The Poster Factory

The Story

When we began the journey of creating sustainable art – posters made from premium bamboo paper, printed with water-based ink – we honestly didn’t immediately think of Estonia as the location for our factory.

We went about our usual journey, like we do in all our sourcing processes. We carefully reviewed a multitude of suppliers all across the world to find the partner that we felt most comfortable with when it comes to a shared view of continuously improving production and reducing the climate impact of each product.

If there’s one thing that we do really well (we think there are a few more of course but anyway) it is sourcing materials and production facilities. That’s why it takes us so much longer to get a product to the market than your average highstreet company. We spend months going over all the intricate details of the materials and the way we want to produce the products that finally end up on your doorstep.

So, after looking for a really long time without finding a printing facility that met our high standards, we decided to build our own. The sustainable art project is very close to our hearts so what better way to kick it off than to create the printing factory from scratch?

We came to the conclusion that to build the factory next door to our fulfillment centre (also referred to as our distribution centre) in Estonia, was the most brilliant idea since sliced bread. This way, the sustainable art won’t have to travel more than a few meters from production to distribution.

How we found it

Unbeknownst to many who aren’t hardcore expert, Estonia actually has a long tradition of printing and graphic design. As we explored the world of printing facilities we kept coming back to this country as the home to a great deal of expertise. We had a good experience with Estonia from before as our main European distribution centre is located here so once we decided to build our own factory, the choice of geography was an easy one!

The process and way of working

We wanted to make art that was as sustainable as it was beautiful. That is why we chose premium bamboo paper as the material to print our motifs on. Bamboo, which is actually a type of grass and not a tree or a bush as many people think, is by far one of our favourite natural materials.

Once the bamboo grass plant has matured, it can be reharvested again and again, making it a fantastic alternative to the traditional pulp paper which is a very emissions-intense way of making paper.

Our premium bamboo paper is shipped in bulk by train from China, where the bamboo grows naturally. This is the only journey any of our materials have made in the production of the posters and it is transported by train to minimise emissions.

When it comes to producing the posters, one of the main issues with the traditional poster industry is the over-production of stock. To counteract this, we built a solution where we only print what’s needed and can make sure that no precious bamboo paper goes to waste.

This actually makes every order personal as there is someone at the end of your order taking note of exactly what print and size you have decided will be perfect for your home.

The bamboo paper is then cut from a large roll to the correct size, and adorned with your chosen motif printed with water-based ink.

Where most print shops pack the rolls in shrinkwrap plastic, we went to great lengths to remove all plastic from the packaging. As such, all the packaging is made from 100% recycled materials.

Anders together with Clare and Siumin, our premium bamboo paper providers in Foshan, China.

About the owners

We really like the owners..! Well, all jokes aside, this is our own factory so we have unparalleled insight in all the daily goings-on and can model the continuous development of the factory on our own ambitions on reducing emissions.