search.noResults

search.searching

dataCollection.invalidEmail
note.createNoteMessage

search.noResults

search.searching

orderForm.title

orderForm.productCode
orderForm.description
orderForm.quantity
orderForm.itemPrice
orderForm.price
orderForm.totalPrice
orderForm.deliveryDetails.billingAddress
orderForm.deliveryDetails.deliveryAddress
orderForm.noItems
Decorator Profile


Snuggle by name, Snuggle by nature?


What do you think of when you hear the word snuggle? Kids clothing, soft toys, a fabric conditioner? I’m sure it’s not high-volume direct to garment printing. P&P editor Melanie Attlesey speaks with the directors of Snuggle, Akil Thathia and Shabbir Maimoon, to find out more about their growing business.


company name. “Itʼs not one youʼre going to forget in a hurry.” The same can be said for Akil and Shabbir – they are two guys you will not forget in a hurry. In his previous life Akil ran a mobile phone business, while Shabbir ran a dry cleaners. The two cousins made the decision in 2011 to form their own business and start selling personalised gifts such as mobile phone and tablet cases, coasters and placemats.


“I


After seeing how lucrative the personalisation market was, the pair decided to add to their business and start producing decorated garments. For the two men this meant making the move into DTG printing. Initially Akil and Shabbir purchased a couple of Texjet printers from Amaya Sales UK, before working their way up to owning seven of these. “We couldnʼt keep up with demand, so needed to explore other options,” says Shabbir. Snuggle works as a trade printer, fulfilling orders and prints from other garment


decorators, primarily screen printers and embroiderers. This meant that as business grew through word of mouth, the guys needed a printer or printers that could keep up with demand.


Big purchases


After researching the market, the pair purchased their first Kornit Storm Hexa from Adelco in May 2017. The introduction of a printer that pre-treats internally saved the team a lot of down time and costly errors. The ease of use was another major factor as the time spent


www.printwearandpromotion.co.uk


tʼs a very random word, but itʼs memorable,” says Akil when trying to explain the origin of the


Akil Thathia and Shabbir Maimoon with their Avalanche HD6s


training staff was dramatically reduced.


Akil and Shabbir were so


impressed with the machine, as were their


customers due to the quality of the prints


produced, that they


purchased their second Storm Hexa in August 2017.


Previously using the desktop-style


Texjet printers meant the team could comfortably produce around 600 to 700 prints a day. This number increased with the introduction of the two Storm Hexas to around 1,500 a day at full capacity. But they didnʼt stop there and with


demand continuously on the up, they needed a printer which could allow them to print even more while maintaining the high level of quality that Snuggle had become renowned for.


Cue the purchase of two Kornit


Avalanche HD6 high-volume direct to garment printers from Adelco. The Avalanche HD6 was released into the market to great reception at the beginning of the year and as a result only a handful of printers in the UK have so far got their hands on this robust printing system. Now the team of 14 can comfortably carry out an average of 1,900 prints a day, with plans eventually to run the machines 24 hours a day at full capacity to achieve a total of 3,500 prints.


Getting the machines in the building wasnʼt an easy task. It took three days and the removal of internal walls to ensure there was adequate space to manoeuvre around the printers and to get access to the ink containers on the side.


Shabbir explains why they purchased these two printers in particular: “We were


October 2018 | 55 |


Avalanche HD6 ● Print heads: 20


Key features of the


● Maximum printing resolution: Up to 1,200dpi


● Ink channels: Six colours CMKYRG + white


● Ink recirculation system: Integrated


● Neopigment ink containers: Bulk ink system supporting four litre ink containers


● Maximum production output: Light garments: 150. Dark garments: 110


● Printing area: Up to 60x90cm


● Printable substrates: Cotton, polyester, poly-cotton blends, Lycra, viscose, silk, leather, denim, linen, wool and more


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96