Pado Co., Ltd. is a company that provides information paper "Pado", which boasts the world's largest circulation of free paper. The people, streets, and spirit magazine "Pado" was launched in Yokohama in October 1987 by the current President and CEO, Yasushi Kurahashi, in the wake of the encounter with free paper in the United States.
With a franchise system steadily expanding nationwide, in 2001, we achieved the No. 1 free paper circulation of 10 million copies, and were recognized as a Guinness Book of World Records. As of March 2005, the number of circulations from Sendai in the north to Hiroshima in the south has exceeded 12 million in 214 areas nationwide, and we are steadily expanding the area and circulation.
The home version of PADO, which continues to grow as a medium for individuals and companies to easily transmit information, is packed with information rooted in the community, such as local shops and individual Advertisement. In addition, we publish "Lara Pado" targeted at office ladies and "Pado Town Magazine" that introduces various information about the city. In addition to paper media, we established the internet virtual town “Pado Town” in 2001, and we are proceeding with media mix with electronic media. We aim to publish 20 million copies as a “Magazine that connects people to people, people to the city through information and energizes people and the city = people, city, and spirit magazine”, and actively disseminates information closely related to the region doing.
I felt that this is a great program
The first opportunity was introduced by a sales representative of Fontworks (FW). I have been purchasing and using Packaging for a long time, but I heard that a program called "LETS" will start about 3 months before the start of LETS. At that time, there were about 90 Macs in the company, but as the OS and DTP App were upgraded, OCF fonts became unusable... When I was in trouble about what to do, I just talked about LETS. Fonts are quite expensive, so I felt that this is a great program. (Mr. Inoue)
I used to use FW typeface. I studied various other typefaces on the way, but I used to use Rodin as the base typeface for our company, so I ended up returning. After all, the FW typeface is easy to use. (Mr. Iizumi)
Originally, we made a copy by typesetting and introduced DTP from '96, but at the beginning what was a shock, I had no idea that there was such a decent typeface. After all, I was used to the typefaces of Shaken and Morisawa, so when I started DTP, it happened that I couldn't use the typeset letters. I don't think even amateurs and readers usually understand it, but we still have a particular focus on typefaces. In such circumstances, the FW typefaces Rodin and Matisse have the impression that they are quite similar to the typesetting typefaces that I have been using. (Mr. Inoue)
Everyone can freely use their favorite typeface
I think the decisive factor for the introduction is the cost performance of only the annual membership fee. I think it's a great deal to be able to use all this typeface. You can continue to use FW typefaces, especially the typefaces commonly used by staff around Rodin and Matisse. I think most staff decide their favorite typeface or the typeface they use frequently, but when it changes, it is sometimes impossible to express what you want to express. Currently, there are about 90 production staff in total, but I feel that it was a correct answer to introduce LETS in the part that all these staff can freely use their favorite typefaces and their range of expression expands. I will. (Mr. Iizumi)
And it's easier to manage. In our company, the designer basically concentrates on the work, and the setup and management are done in a separate department, but since the number is large, it seems that it became very easy from the management side. (Mr. Inoue)
Smooth introduction to printing companies and subcontractors by introducing LETS
The typesetting software has been switched to Adobe InDesign since last October issue. Free Advertisement called general frames use CID fonts on the Macintosh, and conversely, format Advertisement that automatically insert letters and systematically produce are produced using OpenType fonts on Windows. I am. We use two types of formats, but after our company introduced LETS, we asked the printing company to also install LETS, so everything from production to printing went smoothly without any problems. Also, when we cannot do things at a printing company or an in-house company, we place an order with an outsourced design company, but when the environment of our company changes, the problem with fonts still remains. So, when we actually introduce LETS to outsourced production, etc., we don't have to pay so much for the money, so we are happy to introduce it. In the past, even if you asked for a typeface, one typeface cost tens of thousands of yen, so it was not easy to buy. In that sense, I think that LETS is a very large motivation for purchasing because it can use this many fonts on an annual basis. (Mr. Inoue)
FW typeface adopted from the beginning of DTP
In the first place, the start of DTP conversion was first introduced in 1995, when a few test machines were first introduced on a trial basis, and after a certain amount of shape and foundation were created, it became a full-scale DTP in 1996. Rodin and Matisse have been adopted since the beginning of DTP. The reason I chose it is that I'm used to typesetting letters, so I think it's the closest to that. This is especially true for Gothic, but I couldn't quite understand the subtle lines like “splash” and “harai” with other companies' typefaces. It's a very detailed story, but I felt that FW was carefully designed in such a part. (Mr. Inoue)
Sticking to typography and writing
It doesn't look beautiful if the "padding" between characters is sweet, but there is a function that can automatically fill characters without flowing them, or a function that allows punctuation marks and dakuten to be flowed beautifully. , It would be nice if there were a plugin for FW typeface or a function like kerning software. We hope that you will be able to create beautiful typefaces without using the functions on the App. (Mr. Inoue)
Of course, people with analog experience are visual, but I think they have a strong focus on handling characters such as the space between characters. The new staff members who come in recently tend to end up leaving the characters alone because they have almost no digital skills or knowledge. The feeling around that has already changed, so conversely, if such an adjustment function is automatic, the individual feeling cannot be improved, but the quality as a presentation may be improved. (Mr. Iizumi)
As long as I'm a professional designer, I would like to have that kind of commitment every day. I wonder if the most basic part of them is character packing, and I'm saying that the character packing is sour. (Mr. Inoue)
Looking at our staff, we tend to focus less on typography itself. On the contrary, I always think that I want to be more aware of that area. (Mr. Iizumi)
Expectation for the development of the perfect beautiful Mincho and Gothic styles
There are many different typeface designs released here and there, but there aren't many that you really want to use. Regarding the basic Gothic and Mincho, I would like you to develop a simple and easy-to-read design and a typeface that feels perfect and beautiful like never before. (Mr. Inoue)
Tsukushi Mincho R, RB, M, etc. were released at the end of last year, but I would like to see Tsukushi Gothic released soon. The more typefaces there are, the wider the range of choices for your own typeface. Also, the ease of using the typeface is important. The CID kana typeface contains only kana characters, so it must be mixed and replaced. Just by eliminating such troubles, speeding up work and stress during work will be considerably different. Unlike the CID, the LETS OpenType Kana typeface is a full set including Kanji, so it is very easy to use. (Mr. Iizumi)
Without LETS ... it's scary to think
In the past, if something happened, such as changing the printer font, I sent dozens of faxes to the FW Support for maintenance. It's easy now because that kind of trouble has disappeared. It is still difficult to replace the typefaces of other companies. You can also buy a typeface for OS X at a cost ... In that sense, I'm scared to think what would happen without LETS. Our production environment is still OS 9, and the power of LETS can be fully used again when it comes to the next step, OS X, and in that sense, it has great potential. (Mr. Inoue)
＜ Editor's note ＞
"Pado" boasts the world's largest circulation of free paper. It is a great honor to have so many Fontworks typefaces on the page. Even with a tight schedule, by introducing LETS, we are working with printing companies and business partners to achieve a smooth and safe production environment. We will continue to develop even more attractive typefaces so that the "Pado" page can be displayed more beautifully, lively, and effectively.
Company Info
| Company name | Pado Co., Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Head office location | Yokohama Salt Industry Building 3-8 Sakuragicho, Naka-ku, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture |
| TEL | 045-212-8150（大代表） |
| URL | http://www.pado.co.jp/ http://www.padotown.net/ (Pado Town) |
| Establishment | August 1987 |
| First issue | October 1, 1987 |
| number of employees | 194 (as of March 31, 2004) |
| Business description | 1. Issuance and distribution of "Information Paper Pad" 2. Issuance and distribution of "information paper pads" by a franchise system 3. Distribution business of direct mail, leaflets, etc. 4. Providing various local information 5. Internet / mobile related business 6.Planning, production, operation and agency of advertisements / Advertisement / events |
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