Book Manufacturers’ Institute Announces 2026 Rising Star Award Winners

The Book Manufacturers' Institute (BMI) is pleased to announce that Katelyn Pinch of Standard Finishing Systems and Zachary Larson of Bethany Press International have been honored with the prestigious 2026 Rising Star Award. The honor was established to recognize book industry professionals who may not be long-standing industry veterans, but are making a positive impact on their companies, in their communities, and in the industry. The award was first given in 2019.

This year’s Rising Star Awards were presented at the 2026 BMI Spring Management Conference in Portland, Oregon. BMI is proud to have Kodak serve as the Rising Star Lunch Sponsor, with Jon McFarland of Kodak presenting the awards. For the first time, BMI honored two recipients in a single year—one from an Active member company and one from an Associate member company.

 

Katelyn Pinch is the Partner Manager at Standard Finishing Systems. When she assumed full responsibility for the partner program in early 2025, she didn’t simply maintain the existing structure; she reimagined it. Facing real uncertainty when Standard lost exclusive sales rights to its second-largest product line, Katelyn transformed the challenge into an opportunity. She spearheaded new partner projects, strengthened the Horizon product line’s presence, and negotiated reseller agreements with new printer vendor partners, all within a single year.

She forged partnerships with EMT and Tecnau, companies that had previously been competitors, turning competitive relationships into collaborative ones. On the innovation front, Katelyn played a central role in developing strategies for robotics and end-of-line automation, personally visiting more than a dozen book printers across the United States and Canada in 2025 alone. The insights she gathered will be featured at Horizon’s Smart Factory event later this year.

Katelyn also elevated BMI’s visibility at major industry events, creating a dedicated program for BMI members to participate in Hunkeler Innovationdays in 2025 and building a similar initiative for Horizon Smart Factory in 2026. She earned her MBA while working full-time, is a recognized AI superuser at Standard, sits on the DSCOOP Partner Advisory Council, and is a key leader in Printers Under 40, organizing networking events for the next generation of printing professionals at venues including Printing United and Drupa.

Zachary Larson is the Chief Operating Officer at Bethany Press International. When Zac joined the company, he faced one of the most challenging situations a young professional can encounter: following in the footsteps of a colleague with nearly fifty years at the same organization. In just three and a half years, he has proven decisively that he belongs.

Zac mastered estimating, prepress, enterprise software, and Bethany’s full suite of information systems, and then pushed further. He brought new thinking to job planning and scheduling, and most recently introduced 3D printing to Bethany’s operations, using it to replace hard-to-source parts and design specifications for gears, shafts, and other critical components. When the company brought in a new HP inkjet press, Zac spent a week at HP’s campus in Oregon learning both the hardware and software in depth, because he knew that comprehensive knowledge would make the entire operation stronger.

Zac has become the go-to person across nearly every corner of Bethany’s operation, often staying late or coming in on weekends to ensure systems are running. Outside of work, he coaches his former high school’s ultimate frisbee team and serves as team captain, bringing the same servant’s spirit to his community that he brings to the plant every day.

Nominees were evaluated for their sustained excellent job performance; contributions to their company, community, and/or industry; continued training, education, and learning within the industry; and demonstration of exemplary customer service, community service, and/or industry service.