The Traditional Model (used for 20+ years):

Traditional Print Managers / Print Brokers Approach to Invoices:

  • Invoice: Print Production £6,500
  • Hidden breakdown: Unknown
  • Environmental data: "Carbon neutral" (unverified claim)

What you never see:

  • Actual printer cost: £5,000
  • Hidden markup: £1,500 (30%)
  • What that markup pays for: Unknown

You're charged £6,500. You have no idea what printing actually costs. You can't verify if "sustainable" is worth more. This has been acceptable for decades. It shouldn't be.



 

Our Transparent Approach
A Positive Change:

Print Production: £5,000 (verified sustainable printer - zero markup) Consultancy Fee: £800 (verification + carbon breakdown + management) Total: £5,800 Carbon Footprint Breakdown Provided: - Substrate: 245 kg CO2e - Consumables: 87 kg CO2e - Production: 156 kg CO2e - Distribution: 34 kg CO2e - End-of-life: 12 kg CO2e Total: 534 kg CO2e

What you now see:

  • Actual printer cost: £5,000 (passed through with zero markup)
  • Consultancy fee: £800 (for verification work, data provision, project management)
  • What each fee covers: Completely documented
  • YOU SAVE: £700
  • YOU GET: Detailed carbon breakdown + Reportable data + Transparent pricing
  • YOU KNOW: Exactly what sustainable printing costs and what you're paying for

 

man on tablet looking at pricing tables

Investment

Breaking the 20+ Year Model of Hidden Markups

Consultancy Fees: Project-based, transparent pricing

  • Stated separately from print costs—always visible on your invoice
  • Typical range: £250 - £2,000 depending on project scope
  • No hidden margins ever
  • You see exactly what verification work costs

Print Costs: Zero markup on supplier pricing

  • Supplier quote passed through to you with zero markup added
  • Any negotiated discounts passed to you (not absorbed by us)
  • Complete transparency—you know the real cost of sustainable printing
  • This is a radical departure from traditional Print Manager / Print Broker models that have hidden 15-40+% markups for over two decades

How exactly do you verify suppliers?

We don't accept claims—we check them:

FSC/PEFC certificates   
Verified against FSC database and PEFC registry (not just PDF review)

Renewable energy claims   

  • Print Management
    Renewable energy confirmed Yes or No
  • Procurement Review
    Claim verified Yes (substantiated with evidence) or No (unsubstantiated)

ISO certifications 
Current status confirmed with certification bodies

Waste Programme 
Active and verified. Every verification gets a confidence rating (High/Medium/Low/Unable to Verify) so you know exactly what's solid evidence vs. what needs follow-up.

What makes your data reportable for compliance?

Three things regulators need:

  • GHG Protocol methodology for emissions breakdown (documented calculations, not estimates)
  • Registry-verified certificates with confirmation numbers (not supplier PDFs)
  • Confidence levels stated for all data (we tell you what's verified vs. what's assumed) This combination satisfies CSRD, PPN 006, GPP evidence requirements.

Why separate consultancy fee instead of bundled pricing?

Because the traditional model has been fundamentally unfair for over 20 years.

Traditional Print Managers / Print Brokers hide 15-40+% margins inside bundled print prices. This makes it impossible to:

  • See what sustainable printing actually costs
  • Know what you're paying for verification work (if they're even doing it)
  • Compare true supplier pricing
  • Verify if "sustainable" genuinely costs more
  • Budget accurately for print procurement

This opacity serves the Print Manager / Print broker's interests, not yours.

Our transparent fee (typically €250-€2,000, often less than hidden margins) covers documented, real work:

  • Registry checks against FSC database, PEFC registry, ISO bodies
  • Certificate verification with confidence ratings
  • Carbon breakdown calculation using GHG Protocol
  • Methodology documentation for audit defense
  • Complete project management

You see exactly what verification costs. You see exactly what printing costs.
Two invoice lines. Total clarity.

This is a positive change that's two decades overdue. When we verify sustainability claims, we verify pricing claims too. Complete transparency or nothing.

It's time the Print Managers / Print brokers operated with the same transparency clients deserve.

Will this satisfy our compliance requirements?

Yes - we provide:

  • CSRD
    Verified Scope 3 baseline with lifecycle breakdown and confidence levels
  • PPN 006
    Documented emissions by stage with GHG Protocol methodology
  • GPP
    Complete evidence packages with registry-verified certificates
  • ESG/Audits
    Documented data with confidence ratings and audit-defensible methodology

Can you break down emissions further than the five stages?

The five-stage breakdown (substrate, consumables, production, distribution, end-of-life) provides the granularity required for regulatory compliance. Additional detail may be available depending on supplier data capabilities—we'll discuss specific needs in consultation and clearly state confidence levels for any additional breakdowns.

Why should I trust zero markup pricing when everyone else bundles costs?

Because opacity benefits Print Managers / Print brokers, not clients.

For over 20 years, Print Managers/Print brokers have operated on hidden markups bundled into invoices. This wasn't created to serve you—it was created to maximise  margins while keeping you in the dark about true costs.

We're changing this because:

  • You deserve to know what sustainable printing actually costs
  • Transparency builds trust better than bundled invoices ever could
  • Verification should be visible - if we're doing the work, you should see what it costs
  • Sustainable shouldn't be mysterious - hidden pricing perpetuates the myth that it costs more

Our business model is simple: We pass through print costs at zero markup. We charge a transparent consultancy fee for verification, data provision, and management. You see both line items on every invoice.

This is verifiable. This is ethical. This is how print procurement should work.

After two decades of bundled pricing hiding the truth, it's time for a positive change. We're not hiding behind industry norms—we're breaking them.

What reports and audits do you prepare businesses for?

We'll get you ready for: 

  • CSRD Scope 3 Category 1 reporting (ROI/EU) - detailed emission sources documented
  • PPN 006 Carbon Reduction Plans (UK/NI) - lifecycle breakdown provided
  • GPP tender responses (ROI) - complete environmental data package
  • Client ESG questionnaires - verified data with confidence levels
  • Internal sustainability tracking - granular emission data by stage