It’s been hard to ignore the massive price increases that have been a feature of 2022.

Inflation rates are at their highest levels since the early 1980s and we’ve all noticed the cost of our shopping, petrol, gas and electricity increasing at uncomfortable rates. In our industry, one of the most striking increases we’ve seen has been in the price of paper products.

A4 copier paper is one of our best selling products; it is often used as a benchmark of our pricing and is traditionally sold at a very low-profit margin. For this reason, we always aim to sell our A4 paper at a very competitive price and do everything we can to avoid increasing the price. However, an international paper shortage has been created by a variety of factors and since the start of the year, the baseline cost of A4 copier paper has more than doubled!

There are a myriad of reasons behind the increased prices but some of the main reasons are:

• Pulp prices in January this year were 67% above 2021 Q1 levels. Many mills have struggled to make a profit so have reduced output to focus on higher margin products. This has caused a surge in demand along with a corresponding shortage of paper which has driven up
prices.

• The gas and electricity used in paper production have increased in price significantly, as have the chemicals used in the production process.

• Some of our most popular Xerox papers were previously manufactured in Russia and have had to be outsourced to other similar paper mills.

 

• Shipping freight and container costs are at their highest levels ever. The well-documented UK haulage issues and shortage of drivers is impacting availability.

Fortunately, we deal with a variety of paper merchants and are able to ‘shop around’ and spot buy pallets of paper to ensure we are getting a good deal. You may have noticed that your usual paper has been substituted with an alternative brand of comparable quality. Hopefully, things will settle soon…?

Please speak with the Officeworx team when you place your next paper order and they will research the most cost-effective paper for your business requirements.