Above: Mediapoint’s Jamie and Jason Xuereb
Jamie Xuereb from Melbourne trade printer, Mediapoint, will provide insights into why the company pivoted from wide format to labels at the inaugural ProPack Packaging Forum in Sydney.
The ProPack Packaging Forum will take place at Shangri-La during the day on Friday 25 October, alongside the FESPA Australia Conference and prior to the 2024 ProPrint Awards later that evening.
Xuereb’s presentation, sponsored by Durst Oceania, will focus on why the company re-entered the labels and packaging category after 12 years with the purchase of a Durst Tau label printer and Grafotronic dual laser cutter.
“The packaging sector has been going from strength to strength, and growing even in the current market landscape as more work is being done locally. We see this continuing,” Xuereb said in the ProPack Leaders Forum earlier this year.
“We are seeing our customer base running smaller campaigns but more frequently, this is allowing our trade partners’ customers to test different messaging before committing to a larger run. We are also noticing that smaller runs done locally are increasing. Since Covid there has been a massive swing from importing as run lengths are getting smaller, so we are seeing this trend to continue,” he said.
“Our key message would be: is the trade partner you are looking for 100 per cent trade only? Or is there a risk they can poach your customer? Also, what edge does your trade supplier give you? At Mediapoint we are giving our trade partners custom laser cutting without white edge as well as custom shapes and fast two business day turnaround times.
“We are printing on a Durst Tau with white ink and cutting with a Grafotronic dual laser cutter. The quality of the Durst Tau is simply phenomenal – and we are receiving a lot of positive feedback from our customers. In certain conditions, we have been able to print 5mm QR codes which scan and 1pt text, which is legible through a loupe.
“We wanted to approach the labels category from a different angle to other converters. We wanted to offer outdoor durability on uncoated stock – and the Tau UV inks provide a slight raise which all our customers love, and this is a clear point of difference from using toner based or other UV inkjet technologies.
“We have also introduced white ink, which is a very solid white ink, and the benefit is it does not require lamination. Compared to toner-based machines, the Durst Tau delivers no variance from page to page which also assists with the cutting aspect of the job. The biggest advantage is turnaround times and consistency, which allows us to pass on these benefits to our customers.
“We believe the diversification and offering a mix in product range for our customers has been very advantageous when it comes to winning work. A lot of our large format customers have equipment of their own, so it is all about finding the gaps to help our customer base.”
“We can offer things that no one else in trade printing can offer – custom-shape laser cut labels which can be machine-applied along with ultra-fast turnaround and free blind shipping to your customers.”
Click here to purchase tickets to the Packaging Forum on Friday 25 October at Shangri-La Sydney.
The inaugural ProPack Packaging Forum would not be possible without the support from its sponsors:
Platinum Sponsor – Durst Oceania
Gold Sponsor – Cyber
Gold Sponsor – Miraclon
Bronze Sponsor – Hybrid Software
Bronze Sponsor – Kissel & Wolf
Bronze Sponsor – Koenig & Bauer
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