Sowa Druk

Sowa Druk (Drukarnia Sowa) is a digital book printer that prints books, magazines, manuals and brochures in runs from a single copy, and runs a print-on-demand service for publishers and self-publishing authors. Its homepage calls it "najstarsza polska cyfrowa drukarnia dziełowa" (the oldest Polish digital book printer) and says it has been "Pierwsza drukarnia cyfrowa w Polsce od 1996 roku" (the first digital printing house in Poland since 1996) and was first to introduce print on demand. The POD offer covers printing, shipping, order handling and settlements, with books listed automatically on major Polish retail sites and shipped to every EU country.

What a seller actually gets

The POD page describes print on demand as a complete publishing solution: "My zajmiemy się wszystkim - zarządzaniem zleceniami, drukowaniem, wysyłką i - co najważniejsze – możemy zająć się również rozliczeniami." (We take care of everything: order management, printing, shipping and, most importantly, we can also handle settlements.) The publisher or author keeps two jobs, which the blog names as promoting the book and collecting orders.

Sowa offers two models, and the difference is batch size, formats and finishing.

POD (standard) prints "od 1 do 250 egzemplarzy jednorazowo (nawet codziennie)" (from 1 to 250 copies at a time, even daily). The blog says it comes in standard print formats with a gloss laminate finish, and calls it the economical choice for projects where the one-off printing cost is what matters. Print time for this model is set individually.

POD+ is described on the homepage as a new service that lets publishers give up their book warehouse. It prints batches of 250 to 1,500 copies at a time, on the condition that the whole run is not smaller than 1,000 and not larger than 10,000 copies. POD+ opens all print sizes and all finishes: lamination, selective UV varnish and hot stamping. The blog gives production times for it: a batch of glued softcover books takes 5 working days and a batch of hardcover books 10 working days. In POD+, Sowa also takes over warehousing.

Both models print books "od 36 do 980 stron" (from 36 to 980 pages) on any paper grade the printer stocks. The POD page lists the cover options: plain covers or covers with flaps, and optional finishing with matte or gloss lamination, selective UV varnish, or gold or silver hot stamping. The page says POD books "jakością i wyglądem niczym nie różnią się od książek wysokonakładowych" (do not differ in quality or appearance from high-run books).

The sales side is what makes this more than a printing contract. The POD page says that with its service "Twoje drukowane książki mogą być dostępne automatycznie m.in. w Empik.com, Allegro.pl, sieciach sprzedaży hurtowej Liber S.A., Wit-mir oraz w dziesiątkach innych hurtowni, sklepów i księgarni" (your printed books can be automatically available on Empik.com, Allegro.pl, the Liber S.A. and Wit-mir wholesale networks, and in dozens of other wholesalers, shops and bookstores). Orders to businesses and individual customers are fulfilled daily, and shipping goes "do wszystkich krajów UE" (to all EU countries). The blog adds that delivery uses established courier firms and that, on the customer's behalf, the sender's address is left off the parcel, so a book an author sells ships without Sowa's name as sender.

For authors who sell from their own online shop, the blog is explicit that Sowa handles reprints, order intake and shipping on the author's behalf. The homepage adds that the company works with most Polish book distributors and offers to run the customer's warehouse and online shop ("Poprowadzimy Twój magazyn i sklep internetowy"), and that its order and print system can automate reprints.

Production and equipment

Outside POD, the homepage says Sowa prints books, magazines, instruction manuals and brochures "w nakładach od 1 do 3000 egzemplarzy" (in runs from 1 to 3,000 copies) at what it calls very competitive prices. Bindings are glued softcover, sewn, hardcover, saddle-stitched and spiral.

Two machines are named. The Xerox Iridesse adds extra colors, which the homepage lists as gold, silver, white and clear. The Xerox Trivor roll-fed press is described as "Pierwsza instalacja maszyny rolowej Xerox Trivor w Europie Środkowej" (the first installation of the Xerox Trivor roll press in Central Europe). The company says it keeps investing in its press and bindery and "obecnie posiadamy jeden z najnowocześniejszych parków maszyn w Polsce" (currently has one of the most modern machine parks in Poland).

On speed, the homepage states current turnaround for its general printing: softcover "do 7 dni roboczych" (up to 7 working days) and hardcover "do 20 dni roboczych" (up to 20 working days).

Key facts from the company

The homepage says Sowa has held ISO certification "od wielu lat" (for many years) and serves publishers from Poland and most European countries; it does not name the standard. The footer states "Jesteśmy członkiem Polskiej Izby Książki" (we are a member of the Polish Book Chamber). The site also mentions "Już od 25 lat" (for 25 years already) as its time focused on modern, fast, quality printing.

The blog sets out who each model is for. Standard POD suits authors "którzy stawiają pierwsze kroki na rynku i nie są pewni sprzedaży swoich tytułów" (taking their first steps on the market and unsure how their titles will sell), small publishers in smaller markets or niches, and authors of older titles that no longer sell as well. POD+ suits a title whose audience is known, for example through pre-orders, so a run can be estimated. The blog's summary line is "najpierw sprzedajesz, potem drukujesz" (first you sell, then you print).

Pricing works by request. The POD page says the price calculator for a single POD copy is very simple and that a price list is sent by email to anyone interested. The contact for the POD system is pswiatek@sowadruk.pl; the general office is sekretariat@sowadruk.pl, phone +48(22) 431 81 40. The site runs in Polish, English and German, and the menu includes file preparation guides, templates, paper information and the option to book a visit to the printing house.

Who it suits and who it does not

Sowa Druk suits a publisher or author selling books to Polish and EU readers who wants printing, order handling, marketplace listings and settlements from one company: a first-time author testing a title, a small niche publisher, or a publisher keeping backlist titles alive without stock. A publisher with a title that sells in the thousands can move to POD+ and drop its warehouse. Sellers running their own online bookshop get unbranded shipping from the printer.

It suits less a seller outside the book trade, since the range is books, magazines, manuals and brochures, not apparel or merchandise. The retail channels it names are Polish, so an author aiming mainly at bookstores in other countries will find the distribution side less relevant, though shipping reaches the whole EU.