By Melissa Donovan
Part 2 of 2
While many of the vehicle wrap stories we write about focus on wrapping vehicles or other objects with printed graphics, there is a whole other user base strictly wrapping with color change films. Wrap Ohio, LLC of Northeast, OH is a 100 percent wrap shop focused on delivering the highest quality color change wraps.
Wrap Enthusiasm
Wrap Ohio was founded in Spring 2018. Alex Simmons, owner, Wrap Ohio, says the business was taken to the next level after he wrapped Mitch Rudolph’s Lamborghini. Rudolph worked at Excalibur Auto Body, Inc. and after he saw the finished product he invited Simmons to work on his campus as an independent business.
Once up and running, the company was able to offer more than wraps—including custom rim and caliper paint among other services—on high-end cars. “Teaming up with Excalibur allowed us to open the door for a one-stop shop for custom automotive projects,” explains Simmons. Today four employees produce four to six color change wraps per week.
Wrap Ohio customizes personal vehicles for individuals with discretionary income. It’s completed full chrome wraps, carbon fiber wraps, race liveries, and color changes including door jambs.
Simmons is inspired by other well-known wrap enthusiasts like John Deuver of Vinyl Images in St. Louis, MO and Justin Norton with Atlanta Custom Wraps in Atlanta, GA. “Our main goal is to deliver the highest level of quality while pushing to progress and advance the industry as a whole. These guys have inspired me to push that much harder to make our name as well known as theirs,” he continues.
For its wrap projects, Wrap Ohio always turns to Avery Dennison Graphics Solutions, specifically the Avery Dennison Supreme Wrapping Film portfolio. There are multiple characteristics that influence this decision including the vast color selection in addition to the number of available special finishes.
“Special finishes like gloss, satin, matte, textured, metallic, and chrome provide us with a complete spectrum to achieve the artistic and performance vision of our clientele,” notes Simmons. Avery Dennison Supreme Wrapping Film offers faster positioning and bubble-free wrapping film application. Long-term removability is available after the intended period of time.
According to Simmons, the fast positioning and bubble-free application, “helps make application smooth and exact and saves us time as well.” Commenting on long-term removability, he says this feature enables him to cleanly remove the film for new application requisitions—with no residue. Something that would not be acceptable when conducting wraps on such high-end vehicles like Lamborghinis.
Shines and Camo
An example of work on a high-end car includes a project tasked for Rob Matusik of Excalibur. He requested a wrap for his Bentley GT Continental that would push the boundaries of the industry while catching the eyes of enthusiasts and the general public, explains Simmons.
To achieve this, Wrap Ohio turned to Avery Dennison and Gloss Silver Conform Chrome. Not part of the Avery Dennison Supreme Wrapping Film lineup, this material is a bit more challenging to install and less forgiving. “It does not stretch and bend around complex body panels,” notes Simmons. The Wrap Ohio team has experience with the Conform Chrome, so it felt its use for this project was justified.
“The installation expertise we have gained by working regularly with this material has resulted in wrap installations that turn heads and provide that wow factor our clients are seeking,” shares Simmons.
When all was said and done, the job was completed in seven days. This included wrapping the vehicle as well as painting the wheels in gloss black as well as painting the car’s calipers. Matusik was thrilled with the final result and continually receives requests for pictures of the car when he is out.
Another notable project included wrapping several vehicles in army fatigue/camouflage. In one instance, a 2019 Ford King Ranch F250 and a 2019 Range Rover were both wrapped in Avery Dennison Supreme Wrapping Film in matte black. Then color pattern overlays were created with Avery Dennison Supreme Wrapping Film in matte green, matte brown, and matte white.
A third vehicle, 2016 Ford Mustang, retained its OEM orange paint but the camouflage effect was created using overlays of Avery Dennison Supreme Wrapping Film in matte black, matte silver metallic, and matte charcoal metallic.
Trends into the Future
Simmons shares that projects like the aforementioned are on the upswing for the new year. “Color and texture combinations continue to be on trend for 2021, where the senses of both sign and touch are fully engaged in the vehicle creative and driving experience.”
Wrap Ohio is uniquely positioned to take hold of these trends and introduce them at the ground level to car enthusiasts. Thanks to its home base on Excalibur property, it leverages its geographical proximity to an auto body shop to get the opportunity to color change wrap some very high-end vehicles.
Dec2020, Digital Output
