The Future of Digital Embellishment: Education, Accessibility, and the Shift to Everyday Print

In a recent Taktiful Tuesdays interview with Eric Vessels, Harris & Bruno’s Paul Furse explored how digital embellishment is redefining print by combining creativity, technology, and tactile impact. The discussion centered on one critical insight: digital embellishment is no longer a niche luxury process. It is becoming a standard part of modern print workflows, driven by accessibility, speed, and new opportunities for engagement.

The Knowledge Gap Holding Back the Market

Even with growing awareness, one of the biggest barriers to widespread adoption remains education. Many designers and marketers have never been trained to design for embellishment, often defaulting to flat layouts intended for digital screens. This knowledge gap limits creativity and slows down adoption across the supply chain.

Education must reach beyond printers. Brands, agencies, and designers need to understand both the possibilities and the business value of embellishment. According to Paul Furse, “The biggest barrier we have is education, even today.” When creative teams understand that texture and touch can increase engagement and recall, embellishment moves from being a novelty to a strategic tool.

From Luxury to Local: Democratizing Embellishment

Historically, embellishment has been associated with high-end packaging and premium print applications. Traditional foil stamping and embossing were expensive, slow, and designed for long runs. Digital technology has changed that.

Today, even small and mid-sized printers can produce raised UV and foil effects in-house without dies or long setup times. This shift has democratized embellishment, allowing local businesses, boutique brands, and online creators to elevate their printed materials affordably and efficiently.

The ROI of Touch

Beyond aesthetics, embellishment has measurable value. Studies consistently show that tactile print captures more attention, strengthens brand recall, and enhances perceived quality. When used strategically, embellishment can directly influence purchasing behavior by helping products stand out on the shelf or in the mail.

The conversation around embellishment is shifting from “what it is” to “what it delivers.” Printers who can communicate that return on investment to their customers are positioned to lead as the market matures. As more data supports the effectiveness of sensory marketing, embellishment will increasingly be seen as an essential component of brand strategy, not an optional upgrade.

Sustainability and Speed to Market

Sustainability is also reshaping how printers and brands view embellishment. Traditional foil stamping requires metal dies that must be mined, manufactured, shipped, and stored, contributing to a heavy environmental footprint. Digital embellishment eliminates those processes, significantly reducing material waste, storage needs, and setup energy.

In addition to its environmental advantages, digital embellishment brings speed. Without dies or long setup times, brands can react to market trends, regional events, and seasonal campaigns almost instantly. “The ability to produce custom, versioned, or regional packaging on demand is a real competitive advantage,” said Furse. This agility allows brands to stay relevant and creative while supporting sustainable production practices.

Technology Meets Tactility

At Harris & Bruno, the evolution of digital embellishment builds on decades of coating expertise. The ZRX Digital Embellishment Press combines analog precision with digital flexibility, bringing flood coating, spot coating, and foil stamping applications together in a single pass, offering printers over 20 effects to enhance their print.

Proprietary effects such as xMatte create an embossed appearance without the need for dies, blending matte coatings with raised polymers to form multi-dimensional surfaces. These effects not only enhance design but also preserve the reverse side of the sheet for additional printing or messaging, that would otherwise be lost to traditional embossing.

“The ZRX is about more than adding texture,” Furse explained. “It connects design with touch, allowing brands to create experiences that people actually feel.”

Looking Ahead: The Creative Frontier

As artificial intelligence and automation continue to evolve, design tools will make embellishment more intuitive and accessible. AI-assisted artwork preparation, digital previews of tactile effects, and simplified workflows will help designers and printers experiment more freely.

Yet even as technology advances, the true power of embellishment remains in its ability to connect people with print. Texture and touch evoke emotion, and emotion drives response. When creativity and engineering come together, print moves beyond the page and into the sensory world where brands can truly make an impact.

Ready to Learn More?

Watch the full Taktiful Tuesdays interview with Paul Furse and Eric Vessels at the top of this page, or reach out to the Harris & Bruno team to learn more about how digital embellishment is shaping the future of print. Discover why the ZRX is the next big thing in digital embellishment, and see how you can bring texture, touch, and impact to your next project.

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