We were honored to receive the 2018 SGIA Product of the Year Award for best Heat Press (table top version) for the Hotronix Fusion. Thank you for the recognition of this outstanding Hotronix heat press innovation.
You all probably know the advertising slogan, “What Happens In Vegas, Stays in Vegas.” But just because the recent SGIA Expo took place in Las Vegas, that doesn’t mean that what happened there should remain a secret. At least we hope not, because it was a fantastic turnout, with lots of excitement about heat printing. The Hotronix Fusion received a SGIA Product of the Year Award for best table top heat press. A sold out exhibit floor meant over 600 exhibitors and there were over 25,000 attendees registered. It was an outstanding opportunity to see equipment, products and services firsthand and have all your questions answered. There were a substantial number of educational events offered, including a heat printing education session, and many events for networking with customers, new clients, new friends and old friends.
GETTING THE WORD OUT
Stahls’, along with many other vendors and suppliers had a really strong show, with record Hotronix heat press sales and consistent interest in CAD-CUT heat transfer vinyls, transfers, our new FlexStyle domed emblem services and our new heated lower platen pack. For those who don’t yet know, the show was officially the last “SGIA EXPO”. Going forward, the show is being rebranded and reconfigured due to a joint partnership with Specialty Graphic Imaging Association and NAPCO Media, a B to B media company. The new show will be known as PRINTING United and the first event will take place in Dallas in October 2019. According to their press release, it will be
“PRINTING UNITED: the next evolution of printing expositions in North America — combines the largest printing trade show in North America with the leading producer of multi-channel content for the print community.”
As much as we appreciate and applaud the SGIA EXPO, we are all looking forward to participating in the new PRINTING United. You should put it on your calendar. In the meanwhile, let’s recap what happened at the latest (and last) SGIA EXPO. Heat printing was a common theme and the show was a harbinger of things to come in the apparel industry.
For example, I noticed more Direct to Garment Printers than we’ve ever seen before. It was also well attended by international apparel decorators, as well as larger domestic customers looking for ways to keep up with requests for on-demand garment decoration. People need alternatives to situations where screen printing or embroidery won’t work, such as on lightweight performance fabrics. They want easier ways to create special effects such as foil and reflective logos. The answer is of course heat printing and they found many examples in our booth.
INNOVATIONS ANNOUNCED
We also held a press conference on Friday to introduce our latest CAD-CUT materials and new Power Platens heated lower platens, new services and our expansion in Arizona. I’ll share more detailed information on the press conference later this week, to make sure you don’t miss anything. Thank you to Vicki and everyone who worked so hard to make our appearance at SGIA EXPO a huge success. It was also great to catch up with so many industry colleagues and friends. I’m looking forward to experiencing the new PRINT United in Dallas next October but I hope I’ll see many of you before then.
Always good to see industry pioneer and screen printing expert Scott Fresener. Scott and I go way back.
It was truly an honor for Josh Ellsworth and Carleen Gray to accept the 2018 Product of the Year award from SGIA for the Hotronix Fusion heat press.
Thank you to everyone who helped make the show a huge success.
Always wonderful to chat with Laurie Gonz, Publisher of Impressions. Good to see you at the SGIA Laurie.
There was constant activity at the custom printing station hosted by Stahls’ and YR Live. I’ll be covering more on YR Live services in an upcoming blog.
The SGIA EXPO was all about heat printing, especially in the Stahls’ booth!