Designing, printing and delivering the collateral for what was then the largest religious Hindu event ever held in Europe.
Copies of a 240-page brochure designed, proof-checked, printed, bound and delivered on time, alongside booklets, badges, tickets and banners, for an audience of more than 100,000 over two days.
In 1989, 200 organisations came together to establish Virat Hindu Samelan, held at the Milton Keynes Bowl. Over two days, attendance reached more than 100,000 people. At the time, it was the largest religious Hindu event ever held in Europe.
We were asked to design, print and deliver 40,000 copies of a 240-page brochure, a 32-page booklet, badges, tickets and numerous culturally specific banners for the event.
The print run was the easy part. The 200 stakeholders were the job..
When 200 organisations work together on a single event, the design team’s first task is not design. It is diplomacy. The tone, style and content had to be agreed by all involved, and had to reflect the diversity of the visitors and the interests of every organisation represented.
The 240-page brochure in particular demanded significant editorial work and proof-checking of every page of text and imagery. And behind all of it sat the deadline that defines event print: the date does not move. Designed, printed, bound and delivered on time, or the event opens without it.
We coordinated the work of the editorial committee closely with our design team, which allowed the proof-checking to be planned ahead and processed methodically rather than reactively. With so many organisations involved, we kept the communication channels fluent and accessible, managing the continuous flow of alterations and approvals from every party.
We acted as the single point of resource for all the promotional material. Every organisation had one place to send changes, one place to seek approval, one team accountable for the result.
All of the design and content was agreed before going to press. The delivery arrived on time, and the material was ready to distribute to attendees as the gates opened. For an event of this scale, with this many stakeholders, that is the entire definition of success.
We cannot thank your team enough for creating such a unique set of printing for this task. Not only was all the print to an exceptionally high standard, but it conveyed a consistent identity throughout, which not only looked good but pushed the theme to the diverse group we were coordinating for the event.
Event organising committee, Virat Hindu Samelan
200 organisations could have meant 200 separate conversations with a printer. Instead, every alteration, approval and query flowed through a single point of resource. We absorbed the complexity so the committee did not have to.
Methodical, planned proof-checking on a 240-page document prevented the most expensive thing in event print: the late correction. Errors caught on a proof cost minutes. Errors caught after binding 40,000 copies cost the budget.
The event was a one-off, but the relationships built with the participating organisations endured, and several have continued to bring us their ongoing print requirements ever since. Trust earned under pressure compounds for years.
If you are coordinating a major event with many stakeholders and one immovable date, we should talk.