Small, local printing services now provide a design and printing service that would previously have been undertaken by larger centralized printers.
The success of the small printer has been further encouraged by the proliferation of small business users of printed material requiring small print runs and a rapid turnaround of work.
The tendency for large companies to out source functions such as cleaning and catering in order to concentrate on their core business has also given new opportunities to the small business sector.
Many catering businesses, for example, have been started when a company's catering staff bought out the operations of their former employer, and now provide their services on a subcontract basis.