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January and February are traditionally slower months for many print shops, but they’re also some of the most valuable months of the year if you use them intentionally.
This is the perfect time to step back from the daily production grind and invest in your shop, your team, and your skills so you’re sharper and more efficient when busy season hits.
Here are a few ideas I recommend focusing on during the slower winter months:
Attend Industry Events & Get Inspired
One of the best ways to recharge creatively and professionally is to get out of the shop and into the industry. Trade shows like Impressions Long Beach are a great opportunity to see new equipment, inks, and techniques, talk with other printers, and bring fresh ideas back to your operation.
Invest in Training & Education
Slow months are ideal for learning. Consider attending (or hosting) training sessions focused on:
- Screen making fundamentals and consistency
- Printing better, cleaner white ink
- Advanced color separations and simulated process printing
Even experienced printers often find that tightening up fundamentals leads to major gains in quality and efficiency.
Experiment Without Pressure
When orders slow down, you finally have time to experiment:
- Try specialty inks you’ve been putting off
- Test new mesh counts, squeegees, or underbase strategies
- Dial in difficult prints without the pressure of deadlines
These experiments often turn into new capabilities you can confidently sell later.
Tighten Up Shop Processes
Use this downtime to evaluate how your shop actually runs:
- Clean up workflows and staging areas
- Standardize setups and job documentation
- Identify bottlenecks or recurring issues
Small process improvements now can save huge amounts of time during peak season.
Deep Cleaning & Preventive Maintenance
January and February are perfect for the jobs no one wants to do when you’re slammed:
- Deep clean presses, dryers, exposure units, and reclaim areas
- Perform scheduled maintenance per manufacturer recommendations
- Replace worn parts before they cause downtime
Your equipment will thank you later.
Try New Products You’ve Been Putting Off
Have inks, emulsions, chemicals, or tools sitting on the shelf that you haven’t tested yet? Now’s the time. Evaluating products during a slower period helps you make confident decisions before production ramps back up.
Train Your Team (or Yourself)
Whether it’s cross-training employees or sharpening your own skills, learning during the slow season pays dividends all year long. Better-trained teams make fewer mistakes, waste less material, and produce more consistent results.
I’d love your feedback.
Are you planning to attend Impressions Long Beach this year? I will be in attendance and would love to see any of you that are attending.
Would you be interested in:
- A hands-on class focused on screen making and printing better white ink?
- A high-end color separations and simulated process printing class?
Reply and let us know what you’d like to see, we’re planning upcoming trainings and would love your input.
Here’s to making the slow season one of the most productive times of the year.
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