New EFI Reggiani product to be launched at 'Drupa of textile'

EFI has revealed the company plans to launch a new EFI Reggiani product at the “Drupa of textile”, ITMA, next month.

Chief executive of the US-headquartered company Guy Gecht said EFI would “share a unique vision for the textile industry based on the combined technology and expertise of EFI and Reggiani” at ITMA in Italy's fashion capital Milan, from 12-19 November.  

The company has refused to be drawn on what type of product the launch will be but it will be the first released from the brand under EFI ownership, following the acquisition of both Reggiani and Matan, which were completed on 1 July.

A spokesman said: "Our new product addresses key needs in industrial digital textile production." The company has promised to reveal more at an investor day on 11 November.

Gecht said that Q4 will be “the industry’s coming-out party for EFI Reggiani at two global trade shows. At SGIA Atlanta (4-6 November) we will show how the Reggiani printers fit nicely into our signage line-up.

“At ITMA, the Drupa of textile, we are going to share a unique vision for the textile industry based on the combined technology and expertise of EFI and Reggiani,” he told investors last week.

EFI has also lined up a launch of new technology at SGIA, with more details to be revealed next week.

These follow a “very strong” reception to the two acquisitions, which have performed “above expectations” Gecht said.

“Matan, which has a small but very strong R&D team in Israel, provides an entry to the lower end of the sign and display graphics market with a very scalable platform.

“Reggiani and the opportunities within textile have been particularly exciting,” he said.

“Major US retailers like Gap and JC Penny are exploring 'fast fashion', following the success of global leaders H&M, Uniqlo and Zara. Yet digital printing penetration is at 5% so there’s a lot of growth ahead.”

Early success with brands has surpassed even EFI’s confidence about them. 

Chief financial officer Marc Olin said: “I’ve been pleasantly surprised on the execution of the sales team picking up the understanding of the soft signage market and the capabilities of the Matan products.

“The pipelines of those products are actually stronger than I was anticipating before the acquisition.

“We have closed deals already through display graphics channels for both sets of products.”

The company reported record revenue of $228.7m (£147.9m) for Q3 of this year, the first since the acquisitions.

Gecht added: "The two acquisitions contributed revenue in Q3 above our expectations. This was due in part to pre-planning, two separate small integration teams planned the first 90 days from the day of the announcement.

“Within two weeks we were integrated, incentivised and prepared to go out and sell.

“I couldn’t be more pleased with our progress right out of the gate. We’re even more energised by the opportunities ahead,” he said.

EFI is predicting a $1bn (£640m) sales target by 2016 and will review long-term targets on investor day.

“Both the top line and the bottom line are tracking to our target 2016 goals,” Gecht added.