A Millcraft Paper Experience

Over the last decade, the design industry has been privy to a massive shift in the use, implementation, and overall reliance on paper. At this year’s Millcraft Paper Show suppliers such as French Paper Co. and Sappi showcased powerful displays to the 550 guests, substantiating a statement that proved to be the underlying theme to the event: Long Live Paper. Terri Price-Deep, Business Development/Marketing Agent, unveiled the motivation behind this year’s concept, “Print is everywhere! We wanted to celebrate print as an important element of any marketing campaign.” This idea helped drive a sense of optimism throughout the event, inviting individuals from every industry to take a look at how much impact continues to be instituted with the use of paper products.

Texturizing paper is a simple concept that has been transformed time and again to create a considerable amount of originality and brand presence. The presentations this year, however, brought to light new ways vendors can creatively implement. With a deep understanding of what will shine amongst the competition, French Paper Co. showcased the innovative ability to layer embossed designs atop a variety of trending colorways, paving a new course for print.

You’re only as good as your first impression.

Brands continue to push themselves to showcase the very best with every new endeavor; the pressure seems to only amplify on a medium that is perceived to be failing out. Working to provide a breadth of explanation and allure to this year’s event, Millcraft dedicated two rooms filled with a variety of vendors. These vendors elucidated the future of paper, redefining its role within any industry, and how prevalent it should be within every area of design.

The concept behind Long Live Paper has a relatively powerful meaning. Reps, vendors, and even designers worked to showcase the influence paper has in multiple forms; bridging the nostalgia with the nuanced, the creative with the mundane, and the simplistic with the unexpected. The theme unearthed a sense of inspiration and cultivation. Many brands take to online, social, and digital because in this day and age it seems to be what’s necessary; however, if a brand truly wants to surprise, it has to do something unexpected. So, why not something depth of design?

Sappi, for example, understood this market’s inability to focus for more than five seconds on a direct mailer, so it used that problem as the basis for its campaign. The 5 Seconds campaign caught the interest of just about every guest, resetting the mindset of the undefined areas of paper. This impactful manipulation of paper helped establish a new weight to the medium and just how much can be done to take advantage of its presence.

Millcraft took this overused, under substantiated claim surrounding the retail apocalypse and reformatted it to relate to its own industry. Every customer appreciates unexpected, surprising experiences, no matter the execution; the general concept of experience can be infused into any form of media. The comeback of paper is one we cannot ignore; take time to figure out what experiences you can uncover by joining the Long Live Paper movement!

Photos: Millcraft Paper Co. | Paper Specs