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Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Dimensional Multi-Media Branding Masterpiece by Spectra Imaging

Dimensional multi-media display

Brian Rogers, founder and CEO of Spectra Imaging in Louisville, Ky., used practically every tool available to the modern print shop to create the three multi-dimensional, multi-media panels with accent lighting pictured here for Kroger at the University of Louisville Business Center.

History display for a universityThe Business Center is a collection of multiple rooms, each sponsored by a different company. In this case, Rogers wanted to create something dramatic for Kroger that would detail the grocer’s history from the first store it opened in Cincinnati in 1883 to its present position as the fourth-largest retailer in the world.

“Kroger will sponsor the room for four years and they want to show what can be achieved if you work hard and apply yourself. The president of Kroger, for instance, started out as a bag boy and worked his way up,” explains Rogers.

There are three different panels in the room: the main panel on the front wall is 240″ x 8′ and the other two panels on the sidewalls are 4′ x 8′. Rogers could have printed all the graphics, logos and photos and applied the prints to the walls or onto offset panels, but this treatment ensures the drama Kroger wanted to create.

All the panels are 1″-thick Gator Board with a faux brick wall printed on LexJet 8 Mil Production Satin Photo Paper, mounted with LexJet GraphicMount White Adhesive and laminated with D&K 6 Mil UV Textured Vinyl PSA.

Dimensional lighted signage for interior displaysRogers took a photo of a brick wall downtown to make the flat print more dimensional and, yes, dramatic. “I wanted something with a lot of character, depth and contrast to make it look more realistic. We had a lot of people coming into the room during the installation and they were surprised it was a print,” says Rogers.

All of the graphics on top of the brick background print were cut out on Spectra Imaging’s CNC router and offset an inch off the background panel. Most of these panels were printed using the same method and materials used for the background print.

Additionally, the Kroger logos and the skyline silhouette are halo-lit with rope lighting from Bird Dog Distributing. The rope lighting uses LEDs for the light source and has the ability to be set in different directions so that you can control where the light shines: to the front, back or sides. Recesses were cut in the back of the Kroger logos and skyline and the rope lighting was placed inside those recesses.

“There was a lot of engineering involved in this project to get all the pieces put together properly. First, I sketch it out so that everything falls in place. When I designed this, I took the brick photo full size and enlarged the other accent images to the proper sizes and dropped everything on the brick wall. Then, those individual files come off the brick wall and are routed and printed. Each individual image needs to be printed at the same dpi to ensure consistency and the right size,” explains Rogers.

The installation took about seven hours. The largest main panel had to be assembled on-site; the Gator Board “skyline,” for example, was in three pieces and applied to the back panel. Overall, this was a very time-consuming project and well worth the effort, acting as a showcase of Spectra Imaging’s talent and effectively communicating Kroger’s dedication to the community.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Clearly a Good Idea: Creating a Framed, Multi-Panel Display

Printing transportable displays

Lou Fiore, owner of Speedway Custom Photo Lab in Daytona Beach, Fla., came up with a unique way to create a six-panel display that Volusia County could take with them and hang up for presentations and trade shows.

The key to this display is in the almost-invisible means by which the panels are held together so that it’s one unit with six parts, equally spaced. Fiore used Clear Power Tabs, typically used as a substitute for banner corner grommets, to evenly space and keep the panels together as one piece.

“If you lay a Power Tab out straight, the loop in the tab is a half-inch on either side. They hang with these invisible connectors, which the customer thought was cool,” explains Fiore. “They wanted something versatile that they could take to trade shows and conferences. You can hardly see the connecting tabs, even if you’re standing in front of them. And as a bonus, because of the flexibility of the tabs, all six panels fold flat over each other to make it the size of a single panel for easy transport.”

Each panel is 3/16″ Ultra Mount foam core panel framed with plastic poster trim. The graphics were printed on Epson Premium Luster Photo Paper with an Epson 9800 and laminated with GBC 5 Mil Octiva Lo-Melt Emboss 50 Laminate.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Printing Branding Backgrounds for Beers

Wall murals and graphics for stores

The cooler wrap is tried and true for selling beer at the point of sale. It becomes even truer when you can translate it to any room in the house, so to speak, and create a branding background that gives your brand the highest visibility.

Printing wall murals for store signageTennyson Lacasio, sign shop manager at Colonial Beverage in North Dartmouth, Mass., took the inkjet printed cooler wrap to the next level with two recent projects at local liquor stores. Both projects were printed on LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Self Adhesive Polypropylene and laminated with LexJet 3 Mil Matte UV Standard Low Melt.

Lacasio says he laminated the prints first (each project had anywhere from three to 12 printed panels) then applied the laminated pieces to Coroplast. This method helped hide the ridges that normally show through when you apply the print material directly to Coroplast before laminating.

“When you run print material through the laminator directly to Coroplast it bonds so closely that it shows the creases in the Coroplast. When I laminated the material first, it gave it a nice, fine, seamless finish,” says Lacasio.

Inkjet printed wall muralsAlso seamless was the paneling, particularly on the Blue Moon background display. Lacasio says this was mostly due to the fact that the wall he applied the panels to in the new building was perfectly square. Moreover, and most importantly, this 12′ x 19′ Blue Moon mural did its job rather effectively.

“You see it right off the bat when you walk into the store. The walls are light blue, which complements the graphic and draws your eye to the back of the store. The owner just wanted to do one brand, which allows you to focus on the strong points of the brand,” says Lacasio. “The image is not pixilated at all and it’s very impressive to stand right in front of it. After we installed it, people were walking out of the store with Blue Moon and they commented on the enticing feel of the image.”

As per usual Lacasio paid special attention to brand details in the designs, including such minutia as the types of glasses in which you serve the beers.

The other two wall murals – featuring Coors Light, Miller Lite and Leinenkugel’s – are on either side of a walk-in cooler door. The Coors Light mural, themed as an American fall, is 8′ x 13′. The Miller Lite/Leinenkugel’s mural, themed as a German Oktoberfest, is 8′ x 10′.

“Fortunately, they’re placing a minimal amount of cases at each display and replenishing them regularly so that you can see most of the display from just about anywhere in the store,” says Lacasio. “I had huge canvases to work from, which makes all the difference in wall branding graphics.”

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Selling Beer with Banner Stands

Printing banners for banner standsThere are a million and one ways to promote beer (or anything else for that matter) at the point of sale, but one way that’s often overlooked is the use of a simple retractable banner stand.

“They’re lightweight, portable and collapsible so that it’s easy for our account reps to take the banner stands from one place to another,” says Bob Korabek, POS designer for Caffey Distributing in Greensboro, N.C. “They’re also great for tight spaces. You can utilize them in small areas, like c-stores, where you can put them next to a beer display. And, since it’s retractable, you can also create a smaller banner that’s not as high if ceiling space is an issue.”

Korabek recently completed a couple of winning projects using retractable banner stands. One was a promotion for Blue Moon, which was tied into today’s (Aug. 31) astronomical event called, coincidentally, a blue moon (click here for another project with the blue moon promotional tie-in).

Using banner stands for point of sale displaysThe other banner was designed to be displayed in the entrance to sports bars, featuring the 2012 Carolina Panthers schedule. Since the schedule goes through the end of the year, it’s a perfect relatively long-term promotion that puts Miller front and center at least through December.

“For shorter promotions we can easily take out the previous promotion and re-use them for another one,” explains Korabek. “I just use the usual LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Polypropylene that I get from LexJet for all my banners and apply Heavy Duty Banner Tape on the edges of the tall sides to strengthen the edges and prevent long-term curling possibilities.”

LexJet carries a full line of banner stands for any budget and any application. Here are three to check out initially:

XStand: Available in 24.5″ x 63.5″, 26.5″ x 71″ and 32.5″ x 71″ fits the bill for a cost-effective, lightweight indoor display. Click here to see the demonstration video.

MediaScreen 1: Available in 33 7/16″, 39 3/8″ and 60″ widths, this more-durable banner stand also includes a lifetime warranty and the telescoping pole adjusts the height from 63″ to 88 5/8″. Click here to view the demonstration video.

MediaScreen 3: Available in a 33 7/16″ width, this banner stand features changeable graphic cassettes so you can change the message in seconds, a lifetime warranty, a base that compensates for uneven floors, and more. Click here to see the demonstration video.

For all of the Display Hardware demonstration and how-to videos at LexJet’s YouTube channel, click here. And, if you’d like to read more about banner stand applications, tips on production and the right banner stand for the job, download LexJet’s educational white paper, Making the Most of Banner Stands, at www.lexjet.com/banner-stand-white-paper.aspx.

And, as always, if you need any additional help or information, contact a LexJet customer specialist at 800-453-9538. Happy Labor Day weekend!

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Printing Window Graphics with Curb Appeal

Printing point of sale window graphics

It started with a question: “Do you want to try this stuff?” The stuff in question was LexJet Aqueous Perforated Vinyl (70/30), and the “stuff” worked like a charm.

Printing window graphics on perforated window vinyl“We started printing window graphics about a year ago, and the first store we installed still looks fantastic. The graphics haven’t started peeling or fading. They’re only supposed to go up for about six months, but we’re way past six months,” says Margot Layland, art director for Best Brands Inc. in Nashville. “When you drive by these stores, that’s the first thing you see. We found that the brighter the colors and simpler the design the better off it is; you only have two seconds for someone to see them. Now everybody and their brother wants them.”

Best Brands Inc. specializes in wine and spirits distribution, and the window graphics Layland creates are providing a lot of additional brand exposure and recognition.

Window graphics for point of sale advertising“When they put posters on the inside of the windows, which is how they’ve always done it, they tend to bend and crack in the sun, not to mention the glare on the images. What our customers like is that not only does it provide shade in the windows, but you really get to see the product branding,” explains Layland.

The vinyl allows images to be viewed from the outside, while those inside can see out through the graphics. The graphics are typically printed in panels on the company’s Canon iPF8000 and installed by Best Brands’ display specialist, who attached the vinyl with painter’s tape, levels it, matches up the seams, peels off the backing and smooths it down.

Branding and advertising with window graphics“They’re relatively expensive and they take some time to install, so the people who are paying for these are the suppliers, like Jim Beam. We call the supplier and let them know the cost for each window. If the supplier wanted to do, say, 75 of them, they couldn’t possibly know all the exact window sizes, so each one has to be custom made,” explains Layland. “Some of the windows are as large as 8′ x 8′, so that’s why we try to make it as easy on our display specialist as possible by printing them out in panels.”

For best results, Layland suggests printing at a higher resolution to maximize the impact at the point of sale, and to let the graphics dry for at least 24 hours before trimming and installing them. “Because the vinyl is perforated, it can get kind of inky when you handle it, so I let them dry for a day or two before I cut them out,” she says.

LexJet Aqueous Perforated Vinyl is one of several inkjet printable materials Layland has tried based on recommendations from her LexJet customer specialist, Chris Piersoll. “Chris is delightful. He’s great about showing us products we can utilize with our printer and he’s been right on the money with everything. And, whenever I need something or have a question, he’s always there to help. If I leave a message, he always calls back quickly, 20 minutes max,” adds Layland.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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A Once in a Blue Moon Point of Sale Display

Point of sale display printed for Blue Moon beers

It happens once in a blue moon… That is, a blue moon. No, the moon doesn’t literally turn blue. Technically, it means there’s an extra full moon once every two and a half years, on average. This month, Aug. 31 to be exact, is the next blue moon, which won’t show up again until 2015.

This relatively rare event was the perfect opportunity to promote – what else? – Blue Moon beers. It also happens to coincide with a MillerCoors display design contest, so account representatives Anthony Copetillo and Vinnie Montemurro and P.O.P. shop manager Steve Lalio of The Nackard Companies in Flagstaff, Ariz., collaborated on a display concept for a Wal-Mart in Show Low, Ariz.

Printing a point of sale beer display“MillerCoors put out a creative display incentive for August and September, which included Blue Moon. They showed us some examples of a full theme, and I thought this concept would be perfect for the season. It also gave us an opportunity to educate customers about all the characteristics of Blue Moon beers,” says Copetillo. “I give Steve some ideas and the points I want to see on the display, then he comes up with the design theme. Steve always has great ideas that are exactly what I’m looking for, so there are rarely any changes to his design.”

Lalio’s design is divided into three parts to comprise the full backdrop behind the beer display – in-depth information about the different Blue Moon beers (year-round, seasonal and specialty), a centerpiece to draw attention and illuminating copy about what a blue moon is – plus the phases of the blue moon that “float” in front of the backdrop.

“We submitted it to MillerCoors and it caused some ripples. They were happy to see that we’re educating the customers about Blue Moon,” says Copetillo. “I’ve been doing this for 18 years and now more than ever people want to know what food to pair it with, the flavors and the characteristics of each beer.”

Printing point of sale display for beer companies
Here's a similar display conceived and executed by the Three Musketeers of The Nackard Companies: account reps Anthony Copetillo and Vinnie Montemurro and P.O.P. shop manager Steve Lalio.

The backdrop was printed on a Canon iPF8000S on LexJet 8 Mil PolyGloss Banner in seven 36″ panels, which were then stapled to the wall. Lalio says he designed it in Photoshop and used the ONYX RIP to properly tile it so that it could be spliced into one seamless backdrop. The total size is 21 feet wide by six feet high.

The moon phases, which dangle from fishing line a few feet in front of the backdrop, were printed on LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Self Adhesive Polypropylene, laminated with LexJet 3 Mil Luster UV Standard Low Melt and applied to a heavy card stock.

“I used the PolyGloss Banner for the backdrop because I knew the Blue Moon and fall colors would really pop out with that material. We designed it so that it was informative about not only the beer, but the blue moon,” adds Lalio.