With all of the advancements and discussion around value-added print and embellishments, it’s hard to ignore the pressure (and excitement) of going all-in on the latest and greatest equipment in the category. However, I’ve always been a fan of a crawlwalk-run strategy, and in our industry, there is truly something for every budget. So, in that spirit, I’ve compiled an overview of the field of opportunities to get into embellishments, or if you’re already in, a pathway to upgrade to the next level.

We’ll look at foil, varnishes/coatings and cutting embellishment categories, with equipment separated into entry, mid and high investment cost. In this exploration, price is not a reflection of quality. Quality is a given. Pricing categories generally reflect increased speed, features, automation and size. This is not an exhaustive list—so, please look at this like a good starting point for your print embellishment equipment research.

The obvious starting point for foil would be hot and cold foil stamping, which is a mature category in our industry, so I’m going to focus on the newer foil and shimmer technologies for this exploration. These technologies include inkjet foil, metallic toners and toner foiling.