Research and Markets UK Stationery Market Forecast to Decline by 47



Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c20656) has announced the addition of Stationery (Personal & Office) - Market Report 2005 to their offering

The UK stationery market, as covered by this Market Report, includes products for office, home and educational use, but excludes greetings cards and calendars. Despite a favourable economic background, corporate customers have tended to economise by trading down to own-brand or lower-specification products. This, together with the continued pressure from cheap imports from the Far East, has reduced the stationery market's value between 2000 and 2003. However, spending is believed to have improved slightly in 2004. This report estimates that, in 2004, the total UK stationery market was worth 2.15bn at manufacturers' selling prices (msp), a rise of 0.9% on 2003. Between 2000 and 2004, the market is estimated to have decreased by 9.1%.

In 2004, an estimated 78.7% of the market 's value was accounted for by products made principally from paper and board, including, for example, envelopes, cut paper, continuous business forms, notebooks and diaries, and files and folders. The remainder of the market comprised other stationery items, such as writing instruments and desktop items.

Growth in electronic communication is having some negative influence on stationery volumes and some traditional product sectors have decreased substantially between 2000 and 2004. However, direct mail has continued to benefit the manufacturers and suppliers of envelopes and labels. Decorative items of personal stationery, such as notebooks and albums, continue to sell well and the market is benefiting from the use of many kinds of stationery items as personal and business gifts.

The pressure of competition kept manufacturers' price rises to a minimum between 2000 and 2003, but prices increased slightly more in 2004 as manufacturers passed on some of the rising costs that they could no longer absorb. The envelopes subsector had the steepest price rises between 1999 and 2004.

The stationery and office products distribution sector has been subject to many corporate changes since 2000. The most recent changes include the acquisition by Staples Inc in 2004 of superstore chain Office World from its Swiss parent. In the UK, this acquisition is resulting in the merger of the two largest office products superstore chains - Staples and Office World - under the Staples brand. 2004 also saw management buyouts (MBOs) at both Kingfield Heath and OyezStraker, the opening of a new wholesaler - The Stationery Channel - and a string of acquisitions by Dudley Inkwell.

Between 2005 and 2009, it is forecast that the UK stationery market will decline by 4.7% at constant 2004 prices. However, rising raw material costs and UK inflation will provide some annual growth in the market in current price terms.

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c20656

Laura Wood
Senior Manager
Research and Markets
Fax: +353 1 4100 980




Research and Markets UK Stationery Market Forecast to Decline by 47



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