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talks to... Neil Felton,


With Fespa Global Expo 2024 and its sister shows about to open their doors in Amsterdam, it seemed the perfect time to ask Fespa chief Neil Felton a few strategic questions - about the show, but also about the federation’s work and plans.


Fespa has become very well-known and respected so it’s understandable that you want to retain the name. But as it stands for ‘Federation of European Screen Printing Associations’ isn’t a name change due? We’re extremely proud of our heritage in screen printing, but the Fespa brand has continued to grow and develop with the markets we represent, and to embrace relevant new verticals. Alongside screen printing, which is still a core part of Fespa, we also cover a broad range of printing processes such as digital wide-format and textile printing. The Fespa brand is well established and widely recognised in its own right and we’re well known in the market, with many of our stakeholders not even being aware that it was originally an acronym. Fespa is the name of the organisation, but it’s also integral to a portfolio of well-established event brands, from our flagship Fespa Global Print Expo to our regional events in Eurasia, Africa, Brazil, Mexico and now the Middle East. Many of our associations also carry the Fespa name, so


it’s important for our entire global organisation to retain it. So while our focus has evolved and broadened to reflect the more diverse businesses we serve today, we’re as committed to our name as we are to supporting these communities to grow and develop.


Fespa’s website says ‘the co-located Fespa Global Print Expo is Europe’s leading exhibition for the speciality print community’ and goes on to state visitors will see ‘developments and new opportunities in areas including wide-format printing, digital printing, offset printing, textile printing, direct-to-garment printing, embroidery, signage and much more’. As the show continues to extend its reach how are you defining ‘speciality print’?


‘Speciality print’ to me describes niche printing markets that have strong, continued potential for growth and that offer something different to commercial printing. Exciting innovations in technology, materials and


inks, and creative new applications are coming to market every year in all the areas we cover - from screen printing, with its expansion into hybrid carousels, to the huge growth potential of the textile printing industry, to the significant opportunities in wrapping. And these fast-growing, creative, entrepreneurial segments are the focus of Fespa events.


12 | April/May 2024


To what extent do Fespa’s 37 member associations - and their own respective memberships (of printers as well as manufacturers) - impact how Fespa develops its shows? As an organisation Fespa is run by printers for printers - our board members are leaders of print businesses across a variety of segments from retail graphics to textiles to labels to industrial applications. So the insight into the business reality in the segments we serve comes from the top. We are constantly in close contact with our associations


and take on board their feedback on how we can enhance Fespa events to support their members’ needs. Our members are undoubtedly our most trusted source of market intelligence on the latest trends, opportunities and challenges, because they’re operating in the field, day in and day out.


This closeness to our community is what makes Fespa and our events so unique. We have access to printers via 37 national associations across the globe, giving us their input on the events and educational resources they would value. The community also allows us to tap into trends and identify future challenges and opportunities, through regional and global research initiatives such as the Fespa Print Census. Having direct routes to gather market insight from real print businesses in so many different geographies is really powerful. Our members are motivated to provide feedback and


input, because every bit of information they share with us ultimately benefits them. The more we know, the better we can tailor our offering, from the educational resources and content we provide, to the local association projects, to our global events.


Getting back to Fespa Global 2024 and co-located shows, you obviously aim to bring in new visitors as well as new exhibitors. What kind of percentage of visitors do you expect to be ‘professional’ printers this time around? And are you doing anything to facilitate networking opportunities between the various visitor types? We anticipate that, as in previous years, a high percentage of visitors to Fespa 2024 will be senior decision-makers from professional print businesses, with the remainder comprising consumer brand owners, creative agencies, distributors and print buyers. Additionally, this year, we’re looking to attract students to the events as part of our youth engagement initiatives hosted by associations to engage the next generation of printers.


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