TALENT AND TECHNOLOGY - HOW RICHARD QUINN BUILT AN INTERNATIONAL FASHION LABEL WITH EPSON
Richard Quinn’s creative and practical skills drive his vision. “I started using Epson technology as a student and continued using Epson’s technology when I founded my brand. It's always been a strong partnership and one that has grown alongside my business.” - Richard Quinn
Richard Quinn graduated from Central Saint Martin’s University, London in 2016.
Over the last six years he has built a highly successful fashion brand supplying VIP’s, celebrities, international retailers and clients around the world.
His talent was recognised very early in his career - winning the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British design in 2018. After just 2 years in business, this was an outstanding achievement for the young designer.
Richard’s creative and practical skills drive his vision. His hands-on approach is fundamental to his creative success, blending reinvented vintage patterns with powerful colour pallets with bold, tailored silhouettes. All of which is achieved from a small studio space in the heart of Peckham, London - where design and print (strike-offs and production) are created within hours not weeks. With Epson’s dye sublimation technology onsite, both sampling and production are in-house and deliver a print capacity of 100m per day. Giving the studio absolute control of all aspects of the creative process, from design to print.
Offering customised collections alongside bespoke garments, his floral prints and one-off pieces dress women from all demographics. His printed collections are diverse, playful and powerful.
“Here at Richard Quinn, we do all our colour tests in the studio through the Epson printers - which is really important to us because we move at such a fast pace. When we're looking at dye sub printers, Epson is our go-to print technology. We use the Epson SureColor SC-F9200 and the SureColor SC-F9300.”
“For us as a brand it's really important that all our prints have consistency, and they're accurate to what we see on the screen. I think the uniform way in which the Epson printers print the fabric allows us to use it not only for show samples, but for production as well. I started using Epson technology as a student and continued using Epson’s technology when I founded my brand. It's always been a strong partnership and one that has grown alongside my business.”
Going further Richard added:
“I think as a designer to have printers that you can test your fabrics on and print colour tests and strikeouts within your own space is quite unusual. And I think that's where the technology really benefits us. We can develop collections at such a fast pace - without having to send and outsource print to different countries. So, it also cuts down on emissions. Printing in-house offers us both commercial and environmental benefits.”
London Fashion week has previously been the launchpad for new collections. But Richard’s team once again decided to push the boundaries and offer a new, engaging format to their vibrant audience. Over the last few years online sales have accelerated across the fashion landscape, this digital surge demands new format for marketing and sales. It was time to inject new creativity to the launch agenda – content that could be used beyond the traditional catwalk.
Richard Quinn explained “This time we wanted to rethink it in a really creative way. The whole idea was to come up with a story and a new narrative, almost like a world of Richard Quinn, offering a cinematic take to create a fashion film.”
Richard’s brand is synonymous with luxury and opulence. His work redefines the boundaries of fashion and offers a refreshing and playful return to couture.
“Working to a cinematic brief created new opportunities and diversified the printed materials required: “This season we printed onto many different substrates - more than we ever usually would - because there's so many different elements to this film: garments, printed taxis, millenary, flooring and backdrops.”
“Almost everything that you see printed within the film was produced using Epson printers, which consistently deliver the high quality that we demand. We're able to print hundreds of metres per day so what usually would be quite daunting challenge was actually quite straightforward and easy to plan.” - Richard Quinn.
Dublin, Ireland – July 2026 – digitalprint.ie, Ireland's trusted supplier of wide format printing equipment and media, has completed the delivery and installation of two Epson SureColor S9100 printers to long-standing customer iGraphic, based in Newtownards.
The installation, which required careful planning and specialist logistics to position both machines on a first-floor mezzanine, marks another milestone in a valued, ongoing partnership.
TOKYO, Japan, July 27, 2026 - Seiko Epson Corporation (TSE: 6724, "Epson") is proud to announce that its production facility, PT. Indonesia Epson Industry (IEI), has achieved Platinum recognition under the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) Validated Assessment Program (VAP), based on audits conducted by RBA-approved independent third-party firms.
This achievement underscores Epson's commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR) within its global supply chain.
LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. – July 16, 2026 – Epson today announced it has garnered three coveted PRINTING United Alliance 2026 Pinnacle Product Awards for its industrial professional printing solutions.
The Pinnacle Awards are the printing industry’s most prestigious honor, celebrating exceptional products and technologies that advance quality, capability and productivity.
TOKYO, Japan, July 13, 2026 - Seiko Epson Corporation (TSE: 6724, "Epson") has expanded the applications of non-woven fabric sheet regenerated from used clothing and mill ends using its proprietary Dry Fiber Technology ("DFT").
Epson, in collaboration with YUIMA NAKAZATO and YKK Corporation, developed the new material for use in zipper tapes, further broadening its potential applications.
The resulting item was featured in INFERNO, the latest collection by YUIMA NAKAZATO, unveiled during Paris Haute Couture Week on July 8.
Watford – Hertfordshire - July 2026 – Epson UK today features the SureColor SC-G9000, its first high-production Direct-To-Film (DTF) printer built for businesses that demand greater output, higher reliability, and significantly less manual intervention.
The SC-G9000 is designed to challenge existing perceptions of DTF capabilities, combining industrial-scale productivity with an intuitive, largely automated user experience
The story of what happens when young designers access digital technology is still being written.
What once was a theoretical sustainability goal seems to have shifted into an active regulatory reality.
Is the Textile Market Finally Recovering?
After a difficult few years, there are genuine reasons for optimism. Duncan was candid about the challenges: "The market for textiles has been very difficult over the last three years. I'm not going to hide the truth there. But the tide is turning.“
A profound shift is currently reshaping the sector
Changing consumer expectations demand greater design diversity, faster turnaround times, and sustainable manufacturing practices.
To thrive, interior brands must adapt their supply chains, bringing production closer to the end consumer and moving away from bulk manufacturing.
Digital textile printing offers a definitive solution to these operational bottlenecks.
Digital transformation doesn't announce itself.
It accumulates - one innovation at a time - until an entire industry looks back and realises the ground has shifted beneath its feet. That's precisely where textiles stands today.
The conversations happening now about AI, automation, sustainability, and digital product passports are not theoretical. They are shaping decisions being made on factory floors and in boardrooms right now.
“By leveraging advanced digital textile printing, Marylene Madou has successfully merged traditional craftsmanship with cutting-edge technology. Her approach offers a blueprint for how independent designers can scale their brands globally while maintaining a minimal environmental footprint.”
From Helsinki's printing mill to Paris's Le Marais, discover how Marimekko is scaling a design-led brand with purpose, craft, and bold innovation.
But what makes Marimekko's story compelling is not just its aesthetic legacy?
The textile industry is undergoing a vital transformation. As the insights from Techtextil and Texprocess reveal, the path forward relies on a combination of sustainable hardware, intelligent chemistry, and seamless digital workflows.
From Zimmer's industrial-scale energy reductions and Stratasys's on-demand 3D embellishments, to Kornit's single-step technical printing and the unified digital ecosystems of NedGraphics and Optitex, the tools for change are here. To stay competitive, brands and manufacturers must adopt these innovations, moving away from fragmented, wasteful processes towards a truly connected, circular economy.
Friedmans stands as a testament to the power of combining traditional textile knowledge with forward-thinking innovation.
“Operating from their UK headquarters, Friedmans now serves a diverse array of sectors, including swimwear, dance, entertainment, sportswear, interior decor, prosthetics, and even pet apparel. With a strategic supply chain that reliably serves clients worldwide”
The apparel decoration industry is decisively moving away from isolated, analogue production tools toward connected digital manufacturing environments.
"Kornit’s unwavering commitment to transformative technology continues to disrupt the status quo. For business leaders and innovators ready to capture the future of apparel manufacturing, the path forward is clear”
The Urgent Need for Sustainability at Scale
The transformation at Coats provides a vital blueprint for the wider textile and apparel sector. True sustainability cannot be achieved in silos. As Dearing emphasised:
“Cross-industry collaboration is the engine of meaningful change. Brands, machinery suppliers, chemical providers, and fibre producers must act as an interconnected ecosystem”
Today’s customers demand superior product quality, real-time data visibility, and lightning-fast turnaround times.
For large-scale garment decorators, managing these expectations while balancing seasonal demand fluctuations - such as the massive surges seen during Black Friday - presents a monumental challenge.
"Relying on transactional vendor relationships and outdated legacy equipment is no longer sufficient to secure long-term stability and growth.”
Printing method is never a secondary detail. It shapes the entire life cycle of a product, from concept to customer. In today’s fashion industry, where margins are tighter and speed matters more than ever, technical knowledge has become a competitive advantage.
“The future of textile design belongs to professionals who can combine creativity with execution, aesthetics with practicality, and vision with production reality”.
Are we witnessing the reinvention of Merch driven by adaptive, digital technologies?
The commercial opportunity presented by printed, personalised merchandise is already a lucrative revenue stream; it is the core driver of growth in a multi-billion-pound industry. And the mandate for print businesses is clear: automate, adapt, and offer undeniable added value, or choose to gradually lose market share.
Powderless DTF is an important area of innovation. It deserves research, investment, and thoughtful development.
“But at its current stage, it often feels like the industry is attempting to commercialize the concept ahead of the underlying chemistry and system readiness”.
All Apparel Manufacturers face an Urgent Mandate: “Automate or be Left Behind”.
Industry leaders like Super Nova Sports and Ryozo International were struggling with severe pre-press bottlenecks and unsustainable fabric waste. By integrating AI Sublimation Software into their workflows, these forward-thinking businesses eliminated manual variable data entry, boosted fabric efficiency to over 80%, and reduced delivery times by more than half, establishing a highly profitable, agile, and environmentally responsible production model.
The Future of Manufacturing belongs to those who Embrace Connected Digital Ecosystems
“Whether you produce garments, car interiors, or home furnishings, the transition from creative concept to production-ready product often remains fragmented. Design teams work tirelessly to develop compelling materials, yet technical teams struggle to interpret these visions without losing data along the way.”
The European digital wallcovering marketplace is expanding at an impressive rate.
“For print professionals and interior designers, this transition presents a distinct set of challenges. Achieving flawless colour consistency, managing complex substrates, and meeting stringent environmental standards are no longer optional extras; they are fundamental requirements for commercial success.”
If you're looking to optimize your website for AI search, hang onto your cowboy hat. It's the Wild West out there. Former (and current) SEO companies see the handwriting on the wall as more search moves from traditional SEO to AEO (answer engine optimisation). Opportunists are popping out of the woodwork.
(There are good options out there, but vet them carefully.)
A swimsuit might start life as a sketch. By the time it reaches the shop floor, dozens of hands have touched it - designers, dye houses, printers, trim manufacturers, quality controllers. Each one interprets colour in their own way, under their own conditions, with their own tools. The result is often a product that looks nothing like the original vision.