Workforce transition, AI adoption, and evolving packaging regulations are interconnected trends reshaping the print and packaging industry. Meeting these challenges will take more than individual effort. It will take industry-wide collaboration to drive growth and sustainable success. That was a central takeaway from X-Rite Pantone’s first Color Council, held in September this year, in Rosemont, Illinois. The event brought together more than 40 senior leaders from print service providers, packaging converters, brands, and ink and equipment suppliers to share perspectives on print and packaging industry trends, discuss today’s operational pressures, and identify practical actions.
“We created Color Council to hear directly from the people navigating these pressures every day,” said Jeff McKee, President, X-Rite Pantone. “The answers to staffing, AI, and regulation won’t come from any one company. They’ll come from the industry working through them together.” Keynotes were delivered by independent industry experts Ron Ellis of Ron Ellis Consulting, Amy Servi-Bonner of PRINTING AI, Robb Frimming of Robb Frimming Consulting, and David Zwang of Zwang & Company. Warren Werbitt, The Print Whisperer, kicked off the event with a call for the industry to speak with one voice: “We don’t all have to be in the same boat, but we need to row in the same direction.” Each session included a short keynote with a peer panel and open group discussion, giving attendees most of the time to compare experiences and challenge assumptions. Color Council is a peer-led forum focused on candid industry discussions about the forces reshaping the print industry. The annual event will return in 2027, with dates and location to be announced early next year. For more information, visit: https://go.xrite.com/color-council-2026-agenda