Dave Leskusky Leaves Big Footprints After 31-Year Run

When Dave Leskusky interviewed for an editorial position at then-North American Publishing Co. (NAPCO Media) in 1995, few could have imagined it would ultimately lead to a distinguished 31-year career culminating in senior leadership positions that helped to advance and unite the entire printing industry on numerous fronts.

Although the University of Scranton (PA) communications major didn’t get hired as an editor, he did join the Philadelphia-based trade publisher’s inside sales department selling classified ads for Printing Impressions — a position that enabled him to demonstrate his natural sales, marketing, and communications skills.

Possessing a combination of people skills and a tenacity to succeed, Leskusky was promoted to outside sales and senior management positions, including publisher of Printing Impressions in 2002, group president/publisher, and culminating in 2013 with a nearly 13-year run as president of then family-owned NAPCO Media.

Dave Leskusky

In 2019, he was a key participant in NAPCO Media’s sale to SGIA. The subsequent combination of SGIA, NAPCO Media, Printing Industries of America, and Idealliance ultimately created what is today PRINTING United Alliance, a nonprofit that serves as the trusted resource and advocate for the entire printing industry.

Ford Bowers served as both the president and CEO at the time of the merger. Retaining the CEO title and naming Leskusky president was a statement of trust Bowers had in naming Leskusky second in command, as well as a recognition of his capabilities and institutional knowledge.

Leskusky’s ability to help align the combined organization with its strategic goals was critical to its success. “Dave did a really good job of understanding the totality of our organization,” Bowers says. “He displayed a unique blend of operational savvy, salesmanship, and relationship building. Dave’s skillsets helped us move very quickly to implement our plans.”

Leskusky, 54, plans to officially retire from the organization at the end of the year, but will remain with the Alliance in a consulting capacity through September 2027 to provide additional support, institutional knowledge, and continuity as needed.

Michael Marcian, chief commercial officer at ICS Corp., served as chairman of PRINTING United Alliance in 2024 and has known Leskusky for two decades. “Dave was a true visionary who always tried to help anyone in need,” Marcian points out. “He shared the vision to see what the combination of NAPCO and the PRINTING United Alliance could become — one united voice with one united agenda.”

Looking back, Leskusky reflects that the greatest gift of this career has been all the people he encountered along the way. “Whatever we accomplished, we accomplished together,” he notes in his typically modest fashion. “I’ve had the privilege of working alongside incredibly talented people who cared deeply about this organization and our amazing industry. The friendships, the shared challenges, and everything we built together are what I’ll carry with me forever.”

Building a Brand

Early on in his career, Leskusky focused tenaciously on elevating the stature of Printing Impressions within a highly competitive market that included such venerable brands as Graphic Arts Monthly and American Printer, among several other titles. “It was so competitive back then,” Leskusky, a former college wrestler, recalls. “We changed the editorial direction to focus on the voice of the printer and invested heavily to grow our circulation.”

His innovative spirit, team-building skills, and consultative selling skills played a key role in leading Reed Business Information to ultimately shutter Graphic Arts Monthly and Penton Media to disband American Printer due, in large part, to Printing Impressions’ dominant market share and industry prominence fostered under Leskusky’s leadership.

Dave Leskusky (second from left) stands with (from left) Brian Ludwick, former publisher at NAPCO Media; Ray Monaco, former co-president of Printing Impressions; and Bill Curran, former director of marketing strategy at NAPCO Media.

“I always looked at Dave as being selfless, a visionary, and deeply committed to the success of all organizations within our industry," points out Francis A. McMahon, the current president and CMO of Tecnau America who spent many years growing the digital production printing businesses at Canon, HP, and Kodak. “Dave made sure all vendors were well-prepared to market and sell our products. And he was fair; he tried to help everyone.”

Similarly, Holly Hokrein-O’Rourke got to know Leskusky personally in her role as worldwide director of corporate communications at EFI. “After 20 years of knowing Dave, I have tremendous respect for all that he has accomplished and contributed to our industry. All of his friends at EFI wish him every happiness in his retirement.”

Over the years Leskusky also played a key role in NAPCO Media’s evolution from a traditional trade magazine publisher into becoming a successful live events business, including the long-running annual Inkjet Summit. Consultant Marco Boer got to know Leskusky in Boer’s role as chair of the conference for the past several years. “Dave has always displayed service above self and is incredibly resilient and thoughtful. But his greatest contribution was to give our industry a voice,” Boer says.

James Martin, president of the PRINTING United Alliance Foundation, had the unique perspective of interacting with Leskusky as both a customer and, later, as a co-worker. Martin served at Heidelberg USA for 21 years in various senior sales/marketing roles and interacted regularly after Leskusky took over the Heidelberg account in 1999. They collaborated to develop several innovative and out-of-the-box marketing campaigns, including Heidelberg launching an entire printed magazine to promote its product line.

“Dave was a sales rep who, over time, became a very good friend,” Martin points out. “He is an astute businessman and leader — both financially and from a human perspective. At the same time, Dave is very compassionate about other people.”

(From left) Marco Boer, president of IT Strategies; Dave Leskusky; and Dave Pesko, EVP of business development, hosted events and research, jump for the camera at the annual Inkjet Summit.

Tim Andrews, the former CEO of the Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI), also got to know Leskusky on a more personal level when ASI acquired Print & Promo Marketing and its related hosted buyer events from the Alliance in 2024. The agreement included a long-term strategic partnership to help providers of printing, promotional products, and apparel decorating to expand their businesses and grow the industry collectively.

Andrews found Leskusky to be a strategic thinker and tactically intelligent when they met for lunch in the fall of 2023 to discuss how their organizations could partner. They connected well and found themselves to be in alignment about the convergence that’s happening within the printing and promo markets.

“A former boss once advised me to never go out to lunch with a person who you wouldn’t want to go out and have a drink with,” Andrews jokes. “Successful business relationships are really about people deciding that they can work well with one another.” The solid connection between Andrews and Leskusky played a pivotal role in bringing the partnership between ASI and the Alliance to fruition in 2024.

Family, Perspective, and What Comes Next

As meaningful as his career has been, Leskusky is quick to acknowledge that the most important part of his life has always been his family. That perspective took on even deeper meaning in February 2024, when Leskusky and his wife, Melissa, endured the unimaginable loss of their 15-year-old son, Dylan, who died in a skiing accident while on a high school trip to Canada.

The experience profoundly reshaped his perspective and reinforced what mattered most.

“It brought focus to what’s really most important in life,” Leskusky reflects. “My first job has always been being a dad and a husband, and I’ve taken that role very seriously. But I also know that I was able to pursue my career the way I did because Melissa was always there for me and for our family, especially during the long hours and all the time I spent on the road. She’s an amazing mom, wife and partner, and I can’t thank her enough for everything she’s done for our family and for me. I’m looking forward to this next chapter together — and finally taking some of those trips we’ve spent so many years dreaming about.”

As he prepares for retirement, much of his attention will turn to Melissa and to their eldest son, Colin, who recently graduated from Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology and is beginning his career as an electrician. In time, Leskusky hopes to help Colin pursue his goal of building a business of his own.

That next chapter reflects many of the same values that defined Leskusky’s career: family, relationships, helping others succeed, and investing in the people around him.

He closes this 31-year chapter with tremendous gratitude for the opportunities he was given, for an industry that became such an important part of his life, and especially for the people he was fortunate to meet along the way.

“The teammates, partners, members, and friends who shared the journey are what I will remember most, what I am most grateful for, and what I will miss most,” he says.

While Leskusky may be stepping away from the day-to-day work of the industry, the relationships he built, the people he helped develop, and the organizations and initiatives he helped shape, will remain an enduring part of his legacy.