Ribbon printer adds luxury to gifting

Nothing expresses thoughtfulness more than a sublimely wrapped gift. And prestigious, luxury brands such as Christian Dior take the art of gifting very seriously, with branded ribbons and bows often providing the finishing touches. A good 20-30% of customers prefer to visit stores and concessions where complimentary giftwrapping is offered because it makes the gift appear so much more exclusive and special. And now, thanks to a solution developed by Bryanthings in conjunction with TSC Printronix Auto ID, luxury brands can stand out even more with beautiful, foiled, customised ribbons with which to gift-wrap presents.

As a specialist in designing and creating beautiful retail displays and experiences, Bryanthings teamed up with TSC Printronix Auto ID to develop a solution called Ribbon Printer. It allows brands, at point of sale (POS), to personalise in real-time each piece of ribbon with tailor-made messages before gift-wrapping the presents, making gifts even more special and memorable.

The solution combines a tablet for the retail customer interface with a hot foil ribbon stamping system with 600dpi print resolution. Everything can be customised, from the font, layout, colour and content of the message itself to the ribbon material, its pantone colour, its width and any cut-outs. The software was developed by Bryanthings and the printer used is TSC Printronix Auto ID’s high-performance desktop, the TX600.

An application on the tablet enables the retailer or concession to select, via a simple and intuitive user interface, their desired typography, the message they want written, the brand logo and their choice of ribbon and ink colour. The tablet is connected directly to the TX600, which prints at a very sharp 600dpi resolution on 30m media for gilding and 300m satin ribbons. An optional guillotine cutter can be specified to finish the cut of the ribbon.

Retailers can choose between a 10” or 15’’ screen tablet and the solution can work on- and offline. Tutorials are available to make it easier to get started. The complete system can be either be housed in a cabinet or placed on a counter top. Bryanthings has also developed a specific packaging solution that can be personalised in line with brand colour and image.

The luxurious Ribbon Printer solution has already been implemented in more than 1,000 stores around the world. Renowned brands like Louis Vuitton, Moet & Chandon, Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, Christian Dior and Yves Saint Laurent are all using Ribbon Printer to personalise their gift packaging, as are some leading florists and chocolatiers. The solution won a prestigious Popai, an award, much prized in POS application and luxury goods.

The three models in the TX Series of thermal transfer desktop printers can support a wide range of printing applications. Each one uses a generous 300m ribbon supply and an easy drop-in media loading of 5” rolls media to save both time and money. The TX Series 4” model is ideal for printing high volume 4×6 shipping labels as well as high-resolution product marking and graphic solutions applications.

Standard interfaces include USB 2.0, USB-A Host, 10/100Mbps Ethernet and Serial connectivity. Optional communication interfaces include Bluetooth, 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi and Centronics Parallel. Printer options include a bright colour LCD display, label peel and present, and a guillotine cutter.

As with all TSC printers, the TX Series features the TSPL-EZÔ printer-control language, which is fully compatible with the most commonly used printer languages in the industry.