Extreme Sports Cards (Exunivers.com) scored a successful niche for itself by producing low volumes of high-quality hockey cards for kids. By leveraging Business Flow Automation the company is able to process numerous low-volume orders. In a few years, the company has grown to $500,000 and now aims to reach $2 million in the next few years by using Press-sense iWay.

Martin Richard launched the company in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada, in 2003 and began creating trading cards for the major junior hockey teams in the country. On its Xerox DocuColor 250, the company prints professional cards for about 35 major junior teams in runs between 2,000 to 15,000 cards. In 2005, in order to expand both its reach and capacity, the printer purchased Press-sense iWay. Extreme is now able to automatically produce high-quality professional-looking cards for kids in short runs.

When Richard was deciding on which online workflow system to investigate he had but one criterion. He needed a complete solution that would automate his production yet didn’t require unique configuring. Richard chose Press-sense iWay.

The iWay system allows Extreme Cards to create templates for its customers, and all the information in the template can be made variable. Photographers select a template for the frame of the card, and then they choose the color that matches their team’s. Next, they upload the team logo, and the child’s picture, as well as any personal information. Typically they’re creating a pack of about 20 cards for $6.00, but Extreme allows them to buy as few as 12.

The Press-sense iWay system is engineered to automate the entire workflow, including job ordering, creating customized files, imposing files, printing, and developing invoices. “Because everything is automated, we’re able to be very effective with very few employees,” says Richard, explaining that the company employs only three to four staffers. “If you’re producing a product that is $6.00 quantities are critical. And large quantities require everything to be automated, from ordering to the finished product. If you do many $6.00 orders, entering everything manually on the invoices would take forever and be far too costly.”

Now, with iWay, typical geographical barriers are practically eliminated. For Extreme, this means photographers can order cards online from just about anywhere. “Being web based has allowed us to have a wider range of clients,” says Richard. “Instead of being local, there’s no limit to our reach. We have customers that range from eastern Canada, as far west as Saskatchewan, and even in the U.S. We even have a photographer in England because they don’t have sports cards over there. It’s not a big issue to ship them anywhere.”

Getting started, however, does involve a learning curve, says Richard. Integrating the software and creating templates took several months. Clients also needed to be taught how to log on and use the web-based software. “It’s a big investment in time,” states Richard, “but once it’s done, it’s well worth it.”

With all production in-house, the company can now quickly and efficiently produce quality cards for all levels of athletes. Each card is printed with a four-color process on two sides of a 14 to 16 point coated stock and finished with UV varnish. Typically, an order is now shipped within five days of an order. With business flow automation in place, the production facility is now poised for future growth.