Amplify Print, the print finishing and embellishment event, will take place June 10-12 at the Donald Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont (Chicago), Illinois. Amplify Print features 3 days of education about processes, software, and design techniques that can make printed materials more tactile and eye-catching.
Designers, brand marketers, and production professionals can learn how to add spot varnishes, metallic foils, textured surfaces, and die-cut elements to folding cartons, labels, direct-mail pieces, books, greeting cards, brochures, and more.
Exhibitors will show samples of the many creative effects that are now possible and give tips on how to achieve them. Some of the presses and finishing equipment that can produce the desired effects will be demonstrated in the Technology Zone.
Amplify Print is a collaborative venture of WhatTheyThink and the Foil & Specialty Effects Association (FSEA).
Below are a few examples of what visitors will learn more about:
Tactile Direct Mail
BW Converting will show how physical mail continues to drive high-performance results in the digital age — thanks to the sensory strength of adding touch and smell to the visuals of printed pieces. Research has revealed that recipients of a physical mail piece make subconscious decisions within two to three seconds of interacting with a physical mail piece.
According to recent industry reports, direct mail commands high response rates — especially when the mail pieces are enhanced with tactile finishes, personalized content, and strategic timing. Research shows that direct mail delivers conversion rates up to 10% higher than any other marketing channel.
“Direct mail is evolving. It’s no longer just a channel — it’s a performance driver, especially when used with other marketing channels, said Andrew Schipke, Vice President of Marketing and Strategic Sales at BW Converting. “With advances in automation, data-driven personalization, and the science of touch and smell, direct mail today delivers a level of engagement that digital can’t replicate.”
Visitors to BW Converting‘s booth will explore how envelopes, print finishing, and mail inserting are evolving to meet the demands of modern direct mail. BW Converting’s W+D and Baldwin brand technologies will be featured through print samples that highlight the power of touch. Experts will be available to discuss strategies for maximizing ROI through targeted, sensory-driven direct-mail campaigns.
On-Press Embellishments
Today, many print buyers want print that is super-special. But they may not be willing to radically extend their delivery dates or boost their budgets to obtain embellishments. So, some digital-press manufacturers are adding a 5th or 6th toner station to their basic CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) print toners so that short to mid-range runs of materials can be printed and embellished in a single pass. With these devices, the printed sheets don’t have to loaded onto a separate device.
Amplify Print attendees can see how this works during a Technology Zone demonstration of the Fujifilm Revoria Press SC285S.
With its ability to apply specialty toners from a fifth color station, the FUJIFILM Revoria Press SC285S toner digital press for can print and embellish personalized graphics on items ranging from small cards to long 12-in. wide banners. It can handle a wide range of materials, including lightweight and heavy paper, textured papers, envelopes, cardboard, and water-resistant synthetic papers.
The fifth toner station can apply an overlay layer of a pink, white, gold, silver, or clear toner to create the desired effect.
At Amplify Print, Fujifilm experts will demonstrate the types of in-line embellishments that can be easily and previewed with Fujifilm’s Revoria Flow Digital Front End.
Metallic Papers
Unifoil’s Unilustre® is a collection of recyclable metallized papers and boards. The Unilustre materials can give packages and labels the visual impact of foil and film laminates without having to run the prints through a laminator. Unilustre® also prints, scores and folds as easily as paper.
At Amplify Print, designers can see how Color-Logic digital-print embellishment software can be used to create a full spectrum of special effects when Unifoil Unilustre DL metallic stock is printed with the toners on the Sharp DP-1200S digital press.
Sharp’s 6-toner 1200S press uses traditional CMYK to print the graphics plus two specialty toners to create underlayers or overlayers. Specialty toner options include gold, silver, bright pink, white, and clear.
Color-Logic Directof of Marketing Mark Geeves says “Graphic designers can create truly remarkable and impactful visual experiences for their clients’ marketing pieces” by combining the metallic finish of Unilustre DI, the precision printing capability of the Sharp DP-1200S, and the power of Color-Logic embellishment software.
Versatile Finishing Equipment
Konica-Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A. will discuss their scalable portfolio of digital embellishment solutions, including the compact AccurioShine 3600 embellishment printer, the JETVarnish Evolution Industrial, for commercial print-service providers and the MGI AlphaJet for integration into factory production lines.
Every product can create textured surfaces or raised text or graphic elements and apply spot UV gloss or matte varnishes. Foil effects can be added to the variable data elements that personalize each printed piece.
“We’re extremely excited to highlight our full line of embellishment solutions at AMPLIFY Print and share all the ways we are empowering our customers with the knowledge and solutions they need to lead the market in embellishment excellence,” said Frank Mallozzi, President, Industrial and Production Print, Konica Minolta. “Many clients have found remarkable success using JETVarnish and 3D technology to increase their margins and revenues on applications such as brochures, business cards, and invitations. They have also entered profitable new markets such as book publishing, packaging, and labels.”
“The future of printing is digital — and embellishment. The move to embellishment solutions has been especially important for packaging printing businesses and converters that cater to brand owners,” said Sean Roberts, National Director, Digital Embellishment, Konica Minolta. “The global market in embellishments is growing at 6 to 8 percent annually and the specialty print market is projected to grow to $45 billion by 2028.”
For more information, visit: https://amplifyprint.org/attend
Conference Organizers
WhatTheyThink is a non-profit membership organization serving the broader printing industry. As an independent voice of the industiry, the organization publishes WhatTheyThink.com, WhatTheyThink Email Newsletters, and WhatTheyThink magazine. A section of their website is dedicated to Finishing & Embellishment.
The Foil and Specialty Effects Association is a resource and educational platform for traditional and digital print decorating technologies, including foil stamping, embossing, cold foil technologies, specialty coatings, laminates and laser cutting. They publish PostPress magazine for professionals involved in print decorating, finishing, and binding.