{"id":10066,"date":"2024-01-04T18:50:51","date_gmt":"2024-01-04T18:50:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/durstus.com\/?p=10066"},"modified":"2024-01-04T19:44:38","modified_gmt":"2024-01-04T19:44:38","slug":"empowering-print-how-cra-custom-pioneers-wide-format-digital-printing-with-durst-technology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/durstus.com\/empowering-print-how-cra-custom-pioneers-wide-format-digital-printing-with-durst-technology\/","title":{"rendered":"Empowering Print: How CR&A Custom Pioneers Wide-Format Digital Printing with Durst Technology"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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For Carmen Rad, president of CR&A Custom, success wasn\u2019t a linear path. In fact, her path didn\u2019t originally include print at all. \u201cMy background is in fashion marketing and design,\u201d she notes, but it was that passion that ultimately led to founding her own company 30 years ago and started her on the path to where she is today.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Originally, Rad notes, her business was created to allow her to create promotional clothing items that the brands she was working with required. Her business focused on textile printing \u2014 primarily sublimation \u2014 but it didn\u2019t remain that way for long. In time, she began to invest in large-format digital printing equipment, which in turn allowed her to branch out into other markets alongside her partner, Masoud Rad.<\/span><\/p>\n

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\u201cWe don\u2019t really do any clothing at all today,\u201d she says. \u201cWe did it for many years, but today, our bread and butter are large activations. We do rollouts for brands \u2014 we\u2019re a very creative company. Small, but very creative.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Carmen Rad, President of CR&A Custom, stands with her Durst P5 350 HS printer<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Whether it\u2019s a large multinational corporation or a small local restaurant, Rad notes that her team helps conceive and then create and execute campaigns that can have several moving parts. That is especially true as the events business has picked back up with a vengeance, leading to many of her customers looking for campaigns to help them stand out as they once more get to present themselves to a live audience in a range of different venues.<\/span><\/p>\n

Originally, Rad notes, she had an all-HP shop, and for many years, those machines worked well for her applications. But she notes that Durst was always the \u201cRolls Royce\u201d of printers. But it was at PRINTING United Expo 2022 in Las Vegas where, along with Masoud, she decided it was time to make the investment. \u201cWe had been building that relationship for over a year,\u201d she notes, \u201cwith a lot of meetings and presentations.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

She notes that she saw the demos and was impressed by both the equipment and the test prints they had on hand, so she went home and did a bit more research, watching testimonial videos and making sure to do her due diligence. In the end, there were a few things that stood out for her and ultimately led to a willingness to make that first investment in a new technology:<\/span><\/p>\n