Spoonflower Explained

Parent:Shutterfly

Spoonflower is an on-demand, digital printing company that prints custom fabric, wallpaper, and home decor.[1] [2]

The company was founded in May 2008 by Stephen Fraser and Gart Davis, both formerly of Lulu.com. Spoonflower was acquired by Shutterfly in 2021.[3] In January 2020, Michael Jones, formerly of ChannelAdvisor and eBay, became CEO. Jones was replaced by George Goeth-Chi Chao as Vice President and General Manager of Spoonflower in November 2023.[4]

Spoonflower was headquartered in Mebane, North Carolina, USA until 2010. Its current headquarters are in Durham, North Carolina, USA, however all manufacturing in Durham concluded in 2023 following Shutterfly's closure of the Durham plant.[5] Spoonflower maintained a European production facility in Neukölln, Berlin, Germany from 2016 until its closure in 2022. The largest investor in the company is Guidepost Growth Equity of Boston. Other investors include Allison Polish, the former company president.

In August 2012, the Spoonflower community numbered over 600,000 individuals who use their own fabric to make curtains, quilts, clothes, bags, furniture, dolls, pillows, framed artwork, costumes, banners and much, much more. The Spoonflower Marketplace currently offers the largest collection of independent fabric designers in the world.[6]

Spoonflower's digital textile printers are large-format inkjet printers specially modified to run fabric.[7] Unlike conventional textile manufacturing, digital printing entails very little waste of fabric, ink, water or electricity. Spoonflower prints using eco-friendly, water-based inks on natural and synthetic fiber textiles. No additional chemicals are used in the printing or preparation process.

As of August 2023, all Spoonflower fabric and wallpaper is printed in Shutterfly facilities in Fort Mill, South Carolina and Tempe, Arizona.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: You Design It, They Print It . January 7, 2009 . Julie. Scelfo. The New York Times.
  2. Web site: Can a Do-It-Yourself Fabric Company Craft a Larger Following?. November 1, 2009. April . Joyner. Inc..
  3. Web site: Inside the $225M Spoonflower-Shutterfly deal: Why Durham firm's execs decided to sell. June 17, 2021. Jason. Parker. WRAL TechWire.
  4. Web site: Exec who led Spoonflower through $225M Shutterfly deal departs. Lauren. Ohnesorge. November 2, 2023. Triangle Business Journal.
  5. Web site: Shutterfly closing former Spoonflower operation in Durham, to lay off 108 workers. May 9, 2023. Rick. Smith. WRAL-TV.
  6. DIY: How to Print Your Own Fabric and Wallpaper. August 3, 2012. Elise . Craig. Wired.
  7. Web site: TC Makers: A Return To The Textile Economy At Durham's Spoonflower. April 15, 2013. John . Biggs. TechCrunch.