Nearly 500 Canon production inkjet customers, partners, and print industry experts came together for thINK Ahead 2024 in Boca Raton, Florida, from July 15-17.

Attendees networked, shared best practices, and enhanced their inkjet expertise during this landmark event. Post-event surveys rated thINK Ahead 2024 as one of the best in its 10-year history, with attendees describing it as "Excellent," "Energetic," "Engaging," "Top Notch," "Outstanding," and "Time Well Spent."

BOCA RATON, FL., July 31, 2024 – thINK, an independent community of Canon production inkjet customers, announced that nearly 500 Canon inkjet customers, partners and print industry experts came together for the 10th anniversary of the annual inkjet conference, thINK Ahead, to reconnect, share best practices, and enhance their inkjet expertise. thINK Ahead 2024, held July 15-17, 2024, at The Boca Raton in Boca Raton, Florida, is known as a premier event where Canon production inkjet customers come together for three days of inspiration, education, and networking.

Lori Messina, thINK Board President and President of Access Direct commented, “I didn’t have to read the surveys to know how thINK Ahead 2024 was received—being there in person and seeing the community at work, the natural networking and conversations, the delight when new attendees realize this isn’t a conference like any other they’ve ever known—that is the greatest reward.” 

The 10th annual thINK Ahead conference featured inspiring keynotes, in-depth educational sessions, networking opportunities, best practice sharing, partner pavilion sessions, Canon Customer Innovation Center tours and demos, health and wellness activities, entertaining evening events, and special 10th-anniversary celebrations. In addition, Canon hosted and mentored University Inkjet Program students and Print[ED] high school program representatives, and over $10,000 was raised for the Graphic Communications Scholarship Foundation (GCSF) to support future generations of print.

thINK Ahead educational sessions and photos can now be accessed by all Canon production inkjet customers on the thINK member website.

Whether it was their first year or tenth, or somewhere in between, thINK Ahead attendees reported thINK Ahead 2024 exceeded their expectations. 

Hear what attendees think of thINK Ahead 2024:

• “thINK has exceeded expectations once again. The content, partners, venue and people were all spectacular. I forged some new relationships, picked up a number of new ideas and thoughts for many parts of the business, and was delighted to see how open the thINK community is to share and openly discuss the most relevant and current topics. First class all the way.” Chris Dubach | Executive Vice President of Sales & Business Development | Phoenix Innovate
• “There is a definite advantage to being a Canon production inkjet customer—from the industry-leading inkjet technology to start with, to the annual thINK Ahead event, to all of the tools, training and resources available on the community website, thINKForum. We appreciate that after we invested in Canon, they in turn invest back in us to help HF Group be successful with inkjet.” Tim Malott | Business Development Manager | HF Group 
• “It was an exciting event that offered insightful information into where Canon is today, the capabilities of the presses, and what is coming down the pipeline. That partnered with the partners, and the content shared by the speakers during the breakout sessions, made it a very productive experience.” Sam Sewell | Senior Account Executive | NextPage
• “It was such a nice event all the way around. It reinforces our decision to buy the Canon varioPRINT iX.” Gina M. Danner | CEO | NextPage 
• “The networking opportunities at thINK Ahead are just fantastic. It is good to catch up with old friends and make some new ones. Hands down my favorite part was cabana nights—the social engagement and learning in such a fun way is great. The educational sessions are also a highlight, with content that is pertinent to my business.” Joshua Hirschorn  | VP of Finance & Administration  | More Vang
• “I’ve been in the print industry for only 10 months; as a first-time attendee, I was pleased to find everyone so kind and welcoming and thINK Ahead as a whole very interactive and engaging.” Peter Henderson | Interim Production Services/Digital Print Manager Printing & Imaging | Department of Enterprise Services, State of Washington 
• “I gained valuable insights from the sessions that will significantly benefit our business as we implement them. Engaging with new partners and learning from conversations with peers provided additional perspective on the challenges and opportunities in the industry. I’ll definitely be back next year for thINK Ahead 2024!” Trevor Hansen | Chief Revenue Officer | Thomas Printworks
• “VITS proudly attended thINK 2024 as a Platinum Partner to celebrate their 10th year. It was such a fantastic event and opportunity to develop relationships with the Canon and thINK teams and, of course, the Canon customers and prospects. We only wish that we had participated 10 years sooner … and are excited to announce that we have signed up for thINK 2025!!!”  Deirdre Ryder | President & CEO | VITS International 
• “thINK Ahead always brings high energy and passion that is rarely surpassed. The intentional innovative strategies are clearly a priority for Canon and the thINK team. The knowledge bank present there and the robust solutions available truly offers any organization the insights to grow competitive advantages within their organization. I walk away with greater curiosities for ways to integrate as much as I can within our own organization, and with so many new connections as resources, it’s nice to know that I am not in this alone.” Jay Kahn | Vice President of Operations | Rex 3 Printing
• “thINK Ahead 2024 has been incredible. It is always a success when you have learned something to improve your organization, and the networking opportunities were vast. Thanks for everything and I am looking forward to 2025!” Kandi O’Connor | Chief Operating Officer | Vya Systems
• “The first-hand look at the Canon Customer Innovation Center and hearing from those who know the solutions best was a great kick-off. It was the building blocks for the partner pavilion meetings and educational sessions. The community was welcoming—I found that when I arrived, I knew no one. However, I quickly networked with other prospects and current users and the knowledge sharing was easy. I appreciate the additional resources provided on the thINKForum website and I look forward to diving deeper in the coming days to help support my research into how inkjet is a natural progression for my parent organization.” Del Shankle | Director of Operations  | CHRISTUS Print Services
• “It was another great event this year, with interesting panel discussions and excellent networking.” Eric Kahn | Graphic Village | Executive Chairman
• “thINK Ahead is a fantastic way for people to come together to collaborate and build the future of the industry. We can’t be successful without each other; our combined efforts enable us to reach goals that would be unattainable alone.” Mike Herold | Executive Vice President Marketing & Sales | EMT 

thINK Ahead Post-Event Survey Responses:

• “This was my first thINK conference. I thought it was fantastic!”
• “A wonderful sense of community and camaraderie between all attendees.”
• “It was outstanding. The ability to see the press in action, ask pertinent questions and follow up. The networking and partner pavilion were highlights for me. The sessions were a bonus.”
• “Meaningful. Energizing.”
• “thINK is always such a refreshing experience. I learn so much, network with great people, and enjoy the content shared.”
• “Great experience overall. The breakout sessions were very interesting. The overall conference was more informative and enjoyable than I anticipated. Great job to the entire team.”
• “It was positive for networking and the CIC (Customer Innovation Center) was amazing to see.”
• “We loved it. The Boca Raton was beautiful. The General Sessions were outstanding.”
• “Excellent organization, fantastic location and keynotes, great breakout sessions….”
• “This was our first year at thINK Ahead and we were very impressed with the conference. It was one of the best conferences I have been to.”
• “Great experience overall. From the venue, the Canon team, demos, the sessions, food etc. All was wonderful.”
• “My experience overall was great from the registration to the content to the activities.”
• “Always great.”
• “Interesting. Energetic.”
• “Wonderful, look forward to next year!”
• “This is my favorite industry event because of the high level of content, the venue, and the really positive vibe from the thINK Board, the Canon people, and the attendees. It really exceeds my (very high) expectations every year. A truly outstanding event.”
• “Great venue, great program, great people.”
• “Well thought-out and engaging.”
• “Fabulous as ever!”
• “It has been a truly memorable and valuable experience. As a first-year attendee, to see the community behind inkjet was inspiring. Thank you.”
• “As a first-time attendee, I found it informative and enlightening because of the connections I made with peers and partners, as well as the seminars.”
• “Excellent! Great networking!”
• “Overall, worthwhile conference to attend and great community. Kudos to board members who volunteer.”
• “Encouraging. The ability to network through a conference setting with similar businesses has been missing from our organization processes.”
• “Eventful, new, inspiring, and enriching.”
• “Excellent organization, fantastic location and keynotes, great breakout sessions.” 
• “Outstanding. Without any hesitation, THE best user group out there in the print community. Kudos to the teams that pulled this together. From education to networking to motivation, OUTSTANDING!”

“On behalf of the thINK board, we want to thank each and every one of our partners for their support of this amazing community. The feedback we have received from thINK Ahead attendees is that there is tremendous value in bringing solution partners together in one place for informative conversations and learning,” Lori Messina said. “Also, a heartfelt ‘thank you’ to our Executive Sponsor, Canon, for their continued support.” 

Tonya Powers, Canon Sr. Marketing Director added, “Canon has been the Executive Sponsor of thINK since it formed almost a decade ago, and we are pleased to support the thINK Board in their endeavor to bring Canon production inkjet customers together to accelerate inkjet success.”

Mark your calendars! thINK Ahead 2025 will take place July 14-16, 2025, in Boca Raton, Florida at The Boca Raton.

About thINK 

thINK is an independent community of Canon inkjet customers, solution partners, and print industry experts, and Canon is a proud executive sponsor. Led by some of the most successful inkjet service providers in the country, it provides a forum for members to network, gain knowledge, discuss common challenges, and share best practices. For more information, visit thinkforum.com. 

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