ImagesMagUK_Digital-Edition_January2018

www.images-magazine.com 100 images JANUARY 2018 Marshall Atkinson gets his forecasting hat on and shares his top six industry predictions for 2018 with the online marketplace demanding immediate shipping, shops are staring down the need for speed. Can you ship orders the same day or next? No? Well, that’s coming, so get ready. Any app, consumable, gizmo or equipment that is marketed for performance or efficiency will be aimed squarely at solving this challenge. That’s why so many decorated apparel companies are eyeing digital technology for printing, and why the equipment manufacturers have been steadily A hhh. A new year. To me, it’s like enjoying the sunrise view from a beautiful terrace while sipping on a fresh cup of coffee. Birds are singing. Life is grand. Plenty of things can happen, and we all wonder how the day will turn out. Let the adventure begin! So how will the decorated apparel industry take to this new year? Are you as excited as I am? I’ve got my crystal ball fired up with some new batteries, so let’s see what might happen! Online production speed Because of the advent of the physical store retail apocalypse, the continuing trend is still going to see massive sales occur online. Customers have been learning that you can get purchases quickly. And with every purchase online they are being trained that you don’t need to go to a store. This puts tremendous pressure on reducing order production turn-times. Gone are the days when shops had ten business days to turn orders. Now, Crystal ball gazing BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT