Digital textile printing is a sizable market with a lot of growth potential in the future. The ink market alone is estimated to be worth $1 billion, and digital textile ink makers say the best is yet to come.
Tim Check, senior product manager for Epson's U.S. professional imaging division, said Epson continues to see growth in the market, with the trend shifting from in-store to online purchases. This opens the door to more customization and faster turnaround times.
“So, textile printing can meet these needs, providing customized products and the ability to quickly produce output to meet shipping schedules,” Check said. "Furthermore, larger retail stores continue to order smaller quantiles and demand new products in shorter timeframes to meet changing fashion trends, making it necessary for designers and textile manufacturers to produce to meet retail A new series for business and customer needs.
"Overall, buyers are driving demand for more textiles and faster turnaround times for online and in-store orders, and we're seeing continued growth in demand for printed apparel, decorations and gifts as custom gifts become more popular," Check added.
Robert Zoch, global content manager at Kornit Digital, said digital is advancing by leaps and bounds, in large part because it integrates so well with e-commerce platforms, but also because it promotes a leaner, more efficient and more responsible production model .
“With digitization, you can print on demand, eliminating the waste of excess inventory caused by forecast-based modeling,” adds Zoch. “Digital means visibility of the entire production process, which means operational control and transparency. It enables localisation and consolidation of production, reducing supply chain, labour and other risks. It means having the ability to respond to sudden needs or opportunities The agility to respond, or change gears in the face of sudden market disruptions (as seen during COVID). In short, it delivers the functionality and socially responsible practices that today’s consumers increasingly demand, which It is simply unmatched by traditional simulation methods.”
