Printshape LLC

Printshape LLC is a wide-format print shop with its "Production and warehouse located in Fort Washington, PA," that sells online and works with resellers as well as trade clients. The homepage calls it a "Large format print professional" and says it is "a leading provider of wide-format printing services in Philadelphia area." For a seller, the relevant part is its fulfillment offer: "We offer custom packaging and blind drop shipping. Nationwide and worldwide." The company names "Amazon and Etsy sellers" among its customers, next to "advertising Agencies and Design Studios," "Architects and Builders," "Artists and Decor specialist," "Startups and Brands, and other print professionals."

What a seller gets

Printshape is not a catalog of blank T-shirts with a sync app. It is a production shop with a very wide list of large-format products, an online store with a design tool, and a shipping service that can send the finished piece to the seller's customer in plain or custom packaging. For wall art and home decor sellers, the core lines are wallpaper, murals, posters and canvas.

Wallpaper and murals. The wallpaper range covers wallpaper panels, peel and stick wallpaper panels, wallpaper rolls, peel and stick wallpaper rolls, single panel wall murals, wall murals and custom sized murals. A wallpaper sample product and a "Wholesale Wallpaper" listing sit alongside them. The homepage summary of its range starts with "Wallpaper, Murals, Borders and wall Wrap." The blog includes guides on custom wallpaper, peel and stick wallpaper, wallpaper panels and custom border printing.

Posters and wall art. The poster range lists photo prints, paper posters, custom size posters, special posters, custom peel and stick poster prints, backlits, custom magnetic vinyl, a chalk peel and stick poster, a snap poster hanger, architectural blueprints and maps. The Wall Art section lists wrapped canvas, canvas prints and art prints. The homepage says posters and banners come "with 30+ material options."

Rigid materials and specialty prints. Beyond paper and vinyl, Printshape prints on rigid stock: aluminum composite material, foam board, PVC, acrylic, coroplast and PALBOARD, plus direct printed glass, 3D print on glass and stained glass, 3D dome printing with raised ink, raised ink and textured 3D elevated prints, kitchen backsplashes and printed ceiling light tiles. The homepage lists "Art print on Glass, Wood, Metal, Tile, Plastics." For an artist who wants to sell a piece on glass or acrylic instead of paper, this is where Printshape differs from a poster-only supplier.

Cutting. A CNC and laser cut section covers acrylic, coroplast, foam board, metal, PVC and wood. The company says its "laser accurate cutting machines" can cut "numerous types of paper, vinyl, PVC, films, canvas, backlits, banners, and more" and that it is "continually adding new surfaces."

Everything else. The rest of the catalog is signage and event print: PVC, fabric and canvas banners, step and repeat backdrops, tension fabric and retractable banner stands, floor decals and asphalt stickers, vinyl pool stickers, window clings, double sided window stickers and perforated window film, vehicle wraps, window decals, bumper stickers, building and wall wraps, yard signs, A-frame signs, real estate frames, promo stands, shelf banners, apparel stickers, printed tablecloths and event posters. The homepage says window and floor graphics go "up to 100 ft size." There is even a 3D printing service for replacement parts and prototypes, using materials "from PLA and Carbon Fiber Polycarbonate to flexible rubber and metal."

How ordering works

The Ordering panel on the homepage reads: "Choose from 50+ materials and place an order online. Upload your file or create one with our simple and powerful Online Design tool." Orders go through a customer account with a shopping cart, and a site search covers both products and templates. Bigger or unusual jobs go through a "Request a Quote" form linked from every page. The site also lets customers browse by material (paper prints, peel and stick materials, custom fabric printing and non-paper films).

Design help is offered as a service: "We can help to prepare your files for printing, split large Mural, adjust Wallpaper repeat, create 3D textured stain glass..." For a seller selling murals, that file work (splitting a large image into panels and matching the repeat) is often the hardest part, and Printshape offers to do it.

Shipping is the part that makes it usable for a seller. "We offer custom packaging and blind drop shipping," the homepage says, which means the parcel goes to the seller's customer without Printshape's name on it, and the packaging can carry the seller's branding. Coverage is given as "Nationwide and worldwide." The footer links to a Shipping Policy and a Returns and Refunds page.

Print quality claims

Three points appear under the heading "What Makes Us Different?"

• 1800 dpi printing. "With UV gel LED technology, we can print magazine quality on a wide range of materials in gloss and matte finish." The company also says it values "color matching and consistency" and that its ink is "vivid, durable, and odorless" and, by the company's own guarantee, good for 3 years of outdoor use without lamination.
• Precise cutting. Its laser cutting machines, the company says, cut precisely "on any size material."
• 3D printing. Parts, prototypes or "a whole assembly with joins and electronics."

The company adds that "Our team of experienced professionals is dedicated to delivering exceptional results," promises "Fair price and quick turn-around," and says it likes complex projects with uncommon materials, several printing techniques and unusual design choices.

Samples and support

"Order a sample to see the difference," the homepage says, and the Samples menu sells sample sets by type: peel and stick materials, paper, rigid and special samples, plus a separate wallpaper sample. For a seller choosing a wallpaper or poster stock to list, ordering the relevant sample set is the obvious first step.

Customer care is pitched on experience: "With 50+ years of combined printing experience, we can help with almost any print related questions." The contact details on the site are support@printshape.com, the phone line 484-624-6860 and the address 555 Virginia Drive, Fort Washington, PA 19034. The site also runs a customer login, an FAQ and a blog.

Who Printshape suits

Printshape suits sellers of large-format decor who need more than paper: mural and wallpaper shops, artists who want to sell on acrylic, glass or metal, and brands that need signage or event print alongside their wall art. Amazon and Etsy sellers are named customers, and blind drop shipping with custom packaging lets them keep their own brand on the parcel. The design service for splitting murals and matching wallpaper repeats is useful for anyone selling custom-sized wall coverings.

It suits less well a seller who wants an app that pulls orders in automatically from a store: ordering here is through Printshape's own site, design tool and quote form. The homepage prints no prices, so a seller planning margins should price a few products through the store or the quote form first. For a seller who needs wallpaper, murals or specialty rigid prints produced in Pennsylvania and shipped under their own name, it is a capable production partner.