We’ve been thinking for some time about doing some form of variable cover. After writing about variable printing, looking at hundreds of samples, and receiving a fair share of personalized material, we wanted to explore this much-hyped printing application for ourselves. The Gold List issue presented the opportunity to tackle it in what we think is a particularly effective way: we’ve created personalized covers for each of the Top 100 Printers in our Gold List. Not a throwaway piece, but a cover we hope each recipient will consider a keepsake and symbol of their achievement.
 

Like most ideas, this one was sparked during an informal meeting about the issue. We were deciding on whether to use foil or not on this cover (we did). Then a voice was heard to say: “Hey, wouldn’t it be cool if we could do a variable cover for the printers  on the list?” Well, we could. The momentum built from there and slowly, with involvement from a number of people, the project took flight and got done. Some of you hold the results in your hands.

Of the people involved, a few stand out and need to be thanked.
 

Our printer, Sina Printing, initially planted the bug in our ear. They had been urging us to attempt such a project for some time, and so were eager to jump on board with their expertise, spending several hours answering dozens of big and small questions about toner, foil, Excel files, and so on. All before they actually got to work on the job.
 

The next to jump onboard and seize the possibility was Müller Martini. We approached them with the opportunity of personalizing their ad for each recipient and they immediately became enthusiastic. They mined their database and created a fully personalized message for each Gold List member, mentioning the exact model the printer has in some cases, on the back cover of each magazine.
 

Belmont Press added their expertise with the foil-stamping, carefully testing to ensure the foil would adhere to the toner. 
 

And finally, our point person in-house was production manager Alina Collaço. Production managers are the unsung heroes of magazine publishing. They make sure everything and every one is where they’re supposed to be, when they’re supposed to be so each issue gets out. And that’s what Alina did here. She worked with Sina on all the technical aspects of this project, co-ordinated with Müller Martini, checked in with Belmont Press and our bindery, anticipating and eliminating potential glitches, and prepared—and checked and re-checked—the file that was eventually printed.
 

We’re proud of this project. All of us involved in it learned a lot along the way. We stepped a little outside our comfort zone, but the project—even with its myriad details—was surprisingly comfortable to execute and tangibly illustrated to us the impact that can be created with printing.