Budding entrepreneurs looking for ideas for start-ups and profitable add-ons to existing businesses should attend the Africa Print and Sign Africa expo, which are co-located with FESPA Africa and Africa LED. The event, taking place from 7-9 September at Gallagher Convention Centre, is also a good networking opportunity to get advice from industry experts on the digital printing, signage and graphics, and wide format market. Business opportunities include: 3D Printing 3D printing is gaining momentum as printers investigate how they can profit from this exciting technology. Leading brands will exhibit 3D printing machines as well as various products printed by these machines. David Bullock, Director of Rapid 3D, said, ‘Some of the many applications possible with 3D printing include: jewellery, metal, ceramics, hearing aids, applications in the dental industry, medicine, architecture, fully functional prototyping and much more. ‘Any industry you can think of has some or other application for a 3D printing technology. 3D printing’s major strength is that it can handle very complex objects. That’s where the technology really comes to thefore.’ Digital Packaging ‘Digital printing makes packaging resonant, impactful and helps build brands,’ said Silas Amos, Creative Director for jkr UK, who has has over 25 years’ experience as a designer and strategic partner for global FMCG companies. He added that brands value being unique, because those that stand out get noticed, and digital printing offers customers unique products with unique packaging. With digital, packaging can also be very specific and localised, for example, instead of targeting products at an entire country, digital printing allows you to produce smaller runs so you can target a town, or province with specific packaging. He added that the speed of digital printing gives brands the opportunity to be topical and produce ‘real-time’ packaging where the take advantage of trends.
The Africa Print expo and will feature packaging and digital printing solutions from leading brands. It will also provide a range of educational touch-points that are designed to invigorate print solution providers, giving them free access to a variety of topics and deliver insight on the latest technologies, trends and business opportunities. T Shirt and Textile Printing Printers in Africa are increasingly seeing textile printing as a new revenue stream. The advancements in ink and machine technology and wider availability of reliable printers has made this area a very attractive business opportunity.
‘The industry is driven by small entrepreneurs,’ said Vernon Mellors, Business Account Manager, Epson SA. ‘The dye sublimation transfer process is a lot cheaper and a small business can get started for under R15K doing things like T Shirts, mugs, plates, etc.’ Of course, T Shirts are not the only garment that can be printed on. Other applications include overalls, shopping bags, promotional, corporate and safety wear as well as wood, vinyl, paper, plastics, metals, etc. The home decor industry has also seen growth in digital printing, with things such as pillows, curtains, wallpaper and other fabrics being printed on.
Hall one at the FESPA Africa and Sign Africa expo has a dedicated section to garment printing, with exhibitors showcasing inks, screen printing equipment, garment decorating equipment, heat presses, cap presses, digital printers, consumables and more. Experienced staff will be on the stands to give demonstrations and guide visitors through the garment printing process.
Mugs and Promotional Gift
The heat presses, sublimation printers, crystal and glass decorating systems, inks consumables, sandblasting systems and more equipment that will be exhibited at the even will enable visitors to enter into the Signage and Novelty and Corporate gifting market. Sublimation systems allow you to print on T Shirts, caps, ceramic plates and tiles, mugs, mouse pads, paper memo cubes, jigsaw puzzles, lettering, kit bags, jeans, takkies, belts, sweatbands, plaques, mirrors, coated metals and other miscellaneous fabrics and material.
Vehicle Wrapping Vehicle wrapping is a popular medium to ‘drive’ brand awareness, and with the great volume of cars on the road and high congestion rates, it can be a very effective marketing tool for commercial vehicles. Vehicle wrapping’s return on investment is high. Richard Wood, National Retail Solution Manager at transit media specialist Graffiti, says that the main reason for the high demand for vehicle branding is how cost effective vehicle advertising can be for brands. ‘The channel means that a business can use its assets as mobile billboards, which eliminates the monthly media fees associated with other out-of-home platforms. ‘Another cost-effective benefit of graphic installations is that it increases a vehicle’s longevity and value. ‘The wrap will provide a degree of impact-resistance to the car from nicks and scratches, thereby increasing its resale value and preventing costly trips to panel beaters. Wraps can also give second hand vehicles ‘a new lease on life’,’ says Hennie Lamprecht, Owner, Greensky Bran Architects. Various companies will be doing vehicle wrapping demonstrations on their stands, showing off the capabilities of leading brands’ vinyl. Entrance to the event is free. For more information about the event and to pre-register online, please visit www.SignAfricaExpo.com or www.AfricaPrintExpo.com
