Continuing the gold print quality

"Be creative and innovative...we need to consistently challange ourselves to do better." Christian Soeseno, managging director - by Jessie Loh


A family business, Subur Printing Network is a household name in Indonesia. Christian Soeseno recollects that his interest in printing was carefully cultivated from a young age. He fondly reminisces that on every school holiday, his parents would involve his siblings and him in their print business to ensure that they familiarised themselves with the running of a printing company.

"In 2001, I joined Subur Printing, working from the bottom as a marketing executive. Three years later, in 2004 I set up a new division called Kisah Personal Publishing, which offers customised high-end coffee table books. Last year, I launched another division, namely SayCheese, which brings quality digital prints to the masses; catering to lifestyle and creative projects such as personalised puzzles, playing cards, invitations, photo books, mouse pads," says Soeseno.

Now, as the managing director for both Kisah Personal Publishig and SayChees, his priority is obvious - to continue producing quality print jobs in order to maintain their reputation as reliable and dependable printing group.

"Till now, I am happy to say that our diligence has paid off and our company's annual growth rate is being steadily sustained at 20% to 25%. However, the Asian print industry will only become more competitive. To stay ahead and enjoy continuous growth, we have to be creative and innovate. Thus we need to diversify and tap into new markets with the formation of Kisah Personal Publishing and SayCheese.

"Both divisions are unique and brimming with potential. Kisah for example caught onto the wedding boom when it was created. Our 'Wedding Story Book' concept was an instant hit - a compilation of about 500 wedding images and 200 pages, the digital photo book is a concise documentation of any part of couple's wedding from the actual wedding day to the honeymoon moments, depending on our client's preference. This is a winning idea and by targeting only the crème of the Indonesian market, we have customers from the prominent families to families of high-ranking officials," says Soeseno.

Kisah's digital print quality has also been recognised regionally with a gold award in the category of Digital Printing Electrographic/Laser at the fifth Asian Print Awards 2007, as well as the Fuji Xerox Award for the best user of the Digital Printing Process. Digital print technology offers us a great extent of flexibility in our printing process. Because of its flexibility, it gives us room for innovation and creation, making it possible for us to carry on the development of new products.

"The 'Just in Time' concept attainable by digital printing is the pillar of some of our winning ideas. It greatly benefits our customers without compromising on quality. We are also able to achieve fast turnaround with tight timelines and that is also part and parcel of our success," adds Soeseno.

Yet Soeseno stresses that the company's achievements would not be possible without the support of his dedicated staff and his family. Soeseno elaborates, "I see my self as a coach or mentor to my employees. I believe it is my responsibility to discover and expand my employees' skills so that they can be more successful in their chosen positions. Besides constantly upgrading and imparting new skill and knowledge to them, I will try to delegate more responsibilities as well so that they can build up their confidence and gain useful work experience. In this way, they can contribute more and it is a win-win situation for the company as well as my staff."

Then again, despite having a successful career, Soeseno is not a workaholic. "Married with two children, I try to spend more time with my family when I have leisure time. I enjoy traveling and whenever possible, I try to go overseas together with my family to put together our personal 'Family Story Book'," grins Soeseno.

(Print Pack Publish Asia, March 2008)