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The world economy has changed. Is new thinking necessary?

By Darek Johnson

“Unexpectedly, the banks curtailed loans and, in Europe, ceased to authorize lease agreements, a fundamental tool for machinery sales. From one day to the next, sales just stopped. Not because the market died, but because of lack of in-shop liquidity and the cessation of bank loans.” -- Brigitte Hunt, Exhibition Director, Viscom Italy
 

In the film, The Gods Must be Crazy, writer and director Jamie Uys tells of a remote, nomadic tribe that once lived in a simple, self-styled, utopian community. The tribe had no wants, nor did any person own property. Its gods provided everything. One day, however, a random tourist tossed a Coke bottle from an airplane window. It landed near the nomads’ camp. The bottle became a new, extraordinary item that, significant to the plot, could not be shared. Thus, for the first time, the tribe suffered from jealousy, envy, anger and even violence. Finally, one young man, Xi, decided to rid the tribe of the bottle, the source of dissent. Alone, he set off to throw it off the Earth’s edge. The story follows his problematic trek.
Fast-forward to the latter part of 2008, and see the U.S. as the utopian tribe. We had Best Buy, Outback Steak House, Toyota Camrys, Walmart and more. Our gods provided everything. Unfortunately, our figurative Coke bottle – “The Great Recession” – took an economic form. Nor did it land nearby – it fell heavily into our laps.

So, how do we throw the damn thing off the Earth’s edge? We can’t. Perhaps the better question, then, is how to proceed. To obtain various ideas and solutions, we asked questions of several industry executives: Dave Goward, Roland DGA Corporation’s president and CEO; Steve Urmano, Mimaki’s marketing director; Steve Ball, GraphixDirect’s CEO; and Brigitte Hunt, Viscom Italy’s exhibition director.
 

To what extend do you see the national economy gaining or retreating in 2010?
Dave Goward: We expect both ups and downs in 2010, but nothing dramatic in either direction. Remember, the world’s still experiencing an economy in crisis. A statistical end to the recession means more to the politicians than it does to us and, especially, our customers, who are left to deal with a tight credit market and a reduction in demand for their services. That said, our sales have been steadily increasing over the past few months, and we expect this trend to continue into next year.