A visual feast

Celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, Viscom offers three shows dedicated to the visual communications and graphics industry, each providing extensive access to the visual communication market across the whole of Europe.

These are exhibitions where people come to actively do business on the exhibition floor, and learn about the impact of new technologies and marketing through the series of market-orientated educational sessions that are on offer.

On the catwalks of Paris
 
With three major events to consider this year, we will begin with Viscom Paris, where, in 2016, nearly 9,000 visitors attended to meet 130 exhibitors from a range of industries and expertise.

Building on the experience and appeal of previous shows, Viscom Paris 2017 aims to reflect new trends in visual communications, from concept and design to final delivery, together with master classes and networking opportunities.



Solutions and techniques linked to image have evolved with the development of technology, digitalisation, increasing consumer perception, and societal codes, and Viscom offers new opportunities to all sectors of the industry that need to adapt and to identify new markets.

“As a starting point for any communication, the image represents the DNA of brands and is part of the daily life of consumers,” says Viscom Paris director, Brune Jullien, who adds: “It provides emotional concentration and is the identity of a brand and its history helping to increase awareness, create a link, attract, and build loyalty.


“Responding to our market pro-actively, and benefitting from nearly 30 years’ experience, we make a major effort to anticipate trends in order to develop our offering from one show to the next. While maintaining our core activity—visual communication and the graphics industry—we cultivate our capabilities for adaptation in order to open up the exhibition to all solutions offered by the image.”

Image is, therefore, the anchor point of the 2017 exhibition. With a new visual identity that gives the image a central role it will also have a strong appeal for communication and design agencies, interior designers, architects, and advertisers.

“They will find a source of inspiration thanks to a stronger global offering and a programme that allows them to focus on all the possibilities offered by the image,” Jullien says, adding: “Suppliers of digital and offset printers, indoor and outdoor signs, digital media, signage, textiles, engraving, marking, and cutting all provide solutions for their projects.

“With a strong identity and a global offering which extends to all aspects of the image, from visual conception through to the delivery of the final product, Viscom Paris is the business meeting place for suppliers and users of visual communications and the graphics industry.”

Setting trends in Milan

This year’s Viscom Italia in Milan will boost the visual communication industry in all its facets as exhibitors share new technology solutions with more than 18,000 expected visitors from 60 countries.


Paola Sarco, exhibition manager for Viscom Italia, comments: “We will stage an exhibition that aims to provide a direct comparison of experiences, knowledge and above all sharing common goals to meet the new needs of professionals and of all those who are looking for new ideas to innovate and create competitive advantage.

“Through new formats and events, the 2017 show will be a fair that becomes the main place to promote new creative projects, exchange ideas with leaders in the market, and explore and learn new models of communication to expand their business.


“Viscom Italia will be a source of information on the leading trends in the visual communication market. Thanks to the outstanding and timely content, Viscom Italia stands out as more than a trade fair, but rather an event that explores every single expressive level involved in the development of visual languages.”

Fresh visions and new enthusiasm will be revealed by the four main events featured at the show: Viscom Talks, Viscom Live, DIVA (Display Italia Viscom Award), and Elementaria.

Viscom Talks constitutes an information platform for ideas and thoughts, all focused on creativity, innovation, marketing strategies, and new visual languages, and their role as a ‘cross roads’ of culture, economy, and professions of our age. Distinguished guest speakers will share creative ideas that have turned into success stories that will help delegates to understand how new markets can evolve and how to seize the chance to develop professionally.

Viscom Live features the ‘city’ of visual communications—Viscom City Live. Described by Viscom Italia as ‘the world’s most creative metropolis’, it offers an opportunity for those who want to experiment with products, materials, and the innumerable solutions that can be realised through technologies delivered by exhibitors.
 
Sarco comments: “Printed designs on soft furnishings, fabrics and other materials, promotional items, printed t-shirts and embroidered clothing, point-of-sale displays, digital signage solutions, and personalised products will liven up our new city full of bars, shops, shop windows, streets, buildings, parks, and much else besides.”

DIVA Display Italia Viscom Award is an international competition that aims to showcase creativity, solutions, and ground-breaking materials to reward the best point-of-sale display solutions. Producers of POS materials, design studios, creative agencies, brand-name manufacturers, and retail professionals, will be participating in the competition for the best-in-class display in five categories—durable and non-durable display solutions, digital signage devices, packaging, vending, and shop fitting.

The public, along with a panel of communication experts, will be voting for their favourites and declare the DIVA 2017 winners.

Finally, the very successful Elementaria will make a comeback. This event aims to highlight high-level design prototypes and provide an overview of the most creative display solutions for stores that this year will be devoted to the ‘Bellessere’ world (the beauty world).


 
Internationally renowned artists, talented designers, and raw material manufacturers come together to create unique display projects, forging trends that will shape tomorrow’s retail industry and leading brands in the sector.
 
In addition, a major new feature at Viscom Italia 2017 is V-Connect, a ‘match-making’ programme that will connect visitors directly with exhibitors to create new business opportunities. After, pre-registration visitors will receive an email suggesting operators and producers that may be of interest to them. Visitors will have an advance overview of the exhibitors and their products, so that they can optimise their time at the show.



Sharing Drupa ground

Meanwhile, in Germany this year, exhibitors and visitors to Viscom Düsseldorf will be able to profit from several new business events.

Petra Lassahn, Viscom Düsseldorf director, says: “Innovation and inspiration for the international advertising industry—that’s what Viscom stands for. From October 18th to 20th, Europe’s trade fair for visual communication will bring a breath of fresh air to the end-of-year business.”

This year, the new premium print programme brings together providers of print technology and machinery with top industry decision makers on the user side.

Lassahn explains: “This exclusive event gives participants a chance in a tranquil setting to negotiate concrete orders, discuss projects or explore potential opportunities for co-operation. However, exhibitors and visitors preferring to make appointments on their own can use Viscom’s new online ‘match-making’ tool which is accessible for registered exhibitors and visitors only.”

Major features of the 2017 show will be the new Digital Printing Focus Day and the Brand Communication School.

Each day, the emphasis of the trade fair will shift to a specific theme. Kicking off the trade fair will be the premiere of the Digital Printing Focus Day, where service providers, advertising technicians, and interior designers can learn more about real world orientated best practices, workflow, and logistics solutions as well as new business opportunities. It will provide the environment to introduce innovations, explain backgrounds, and share know-how, and will promote the exchange of knowledge between manufacturers and users.

On the second day, the spotlight will be on POS retail solutions, digital marketing, and displays, while specialist information on all things advertising technology, and retail furnishing and fitting will be the main topic on day three.
 
Packaging communicates in both visual and tactile terms, and product packaging can be the final element that influences shoppers in their purchasing decision. So what should packaging look like to make shoppers fall for the product? This question will be answered at Viscom’s new format Brand Communication School, where packaging and display designers will have the opportunity to meet international brands and product managers. It will focus on networking and continuous education about shopping and point-of-sale.

Lassahn adds: “Extra inspiration will be provided by the special Superstar Award 2017 area, which will showcase the impressive number of 100 best practice examples of goods carrier solutions. The Superstars awards in Gold, Silver, and Bronze will be presented in 17 categories at a ceremony on the second day of Viscom. To the tune of 200 guests from industry, branded products manufacturing, retail, and trade press are expected to attend.”

Displaying their wares

Among UK-based companies that will be represented at Viscom 2017 are Duplo International, Perspex, and Brett Martin.

Duplo has provided innovative solutions to the print finishing industry for many years and today offers a comprehensive portfolio of finishing equipment across Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

The company’s range of solutions includes saddle stitchers, bookletmakers, perfect binders, sheet feeders, collators, digital cutter/creaser/slitters, UV coaters, folders, guillotines, and digital duplicators. Duplo is also the UK distributor for PBT, IDEAL, Powis, Fujipla, and Multigraf products.
 
At Viscom Italia, Duplo will give visitors the chance to preview the new Du Sense Sensory Coater prior to its official launch later in the year. The Duplo Du Sense is designed for embellishing short-run digital print with highly creative and intricate special effects, at a fraction of the cost of alternative analogue technologies.



The machine adds a range of print embellishment effects beyond simply spot UV to the digital printer’s arsenal, enabling them to apply enhanced impact and appeal to their printed work. Equipped with high definition 600dpi heads, the system can easily handle both heavy solids and fine detail in the same pass. It has the proven sheet feeder of the Duplo DC-746 cutter/creaser, and can produce up to 1080 B3 sheets per hour. Camera registration operates to 0.2mm accuracy, with automatic adjustment for every sheet.

Peter Jolly, managing director of Duplo UK, comments: “The opportunity to differentiate oneself from competitors in today’s market is critical. Print is competing with many different media channels and must work harder to ensure it works effectively as a means of communication and information. At the same time, trends point towards a continuing reduction in run lengths and turnaround times.

“In such a situation, the Duplo Du Sense comes into its own. It allows customers to offer new applications and grow their profits through delivering high value finished printed products. Many will be able to take work requiring high definition sensory coating in-house for the first time, giving them control of costs and time, and improving security and profitability.



Jolly adds: “This is a revolutionary new product from Duplo, totally in keeping with our well-known ethos of automated precision. However, precision and automation is the least our customers expect from us: what they really want are new revenue streams and new ways of wowing their customers with unforgettable print.

“In that regard, we believe that the Duplo Du Sense is exactly what digital printers have been looking for: not only does it produce beautiful printed products, but it does so with entry and running costs that are hugely competitive. It will be a great asset to any digital print business.”

Adding the ‘wow-factor’

Perspex will be represented at Viscom Italia by sub-distributor Eurmoma Srl, which will be demonstrating the versatile application of Perspex acrylic in both point-of-sale and signage.

The Perspex brand has established a reputation as one of the most creative, flexible, and eye-catching products in the market for corporate imaging, signage, and visual communication. With a continuous stream of new product developments and an in-house colour matching laboratory, Perspex offers a multitude of possibilities, whatever the shape, size, or project.



Jenna Harrison, brand marketing manager at Perspex, says: “Viscom Italia’s diverse audience of designers, sign-makers, and manufacturers are ideal as each takes a different approach to working with Perspex acrylic: from edge effects and textures, to products specifically optimised for back-lit or edge-lit lighting to meet the demands of today’s sign market, with an added ‘wow-factor’.”

The Perspex brand brings together all products specifically optimised for lighting in visual communication, display, and signage applications under one range—Perspex Illumination. These products can provide illuminated signage for any enterprise, from extra small to large poster boxes, to stand out block lettering or smaller point-of-sale units.



Harrison adds: “Thanks to its excellent light transmission, vast array of colours, and ease of fabrication, Perspex acrylic has been used in a whole array of interior and exterior lit applications for both visual communications and the lighting industry. The Perspex Illumination range enables sign-makers, specifiers, and designers to enjoy the benefits of LEDs to create elegant designs that are cost and eco-efficient, whilst enhancing intensity and colour for every brand.”

Describing Perspex Sweet Pastels, Harrison also says: “These fresh pops of colour are set to tempt creators by offering a pick ‘n’ mix of mouth-watering flavours; they are vibrant, fun, and inspiring, with all the excellent physical properties of our standard cell cast acrylic sheet. All eight delicious colours were specifically developed with the retail industry in mind; lightweight and easy to install for pop up displays, yet strong, durable, and hard wearing for those more demanding interior needs.”

Vibrant markets

Meanwhile, exhibiting for the first time at Viscom Düsseldorf will be specialist plastic products manufacturer and creator of Foamalux Foam PVC, Brett Martin. The company will be showcasing its Foamalux Foam PVC, together with Marlon FS Polycarbonate, Marpet-g FS PETg, and Marcryl Acrylic Transparent Sheet ranges.

The event will provide the opportunity for the firm to demonstrate the end use capabilities of its plastic sheets in the print and display sector for the German and surrounding markets.

One of the world’s leading brands of foam PVC sheet, Foamalux has earned a reputation for quality performance in a wide variety of applications. One of the most popular Foamalux options, Foamalux White, provides a perfectly clean, crisp printing surface, resulting in a noticeably brighter print finish, achieving optimum print clarity of the highest quality. The Foamalux range comprises Foamalux White, Foamalux Colours, Foamalux Ultra, and Foamalux Xtra.



The firm’s Transparent Sheet range comprises high performance Polycarbonate, PETg, and Acrylic plastic sheets; their strength, resilience, durability, alongside their strong weathering resistance and visual clarity, make them an attractive proposition for print and display.
 
Duncan Smith, sales director at Brett Martin, says the company chose to exhibit at Viscom Düsseldorf as Germany and surrounding markets are very vibrant territories for the company.



Smith expands: “Viscom provides the perfect platform for Brett Martin’s offering. Our flexible, collaborative approach to business means our distributors, partners and end users benefit from working with a truly versatile company that is focused on delivering results that exceed customer expectations.

“Our wide range of plastic printing substrates are developed and tested in consultation with industry specialists and continually advanced to exceed emerging market requirements.”

Reasons to be cheerful

Gone are the days when taking a stand at a major exhibition almost went without saying and a visit to a show was a jolly good day out for everyone in the office. However, the internet has changed all that and exhibitions are no longer the only ‘shop window’ available.

In addition, today’s economic climate means there has to be a good reason for exhibitors to spend their hard earned budgets putting on a display and for visitors to take the time out to attend, often travelling long distances to be there. So why should exhibitors and visitors come to Viscom?

Sarco from Viscom Italia says: “Exhibiting at Viscom Italia means getting in touch with more than 18,000 professionals with high purchasing power, not only in the visual communication market but also industry design and retail.

“We are putting on an exhibition that will be not only a steadily changing laboratory aimed at bringing out creativity, promoting technical skills, and cultivating relationships, but also an international platform for exchange and professional development that links opportunities for training and group events to set the future trends of visual communication.

“We also provide our exhibitors with a range of web services to enable them to stay in touch with our community throughout the year and the opportunity to continue to generate ROI beyond the three days of the event.”

From the point of view of visitors, Sarco says Viscom Italia enables them to meet exhibitors and professional people who have fun working, and who share the same plans and ideals.


Sarco expands: “The exhibition will attract a very diverse set of visitors: from highly-skilled ones, the traditional focus of the event, such as printers, screen printers, engravers, general printers, graphic designers, to a number of new professionals and managers, not only in the visual communication business, but also from manufacturing, architecture, interior design, hypermarkets, and mass merchandisers. The show represents a sort of incubator of ideas for our visitors to develop new models of communication, personalise products, and boost business.”

Lassahn from Viscom Düsseldorf also takes up the baton: “As the annual user show for experts from the international advertising industry, Viscom is Europe’s international trade fair for visual communication and reflects the entire visual communication value chain.

O Factoid: According to trade show expert Robert B. Konikow in his book Exhibit Design, the exhibition industry can trace its roots to the ancient bazaars of the Middle East. O

 
“Printing, sign-making, textile finishing, and materials are at the centre of the printing and advertising technology exhibition area. The POS and marketing exhibition area highlights analogue and digital solutions from the display, quality and luxury packaging, interior, and digital marketing segments.”

In 2017, some 300 exhibitors and 10,000 visitors are expected to attend Viscom Düsseldorf.

Outlining the benefits of exhibiting and visiting Viscom Düsseldorf, Lassahn continues: “Some 300 exhibitors, representing large-format printing, sign-making, object design, digital marketing, display, and quality packaging, will be showcasing analogue and digital solutions for enhancing advertising messages—including internationally leading providers like Agfa, Canon, Epson, Fujifilm, and Mimaki.

“Manufacturers, retailers, and service providers will encounter about 10,000 experts and decision-makers from 75 countries. The kicker: one in two trade fair visitors come with concrete investment plans.”


With so much going on across the three shows, it seems like Viscom this year is an event not to be missed—regardless of which one you choose to attend. The big of advantage of the Viscom model is having three shows, so that if you are not able to visit one, there is the option to attend another. With all in relative close proximity to the UK, it could well be worth booking a flight now to ensure you do not miss out on the action.


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