A new survey commissioned by Stora Enso on post-pandemic work and printing habits polled 3,400 workplace consumers across Sweden, UK, France, Netherlands, and Germany, on how they feel about printing and what they want from their office paper. The survey delivered some surprising insights, and some not so surprising.
During 2020 and early 2021, the pandemic-driven shift to stay-at-home work naturally brought a dip in demand for office paper, with people on average printing 32 per cent more at the office than at home. Now with the economic recovery – 35 per cent of respondents having already returned to their office and a further 51 per cent expecting to return soon – the good news for the industry is that back to the office will also mean back to print.
Stora Enso’s Jonathan Bakewell, VP, Head of Segment Office and Book Papers, says: “This increase in printer paper demand, marked by a return to the office, has been hoped for, but these results reaffirm it.”
Five-day office week finished
The survey also reaffirmed the end of the five-day office week, with the preferred mix now tending towards three days (33 per cent) at the office and two days working from home office, while some respondents (14 per cent) don’t plan to return at all.
“We expected this,” Bakewell says. “But what did surprise was that even though people printed less at home, 79 per cent of respondents who went out and bought a printer during the pandemic, believe they became more productive in their work because of it.”
People used their home printers for contracts, reports, spreadsheets, invoices and letters, among others, with France, notably, having the highest number of printers installed (42,5 per cent) and Sweden the least (18 per cent).
People still want paper but not just any paper
This new survey, which follows on from an earlier survey in 2020, shows that paper preferences are also evolving.
“While cost and convenience were still number one, workplace consumers are now even more concerned about print quality and sustainability than they were a year ago,” Bakewell explains, “with the number one recognised sustainability criterion being carbon neutrality.”
A majority of respondents (70 per cent) also indicated a willingness to pay a premium, on average 1 EUR/ream more, for paper with a higher sustainability performance.
This shift may be due to stay at home work becoming more formalised. “At the company, people tend to take whatever paper is provided, but with more people at home now, there are more opportunities to set their own selection standards.”
more at source: https://www.storaenso.com/en/newsroom/news/2021/12/does-printing-make-you-more-productive