Azutura has responded to a shift in its customer demographic owing to COVID-19 restrictions by creating a new personality-driven wall mural service, using HP Latex printers to produce high-quality artwork. The Durham-based company says it is connecting with artists, photographers, designers and illustrators all over the world to tell a story through its work.
Azutura has relied on HP printing solutions for many years and currently runs two HP Latex 570 printers and one HP Latex 315, alongside an older Latex machine. Water-based, odourless HP Latex inks are certified to have low VOC emissions ensuring the safety of printed graphics in environments such as homes, hospitals and schools, while retaining vibrant colours. Its customer network has traditionally been split between the commercial sector, such as offices, and the domestic market, with shoppers choosing their perfect design and dimensions via its e-commerce website. However, with the COVID-19 shutdown pausing the majority of commercial orders, Azutura has focused on its customers who are improving their homes.
"We ran a skeleton staff for a short period but business has picked up as people are looking to improve their homes with wall murals and wall decals," says Azutura's Artist Liaison, David Atkinson. "HP Latex ink is safe to use for use in domestic settings and HP-branded wallpaper media is also easy to install and to clean - many of our customers install them in their bathrooms."
With the popularity of wall murals and decals increasing, Azutura wanted to offer something different from its competitors: a high-quality service that features exclusive, designer artwork rather than relying on stock photography. By working with creators directly, it can tell a story.
"We have partnered with over 100 artists, illustrators, designers and photographers so far and each of them is a real person," says David. "We want our customers to get to know them through blog posts and interviews, and to make it easy to for them choose their favourite designs from each artist.
"We are also creating a local connection. City skylines are a very popular choice for wall murals but with stock photographs you tend to see the same images again and again. For example, we're based in the north-east where the Tyne Bridge is an iconic landmark; through the designs available on Azutura people can see brand-new views and concepts by local creators, which give real personality to a space. We are actively looking for more artists, as many in the UK as possible - in every city and every town."
"HP Latex is the best choice for our brand," he adds. "The quality of print is fantastic; every mural and decal is checked by hand and we hold everything to the same standard as if they were for our own homes. Our HP Latex printers are all very reliable and the speed of turnaround allows Azutura to offer next-day delivery."
Mike Lewis, Latex Channel Account Manager, HP, comments: "Thanks to its low VOC levels, excellent colour accuracy and high-quality results on a range of wallcovering media, HP Latex is the ideal system for specialists like Azutura. But during challenging times, it's also its versatility that allows users to change direction and launch innovative services like this."
For more information on Azutura, please visit www.azutura.com
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