Elevate Your Décor Game!

By Debbie Nicholson, Think-to-INK!
https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-nicholson-24a53627/ 

If you are hesitant about entering the décor market, the following information should spark new and exciting conversations with you and your customers.

Before we get to that, let’s admit—and you know I’m right—everything we print is custom! Since we are already experts at printing custom products daily, why not utilize those skills and ingenuity to increase revenues by entering a market driven by trends (Décor)?

So, what does décor printing look like for PSPs? When you research the meaning of décor, it’s pretty simple: to enhance a space’s aesthetic appeal and functional utility. 

Let’s thread the needle here. Some of you may already produce custom-made décor products for individual orders (bespoke), while others may produce décor but define it as signage, murals, environmental graphics, or experiential graphics.

What is the “But wait, There’s More”?

• Furniture Upholstery
• Lamp Shades
• Decorative Seat Cushions (indoor and outdoor)
• Window Treatments
• Table Tops
• Chair Wraps
• Furniture Wraps
• Appliance Wraps
• Clothing
• Wall Décor
• Flooring
• Bed Linens
• DI-NOC Applications
• Wall Treatments
• Area Rugs
• Shower Curtains
• Window Films          

So, what is the most effective way to pierce the décor industry? (a few thoughts)

Organize a lunch-and-learn session with sales teams (both inside and outside), customer service, and production! Invite vendors, suppliers, and décor designers to showcase and educate on substrates (textiles, flexible, and rigid) used explicitly for décor market applications. Discovering new ideas will spark enthusiasm and drive sales!

1. Most importantly, your team's support of the new and aggressive decor initiative is critical to its success. Company-wide strategy meetings will prompt valuable and insightful debates, allowing employees to discuss how their independent departments could and would be affected.
2. You must understand your equipment’s manufacturing capabilities. Printers often have the necessary equipment to grow their portfolio. However, in some instances, operators are not fully trained on expansive capabilities, so pushing back is their go-to mechanism to fend off producing something new and possibly complicated. That way of thinking inhibits the company’s growth!
3. Look around; you may have existing clients or contacts that could propel you into the décor market. These include architecture firms, hospitality, healthcare, education, construction, real estate staging, interior designers, cruise lines, property management, and corporate offices.
4. As a side note, you can’t survive solely by producing one-offs unless you are a bespoke operation. You must align your décor sales model with your current business model. The printing business is all about feeds and speeds; however, the décor model must be quality, finishing, ingenuity, and consistency.