Figure out the best activation type for your upcoming event with one of our helpful event coordinators
Live Printing & On-Site Brand Activations in Chicago
Planning a Chicago activation
Chicago is our hometown, established 2009. Here is what that means for yours.
McCormick Place and the convention calendar
We have powered through booth traffic at McCormick Place again and again, and we know its particular rules: dock schedules and drayage, union labor on who plugs in what, certificates of insurance in the format the building actually wants, and fire marshal signoff on every piece of equipment. Read more on our McCormick Place page. Guests order on a tablet and come back when their piece is ready, so your booth stays a booth, not a line.
Grant Park and festival season
We have printed Lollapalooza in Grant Park, which is about as big and as hot as an outdoor activation gets. Festival work means tents, generators, dust, weather and a crowd that arrives in waves, and our crews build for it: sturdier stations, live inventory across every tent, and a dashboard so your team can watch orders move from anywhere on the grounds.
Parties, launches and the neighborhoods
From West Loop launch parties to corporate events in the Loop to private parties all across the city, most of our Chicago work is not a convention at all. Hotels, galleries, restaurants and rooftops each come with their own load in quirks, and we have a local crew that knows them. Every station can be fully white label so the room reads as your brand.
The home team advantage
Chicago is home base, established 2009, and Chicago events get the deepest bench we have and the fastest turnaround on anything that changes late. Our quotes are all in everywhere, but in Chicago there is not even a drive to speak of.
Questions we get about Chicago
Have you worked at McCormick Place?
Many times. We handle the dock schedule, drayage, union labor coordination, certificates of insurance and fire marshal requirements directly with the building and your exhibit house. See our McCormick Place page for the details.
Can you run an outdoor activation in Chicago?
Yes. We have printed Lollapalooza in Grant Park and festivals all across the region. We bring stations built for tents and generators and plan for weather.
Do you have a minimum event size in Chicago?
No. We run small private parties and corporate events all the time, and the same crews and platform scale up to multi day programs with tens of thousands of guests.
How far in advance should we book a Chicago event?
As soon as you have a date. Festival season and the big convention weeks book up first. If your date is close, ask anyway; our Chicago bench is the deepest we have.
Do you charge travel to Chicago?
No. Every quote is all in, with no travel fees, hotel line items or equipment shipping charges anywhere, and Chicago is home base.
Where we work in Chicago
Every part of town has its own venues, docks and crowds. Pick yours.
We have several
activation types
Screen Printing
Heat Press
Embroidery
Laser Engraving
Hand Jet
Screen Printing Activation
By far this is our most common activation type. Screen printing fits a wide range of garments and print locations. Guests LOVE the look of the spinning presses and the ability to see their shirts printed using this tried and true technique, plus the shirts are handed to them literally hot off the press!
Heat Press Activation
Heat pressing transfers on site is the perfect way to take your event to the next level and leave a lasting impression on your guests. Get ready to turn up the heat and create some seriously cool swag! Transfers are perfect when you want to offer guests full color designs. Also, transfers are super versatile and can go on a huge array of products. Heat press also powers our hat bar and patch bar activations. Set up a build your own hat bar where guests grab a cap and press on custom patches live and on-site, or run a patch bar where they personalize jackets, totes, and denim with iron on and embroidered patches. It is one of our most requested activations for brand events, festivals, and trade shows, and it pairs perfectly with a live screen printing or embroidery station.
Embroidery Activation
This process involves using specialized embroidery machines to stitch designs directly onto garments, creating a high-quality, professional look. We utilize on site embroidery for events where guests need to have that truly custom option to personalize their fresh new swag!
Laser Engraving Activation
Transform your event with the art of on-site laser engraving, leaving a lasting impression with your guests. Laser engraving pairs well with promo products like tumblers, keychains, wood objects, or an array of other items. Engrave intricate designs and messages, ensuring your event stands out.
Hand Jet Activation
Our hand jet guns are just cool...period! Guest always love to watch them decorate apparel like a magic wand tickering it's way accross the garment.
Three Simple Steps
Step 1.
Step 2.
With multiple white label configurations, Our focus is to have your brand represented well.
Step 3.
Our activations include onsite screen printing, heat press, laser engraving, embroidery, handjet, and more.
The tech
behind the booth
We built our own software to run every event, from the first order to the final report.
Guests order on a tablet
Size, design, the name or initials they want on it. Two minutes at the screen, then they walk away and get a text when it is ready.
One live inventory pool
Every station pulls from the same stock. When a size runs low it greys out on every guest screen at once, so nothing runs out quietly.
Your event on a dashboard
Completed orders, queue depth, turnaround time and remaining inventory, live on your phone from anywhere in the building.
Built for scale
The same crews and platform handle a 200 person retreat and a multi day program with over 100,000 guests. We have pushed more than 2,000 personalized orders through one three day activation without a line forming.
Your activation in Chicago runs on the identical ordering platform and live client dashboard we use at every event nationwide. Same crews, same equipment, same software.
Tons of product options
to customize
CHECK OUT OUR FAVORITE
SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTS
By printing on site at events we don't have any wasted merch. Traditionally if you order 1000 shirts for an event you might get stuff with a bunch of leftover event shirts that you can't do anything with. We can restock them since they're still blank. Or we can run an online store post event to help continue to sell that merch to other employees or guests around the world and we can fulfill it.
Venues we work in Chicago
Check out some of
our case studies
