Story
Kyoto Shibori is a diversified trading enterprise focusing on bedding and interior decoration products and integrating textile planning, design, production, and sales in Japan. When the Japanese manga comic “Moomin” rose in popularity, Kyoto Shibori wanted to capitalize on the popularity. The company decided to offer a new product: a children’s blanket with “Moomin” drawings printed onto the fabrics. Kyoto Shibori provided the drawings and the fabric requirements to a nearby factory, but producing the product up to the strict standards set forth by copyright restrictions and the owners’ demands wasn’t easy. Kyoto Shibori faced challenges every step of the way, from the size of the characters to the correct color combinations and more, so Kyoti decided on employing the help of experts in the field.
Solution
Kyoti Shibori contacted Whale Group and the Whale Group team immediately went to work trying to resolve the issue. Whale Group leaders went directly to the printing factory and began assessing the problems. They found that the weight of the fabric caused issues when printing the cartoons, so they had the factory change the weight. Then they initiated dozens of rounds of sampling to ensure the characters were being printed clearly and the colors all matched perfectly.
Success
Finally, Whale Group leaders were able to figure out the correct combination of fabric weight and color blends needed to print the comic correctly onto the fabric. Once Kyoti Shibori saw the final product, they were really pleased. When the copyright owners saw it, they too were really pleased and signed off on the final product. With the printing instruction finalized, Kyoti Shibori was able to sell so many blankets that they started offering even more products like customized blankets and baby vests.
