Dear guests:

We are now at the point where I deliver my annual message to shareholders.

This year I have decided to talk to you about adversity, resilience and longevity, because these three words truly describe fiscal 2009 and lie at the heart of my great confidence in the future of Transcontinental.

ADVERSITY

It is in adversity that companies, like people, show their true capacities. I won't try to hide it from you: this past year was a huge challenge for us, as it was for every other business in North America. And it is in the light of that reality that our performance should be judged. We achieved two things that specifically show our ability to recover and are encouraging for the future:

• First, we did much better than most of our competitors, both in terms of revenues and earnings;
• Second, our profitability has been growing steadily and in the past two quarters we have outperformed our 2008 results.

Another promising indicator for the future is that we have continued to invest in the development of new products and services, and new technologies. This has been possible because of the disciplined approach to finance that has always characterized Transcontinental, recession or not.

I would like thank François Olivier and his management team, who took quick, appropriate and courageous action to deal with the recession. I would also like to thank our people all across the Corporation for their commitment to Transcontinental. Once again, we have proven that it our people who make the difference!

RESILIENCE

An economic crisis like the one we went through last year is also a test of resilience. It tests the ability of a business to live in and through change. It is not the first time Transcontinental has been through this test.

Since 1976, we have weathered three recessions, a revolution in technology, the expansion of the Internet and new communication platforms, and intense consolidation (which is still underway) in the North American printing and publishing industries.

In other words, we have “"been there, done that" and the lessons we learned have now been incorporated into our business genes.  

But still, we must acknowledge that the economy is being radically altered and that the recession has speeded up structural changes. It is much more than a simple evolution; we are seeing a profound transformation in the way we communicate.

Given all this, how can we ensure the continued success of Transcontinental?

LONGEVITY

I've often talked to you about longevity at this meeting. My vision has always been to offer our employees, customers and shareholders a long-term and mutually beneficial association. That is why I am attached to the family nature of Transcontinental. It is, to me, an additional assurance of our success over the long term.

Transcontinental's long-term success will be assured by both continuity and a complete transformation. We have already come a long way along this path.

For example, our mission remains the same, which is to help our customers identify, reach and keep their target consumers. That's our reason for being in business. The same goes for our business model, which is based on being close to our customers and anticipating their needs, as well as for our values and culture of continuous improvement. This approach has always been profitable for us and for our customers.

All the rest is changing, because the communication channels are changing.

It all starts with consumers. How do they get their information? What do they do in their free time? How do they make their purchases? What are their concerns? Today, consumers want products and services that are tailored to their needs and interests, on demand, on the media of their choice.

Going forward, our growth will be based on our ability to offer our customers, whether they are businesses, advertisers or readers, new services built on one-to-one marketing and new digital communication channels. In this way we will continue to create value for them and for ourselves.

This is the foundation of our shift to a more consumer-centric model over the past few years.

Personalization and digitization are two sides of a fast-growing phenomenon: one-to-one marketing and interactivity. We are already a leader in Canada with an integrated service offering that we continued to develop in 2009. As I speak, more than 1,000 people, primarily young adults, are working in these new services at Transcontinental.

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In addition to the new consumer expectations, there is a special challenge for us as printers, which is the overcapacity in the North American printing industry. The industry is undergoing an intense period of change and consolidation, as indicated by the recent mergers of major players. Once again, this process has been accelerated by the recession.

Personally, I expect to see a low rate of growth in our industry over the next few years. But Transcontinental is in a good position to get the most out of the growth there is, for several reasons:

• We lead in each of our segments in Canada.
• We have one of the most modern technology platforms on the continent.
• We have the ability to execute and a proven culture of manufacturing efficiency.
• We have the financial strength to take advantage of the business opportunities that will arise.
• We have customers with whom we have slowly built business credibility, over years of working together.

Lastly, we have an increasingly crucial advantage in today's economy: the mix and complementarity provided by our one-stop shop. Our printing products and services are put together with those of the Media and Marketing Communications sectors to form a total package. That has always worked to our advantage.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

And now a word on a subject that is very important to me: sustainable development. In the final analysis, the longevity of Transcontinental relies upon the longevity of the planet and its resources.

This year I am particularly proud of our first Sustainability Report. It was prepared using the Global Reporting Initiative standard, a highly respected international standard that sets out the methodology for this type of report. We will be giving you a copy of the report when you leave this meeting. It is also posted on our website.

I invite you to read it to see our main achievements in 2009. For the moment I will simply mention the perseverance of our chief executive officer, who has made sustainable development a personal priority.

CONCLUSION

To conclude, I will leave you with a very simple message.

The world is changing and evolving every day. This has become even more true since the recent recession. Transcontinental was born out of change and continues to make change its life blood, helped by its culture of innovation and continuous improvement. We will continue to evolve in pace with our customers to meet the new needs and new expectations of consumers. I view the future with great confidence.

In closing, I would like to thank the members of the Board of Directors for their contribution to the advancement of Transcontinental. I wish to particularly mention the special contribution of J.V. Raymond Cyr, who has decided to leave the Board after 12 years of invaluable service. I also welcome Pierre Fitzgibbon, who joined the Board in October 2009.

As well, I thank our customers and shareholders for their loyalty, and our employees for their dedication under difficult conditions.

I will now turn everything over to our president and Chief Executive Officer, François Olivier.