By Melissa Donovan
Part 1 of 2
Standees, pallet display bins, and skid wraps are unique forms of point of purchase (POP) used in retail stores of all sizes. Inventive yet practical in their execution, which is why they remain popular despite the introduction of trendier POP applications like floor and window graphics.
Standees are a fun way to get intended viewers involved in a promotion or at least catch their eye. A life-size cut out of a product or brand mascot presents a picture opportunity in our heavily social media oriented world. Whether printed directly on rigid board using a flatbed, or onto vinyl and then laminated to rigid substrate, many print service providers (PSPs) offer POP standees.
Into POP
Orchid Digitals, based in India, celebrates 15 years in business. The company began with three employees and now staffs 15 out of three separate locations that total 4,000 square feet of space. About ten percent of the PSP’s work is considered digitally printed POP, specifically standees, life-size cut outs, easel stands, roll-up stands, and exhibition backdrops.
According to Mitesh Sanghani, owner/designer/customer relations, Orchid Digitals, these applications are placed in exhibitions, events, supermarkets, and point of sale locations. “Over the years I’ve noticed this type of POP become less expensive, especially during exhibition season in India, which occurs around November.”
To print these projects, Orchid Digitals relies on a Mimaki JV300, Mimaki UCJV300, and Roland VersaCAMM VS-640—all purchased in the last five years. While the three printers share a common feature that makes them ideal for the PSP’s workload—high resolution—they individually carry their own benefits. Each operates with a different ink chemistry resulting in multiple use case scenarios.
The Mimaki JV300 Series compromises of 54- and 64-inch printers, which can be equipped with eco-solvent, solvent, or dye-sublimation ink. Staggered printheads deliver a wider print swath. Each ink color features its own specific gravity and viscosity. To achieve precise placement of the ink droplets onto the media, Mimaki designed an optimum waveform that allows the printhead to jet each ink color at the appropriate jetting angle without losing circularity.
The Mimaki UCJV300 Series involves four different size printer/cutters—32, 42, 54, and 64 inches in width. They are equipped with eco-friendly, low volatile organic compounds, UV LED inks. CMYK plus white and/or clear are options. This print-and-cut family offers inline cutting capabilities and features multi-layer printing for transitional or double facing images.
The Roland VersaCAMM VS-640 is a 64-inch eco-solvent inkjet printer/cutter. It fires droplets of seven different sizes with precision-rounded nozzles to produce perfect ink droplets and high image quality. A gold-plated printhead repels ink, preventing clogs. Running with ECO-SOL MAX ink, one of the channels has the option for Metallic Silver ECO-SOL MAX ink. Using the Roland Metallic Color Library allows for the use of a range of metallic and pearlescent colors.
Standees in the Sun
Sunboard stands are one of Orchid Digitals’ product offerings used in POP display environments. The PSP works with sunboard from GCO—a popular brand in India, which is a light weight, flat, rigid plastic sheet.
Orchid Digitals usually prints graphics to either 3M Commercial Solutions or Avery Dennison Graphics Solutions vinyl and then laminates the printed graphic to either three- or five-millimeter thick sunboard. The laminate serves to increase the application’s life as well as protect the surface from scuffing.
After lamination, flaps are attached to the back of the sunboard for support. The flaps turn on hinges and stand out perpendicular to the print. When the stand needs to be stored or transported, the flaps are folded back in.
According to Orchid Digitals’ website, sunboard stands are a low-cost display and marketing solution regularly seen on the retail floor of stores and malls. “In today’s world a customer is surrounded by marketing messages. Sales people in any company are continuously on the look out for any idea that will hold the buyer’s attention. A sunboard stand is a commonly used display solution—cut in the shape of a model or product and the buyer’s interest peaks.”
A recent sunboard stand project was executed for Eureka Forbes, which required an innovative display for its vacuum cleaner accessories. A representative of the company, Wasim Rahi, hoped to attract the attention of crowds during a Diwali festival.
Orchid Digitals created a display stand with a unique shape using a CNC router. The messaging was displayed in bold in the center of the piece. Flaps were attached on the backside of the standee with support strips added for increased stiffness.
Rahi was pleased with the final result. When the festival was completed he had Orchid Digitals create stands for all of Eureka Forbes retail stores.
POP Standees
Orchid Digitals works with trusted printers and material to craft POP standees for its customers. These graphics are popular in retail and depending on the unique shape of the final display, really attract the attention of passersby.
Sep2020, Digital Output
