中文Loyalty is rare in this business
In an industry where equipment buyers are famously fickle — always eyeing the next bright press at the next trade show — a customer who comes back for a third time is worth more than any sales brochure. That is exactly what happened at NY Label & Box Works, a New York converter that has just invested in its third Edale press, the LabelLine FL4p.
The deal is notable for two reasons. First, it is Edale’s first machine sale through Canon USA, a milestone in the UK manufacturer’s push into the American label and packaging market. Second, it shows how a long-standing relationship, plus a new distribution route, can turn into real commercial proof.
How the deal came together
Edale, a Canon company and a UK-based maker of flexographic printing and converting equipment, demonstrated the FL4p live on the Canon stand at Loupe Americas 2026 in Chicago, held from September 15 to 17. For Edale, that show became the springboard for a sale. For Canon USA, it was a chance to show that its label and packaging portfolio is more than just Canon-branded kit — it can bring specialist flexographic expertise to local customers too.
Steve Haedrich, CEO of NY Label & Box Works, put it plainly: the company already knew Edale and had run its presses in production, which gave them the confidence to invest again. The FL4p, he said, is designed to make short-run flexographic label production more efficient, using automation to shorten job changeovers and cut material waste. Its modular design also lets converters adapt as requirements change.
Why short-run flexo still wins
Here is the quiet logic behind the purchase. Everyone talks about digital printing eating the label world, but short-run flexography is far from dead. When a job is repeatable and the volumes justify it, a well-automated flexo press still beats digital on cost per label. The trick is making changeovers fast and waste low — exactly what modern flexo automation promises.
Haedrich also flagged something easy to overlook: Canon USA’s local presence mattered. “Having that local relationship and support around the technology gives us further confidence in the investment,” he said. For a US converter, knowing a technician is a phone call away, not an ocean away, is a genuine risk reducer.
A milestone for Edale
Rob Brown, Edale’s sales and marketing director, called the sale “an important commercial milestone,” especially because it came from a customer buying its third Edale press. “That repeat investment gives us a strong proof point from a customer that already knows how Edale equipment performs in production,” he said. In a market where vendors love to tout first-time installs, a third-time buyer is the better advertisement.
Edale is now working with Canon USA to give American converters access to flexographic production technology backed by local support. The pitch is straightforward: combine Edale’s specialist flexo know-how with Canon’s commercial reach and customer service in the US.
The bigger picture
For printers weighing their next press, the story is a reminder that the “digital vs flexo” debate is a false choice. The smart shops run both, matching each job to the right engine. A converter that already has two Edale presses and adds a third is not rejecting digital — it is doubling down on the work it does best.
NY Label & Box Works just told the market, in the most convincing way possible, that it knows its lane. And Edale, through Canon USA, just proved it can win in America.
Source: Labels & Labeling
