Tuesday October 3, 2017 14:58
Outdoor flags might not be a new idea, but innovation in this area has proven to be rather slow. Ever so often you might stumble upon a unique shape although it is generally short lived as the design is left wanting around practicality or longevity. Manufacturers and designer alike are constantly prototyping alternate materials to see if there is an option to give birth to a game changing design that would revolutionise the international flag market.
Once you get past the structure and shape of a flag it then is left to the designers to create something to fill the blank canvas that will engage and excite passers-by. This in itself requires some thought as one has to understand the specific function of each flag shape, the surroundings it is to be used in, the longevity required and of course how the messaging is to influence the target audience.
Textiles Alive is a heritage brand that has been standing alongside the “little guy” since its inception back in the day. Since the early days the model has been around having a boutique business that is able to get it right first time and serve its customers as an expert in its area of delivery.
Today Textiles Alive is the largest textile production house in New Zealand with a primary focus around delivering flags. Apart from having bigger machines and now the largest flag range in the country not a lot else has changed. Textiles Alive are still the only textile production house with sole textile production focus. With many pretenders around that service both the trade and retail side, Textiles Alive is also the only true trade only textile production house.
Over the last few months the Textiles Alive development team has been hard at work trying to expand the flag offer by designing and prototyping some slick new shapes to grab attention. The recently revised range now includes two new shapes that complement the existing options and pushes the offer to over 18 different sizes and shapes that can be finished in multiple ways providing in excess of 72 different finished options for consideration by the end user.
Outdoor flags are produced using a raft of processes and technologies with dye-sublimation being the benchmark for unmatched results. Dye-sublimation is a printing process that produces high definition graphics through natural inks that are permanently embedded into the fabric. They are long-lasting without cracking or creasing.
Using dye-sublimation technology they will cut through the clutter being brighter, more vibrant with an increased colour gamut. The vibrancy of dye-sublimation cannot be overstated and when applied to an outdoor flag your ability to communicate your message and generate traffic has serious advantages for increasing visibility, conversations and ultimately sales.
With the influx of numerous providers entering into the market, mostly with offshore supply at discounted rates one would be led to believe the local market is getting smaller. To the contrary this category is only growing annually with demand increasing and huge drive from end users around innovation, quality and simplicity.
Ensuring you are partnered up with the correct fabric signage partner is imperative as you can ill afford to deliver into this category with limited support.
Don’t be led by pretenders whom source offshore where delivery is pushed out to 10+ days and getting colour consistency is a luxury.
If your current supplier cannot provide you with overnight proofs, with 5-day production lead-time it might be time to look for an alternate who is able to support you in servicing this growing demand.
Textiles Alive is a premium dye-sublimation textile production house in New Zealand. As a trade-only fabric printer we guarantee a collaborative approach in the delivery of textile-centric solutions to market. Privately owned, the business was established in 1980 and has been at the forefront of the fabric printing local market. We have a relentless focus on innovation, ensuring that we lead the industry in best practice, world-class delivery and personalised customer service.
