Shaun Hattingh, Datacentrix. Photo: Karolina Komendera

The pandemic had a massive impact on the printing business and on the business of printing. Millions of suddenly remote workers experienced a seismic shift from traditional print-based processes to digital ways of working, with printers losing significant commercial ground. IDC revealed that print volumes had dropped by nearly 14% in 2020, with the likelihood of this decline continuing as more companies adopt hybrid and remote working practices alongside paperless initiatives. Statista’s research reflects a somewhat similar trend with an uptick in printer sales in 2021 and 2022, followed by a dip in 2025.

These sentiments are shared by Forrester which, in its US Tech Market Outlook by Category for 2021 and 2022, found that the spend on peripherals will continue its slow growth in 2022 after a spike in 2020 and 2021 as companies invested in home office technology to keep employees and businesses going during the pandemic. Now, as the new normal blends both work and office, many companies are wondering if printers are perhaps as necessary an evil as they previously thought. Are the costs on ink, paper and device maintenance really worth it when digital can pretty much do everything, only faster?