Being able to satisfy every customer no matter how small or big the job is and creating new benchmarks.
MG: If not a print entrepreneur, what would you be?
ZP: A professional sports person.
PM: A restaurateur and chef.
MG: If you could change one thing in the print industry...
ZP: Unhealthy competition and cheating.
PM: Payment systems.
MG: What is your assessment about digital print?
ZP: It is the future.
PM: Very personalised and fast-growing business.
MG: Which press in India do you admire (other than Jak)?
ZP: Parksons Packaging.
PM: Pragati Offset.
MG: The future of print...
ZP: Different areas in print have different futures. Commercial printing is reducing and becoming more of a luxury, whereas packaging is growing fast. Nonetheless it will never die out.
PM: Print media is always going to live on. The feel of paper and the smell of freshly printed books are long cherished by booklovers and newspaper readers all over the world.