34 images OCTOBER 2026 www.images-magazine.com MARKET INTELLIGENCE It doesn’t feel like 12 months since our 2025 assessment of the DTF market, yet here we are – it’s time for the sixth annual Images DTF report. Manufacturers and suppliers all agree the market has hit maturity as the “explosive” early growth begins to calm down and the focus starts to switch to boosting quality, efficiency and productivity Knowledgetransfer This year, there was a distinctly different vibe when our group of industry experts responded to our survey about the state of the direct-to-film (DTF) market. Unlike in previous years when multiple new systems and consumables were being rolled out onto the market seemingly every month and whispers would be circulating of yet more new products and workflows that were about to land (and which were all inevitably flagged up as being “game-changing”), this year there was a quiet confidence in the products already on the market, and an acknowledgement that the DTF sector has hit maturity. There are systems available now and in use in printshops that are capable of doing the job decorators want and need them to do. It’s time instead to refine what is already out there. Quality rather than n The change in tempo in th market is probably best su by Diego Ramella, marketin at consumables manufactu who declares: “The gold rus phase is behind us: DTF is n established technology, and conversation has shifted fro ‘how do I get in’ to ‘how do reliably, every day, at consis quality’.” He adds: “Growth becoming quality-driven rat than novelty-driven, and tha a healthier kind of growth.” As Encarna Luque, senior product manager at machine manufacturer Roland DG points out, the initial DTF models were “technically inconsistent” and not seen as a secure investment. “Now that the technology has been refined over time, it’s a reliable print format that can consistently meet customer and industry standards. Customers are no longer questioning if vest in DTF, they’re asking boost their efficiency and th a DTF system.” ion of its strengths and reliability of DTF systems acceptance of the by an ever wider range of ecorators, contributing to ustainable rate of growth. TF first broke into the ene, it was explosive,” Encarna. “Since then, t demand has continued e steady growth. For system manufacturer nd DG, market share has eased by 9.9 percentage nts from Q1-2026 from -2026, representing er half (54%) of relative crease in our market hare in Europe.” Colin Marsh, MD of DTF specialist Resolute, tells a similar story: “Demand is growing with no signs of a slowdown at Resolute in machine sales and consumables. In 2026 so far we have beat our target for machine sales by 17%. Since we started 026 www.i ovelty heDTF mmed up ngmanager rer B-Flex, sh nowan d the om o I print stent is ther at is they should inv how they can b lower costs wit The recogniti the increased has brought technique b garment de amore su “WhenD print sce notes E market to see DTF s Rolan incre poin Q2 ov in sh s 1ClickPrint reports that many print shops are ditching their desktop DTF printers and using trade DTF printing services instead Successful DTF production depends on the complete system, says Iva of Azonprinter
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MzY5NjY3