Squid is a unique and patented self-adhesive transparent textile for the decoration of windows and other glass surfaces. It was developed for the interior design market when the owner of mother company Lampe Textiles was looking for a semi-permanent privacy solution for his son’s boarding room at university.
FESPA Berlin 2018
After last year’s participation in FESPA 2017, the Belgian company returns to FESPA Global Print Expo 2018 in Berlin to expand its distributor range and feel the market for some novelty textile teasers.
The woven textile proved to be functionally luxurious and quickly caught the attention of renowned interior designers like Axel Vervoordt. It is currently used by designers and architects all over the world in numerous applications as a high-end alternative for frosted window film or complementing other window decorations. It is available in five colours and comes in rolls of 1,3m x 50m. The aesthetic technicality pushed the solution to success, which led to the inevitable personalisation route.
Johan Bonner, director at Squid elaborated, ‘We came across some people who asked if they could tailor it with a favourite pattern or image. That’s how we ended up testing Squid for print. As it turns out, it’s perfectly printable and delivers a double-sided effect after printing. When printed, it becomes an interior one-way vision alternative.’
Custom and tailored looks
Consumers and professionals alike spotted the potential of the solution as a communication medium to create custom and tailored looks. Squid seized the moment and participated in FESPA 2017 to feel the market and scout opportunities. Bonner commented, ‘This is a unique product and we aim to extrapolate the beauty it generates in interior design to the print market in order to elevate commercial print applications. We can supply the substrate, we’re now looking for additional distributors and partners at FESPA 2018 to help us match beauty with quality thanks to the power of print.’
Squid is the only print medium in the market that is self-adhesive, transparent and textile woven. As such, it is a high-end alternative for frosted window film and offers a more qualitative and stylish way of branding or personalising a house, office, restaurant, hotel and hospital.
Squid is suitable for UV printing and eco-solvent. Latex printing is due very soon. Finishing can be achieved with a laser cutter or cutting plotter. The textile itself is 100% polyester, woven, antibacterial and fire-retardant (M1/B1). The solvent-free acrylic glue is two-layered so it can be used in humid surroundings. It is temperature and pressure-sensitive as well as UV resistant. Squid is currently used as a privacy or sun protection solution, communication-wayfinding, decoration solution and, in smaller applications, as a projector screen, table cloth or wallpaper solution.
Johan Bonner concluded, ‘We’re astonished by the ingenuity of Squid applications, to be honest. It’s not just the one solution, its range keeps on expanding. It’s been very rewarding to see how the quality of the product gets lifted by the beauty of its applications. It truly is the perfect additional product for companies that are already providing interior decoration solutions and are looking to differentiate their offering. We’re currently expanding our infrastructure, products and range. I’m excited about pitching the next novelties to the FESPA audience and seeing what the future of print will do for the future of interior design.’
Upcoming FESPA events include FESPA Africa, the region’s largest, focused exhibition for wide format digital printing, screen printing, garment decoration and textile printing, which is co-located with Sign Africa and Africa Print, the region’s leading events for the signage industry. The event is taking place from 12-14 September 2018 at Gallagher Convention Centre, Johannesburg.
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