Second class citizen

摘要

The old Chinese proverb, "may you live in interesting times," came true for the paper industry in February. No fewer than five major mergers were announced, all in the space of a week and a half: Stora Enso/ Consolidated; Abitibi-Consolidated/ Donohue; IP/Shorewood; UPM Kymmene/Champion International; and Smurfit-Stone Container/St. Laurent. All of those acquirers were themselves products of recent mergers and acquisitions, continuing the parade of hyphenated companies through the paper industry. This latest rash of mergers proves again one of the truisms about the paper industry. That is, the paper industry is very slow to catch on to trends, but when they do, look out. Whether it's ISO 9000, total quality management, recycling or consolidation, most paper companies wait until one or two companies have made the first move and then stampede to get on board the bandwagon.