Jon Field, Kissel + Wolf’s Sales Director – Digital, says, “Drinkware reaches every demographic across the Australian consumer marketplace. There is a myriad of opportunities for branding, customisation and personalisation plus a significant demand for small run print decoration onto drinkware and glassware”. Andrew Marrs, Sales Manager at Kissel + Wolf Australia – Digital said, “High quality graphics can be printed on a huge range of drinkware ranging from plastic drink bottles for sports and fitness, stainless steel insulated bottles for hot and cold beverages, through to rugged rigid plastic bottles for use in the great outdoors. Increasingly, drinkware has become a fashion accessory and a symbol of being environmentally conscious. More than ever consumers are moving away from single- use bottles, cutting down waste and helping to prevent the tonnes of plastic collecting in the world’s oceans and food chains each year. Drink bottle brands have flourished with that uptake, making personalisation, customisation and co-branding popular ways for people and business to show their support to this lifestyle and a better way of living”. Field adds, ”Customisation and adding the ‘wow factor’ to stand out from the crowd while promoting brand awareness is a high priority in the competitive craft beverage market. As is the ability to produce eye catching prints on drinkware and packaging such as aluminium cans and glass bottles for the craft beer, bespoke wine and spirit markets”. Field continued, “the opportunity to quench the thirst of these fast growing segments while providing an ‘onshore’ just in time solution here in Australia should excite everyone in the printing industry looking for a new segment that is literally packed with opportunities”. Helix, made in the USA by Inkcups, is sold, serviced and supported locally by one of Australia’s preeminent print industry suppliers, Kissel + Wolf Australia Pty Ltd. Marrs says, “this is a versatile, high performance, high throughput digital inkjet cylinder printing system that can print quality, full colour graphics onto a huge range of substrates including PE plastic, Tritan plastic, PP plastic, stainless steel, powder coated metals, aluminium and more. Its unique design makes changing part types quick and easy enabling short runs to be capitalised on”. Marrs continued, “Digital CMYK printing in perfect registration provides no limitation to the number of colours used in the design. Multi coloured prints combined with white ink enables effects such as mirror print where the image can be viewed from the inside of clear drinkware as well as the outside. Varnish brings to life raised emboss effects on objects as well as adding a lustrous and durable finish. 360 degrees wrap around prints offer a seamless look on drinkware and glass bottles. There are also less operational roadblocks for processing and printing different drinkware SKUs. T-shirts for example, you have different sizes, cuts, cotton counts, quality and colours, adding many layers of complexity to order management. Drinkware is simpler, once the vessel style has been chosen, it is only a matter of ordering the SKU and replenishing the inventory …. then load the tooling for that part and impress your customers with amazing looking drinkware prints and finishes”. For early participants in this lucrative segment, both Field and Marrs agree the array of opportunities in this segment are endless. Printing on Printing on Drinkware: Drinkware: an unquenchable an unquenchable array of options array of options Globally the Drinkware market size in 2022 is valued at USD $3.9 billion and projected to grow to USD $5.2 billion by 2030, growing at CAGR of 3.1% from next year to 2030. In Asia Pacific the GAGR growth over this period is in excess of 5%. 14 DEC 2022/JAN 2023 Move with the times UV Curing, Helix Digital Cylinder Printer.
