The Future Is Bright for Digital Textile Printing
While this prediction by Smithers Pira is aggressive, it’s certainly within the realm of possibility, and the firm has done its homework. As the price of digital textile printing falls, and the quality and customizability of these products continue to rise, you can expect to see a giant boom in this market segment in the next half decade and beyond as growth levels off but continues to rise steadily.
The digital garment printing industry is starting to make its stamp within the larger printing industry. It has enjoyed significant growth in recent years and it looks set to grow even further in the future. Smithers Pira predicts double digit growth across 2016-2021, and is therefore making the digital textile printing one of the most exciting market opportunities in the print and textile industry.
Growth Opportunities
The company’s new report, The Future of Digital Textile Printing to 2021, forecasts an average annual growth rate of 12.3 per cent and expects the global market to more than double in value over the next five years, from nearly $2 billion in 2016 to more than $4 billion in 2021 (all figures in Canadian dollars). The soft signage and display materials sector is expected to maintain double-digit growth during that period, but the largest increase is expected in the clothing and household textile sector. This rapid and lucrative market expansion is being fuelled by a series of factors, including technical innovations and evolving end-user demands. The market in 2016 for the digital textiles market share was about 2.8% of the overall print volume. But the digital print share is set to boom in a segment where the mean growth is just 3%.
According to the Smithers Pira report, “The greatest acceleration across the study period will be in clothing, which has the key sub-segments of fashion, haute couture and sportswear. Household textiles are predicted to grow at the next fastest rate. Displays and signage are growing somewhat more slowly – from a larger base – but will maintain double digit annual growth across the Smithers study period, which will convert into the largest absolute increase in value for 2016-2021. Technical textiles will lose ground slightly, which is indicative of a lack of visibility of, or focus on, these smaller niche markets.”
Mike Horsten, GM of Marketing at Mimaki EMEA says, “There is a big change happening in textile printing. This is being driven by a number of factors, including the advancements in digital textile printers and inks, as well as the demand for shorter runs, faster cycle times and more customized textile-based products for home and fast fashion. Digital textile printing addresses these market requirements and offers a new, greener way to produce outstanding textiles.”
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Other factors
Quick turnaround is an increasing priority as the fashion segment embraces multiple mini-seasons and print-on-demand delivery models, said the report. This specifically suits inkjet production with its reduced set-up times. It’s also supported by the growing availability of web-to-print platforms. These portals are also enabling “value web” approaches – generating direct online sales of digitally printed clothing, and increasingly household décor as well. Finally, global textile industry dynamics are changing and the importance of Asian economies continues to increase.
Digital textile printing inks contribute to dynamic industry growth
Digital textile printing methods have contributed to an emergent industry and its growth has augmented the progress of the digital textile printing inks market. The inks that are used on small garments as well as on large format rolls of textiles have earned widespread popularity across various applications. The increase in the demand for 3D printing technologies has also boosted the market for digital textile printing inks, whether for clothing, household technical textiles, or displays. The development of various fashion trends has also augmented the growth of this market.
The global digital textile printing inks market was evaluated at $698 million in 2016. It is further expected to reach the impressive figure of $2.114 million by 2023. According to Allied Market Research, this would happen with a projected CAGR of 17.2% in the forecast period. The industry is expected to grow at a swift pace, owing to the rise in the number of investments by top market players. Moreover, the R&D projects that focus on better, cost-effective digital textile printing ink formulations are expected to provide ample growth opportunities for the entire market.