LUXE PRINT

Come to think of it, print is the reason Oro&Co’s Creative Director, Debi Ani, became a graphic designer in the first place. The thrill of embossed paper on a gilt-edged chocolate box! A deckle edged business card from New York! A foil blocked Xmas card on handmade paper all the way from India! A black and gold prayer book on impossibly thin bible paper with — oh, my goodness — head and tail bands and a woven bookmark! A young girl’s treasures that looked and smelled wonderful, transporting her from bleak suburban Manchester to a Maharaja’s palace. Not that much has changed, then. Good to know.

Print still excites, transports and holds meaning, possibly never more so. As digital life has made everything more immediate, it has also taken away some of the joy. Most of our relationship to print exists on soul-destroying not-white-enough A4 paper, demanding us to do one thing or another that we’d rather not. So when a quality envelope (preferably handwritten) arrives, it is electric with infinite promise. It’s that feeling that our work elicits in every print project.

Over the years, Oro&Co have designed and produced all manner of printed work, hand holding the process from concept to delivery. We love designing luxe invitations, bespoke brochures, stationery, bespoke envelopes, books and leaflets — whatever our clients ask for. A junior designer when Wham! were huge (btw she designed the fan club logo), paste ups and spray booths were Debi’s everyday.

Debi learned about print processes from the inside out. With vast knowledge of paper stocks and insider access to traditional and artisan printing techniques she ensures each project is placed in the right hands.

We are painfully aware that the past couple of years have had a devastating impact on the industry and we are still in shock that some of the best are no longer trading. At this moment in time, it is more important than ever to be in safe hands. The same job brochure printed by twenty different printers will be twenty different brochures. It’s important to know what you are aiming for and place print appropriately.

We are proud to collaborate with magicians who perform all sorts of wizardry to realise our vision — litho printers, foil blockers, die-stampers and paper suppliers from Germany to Japan (you know who you are). Every job is completely bespoke, but we are not snobs. We use online printers when every penny can sincerely be put to good use through Amma’s (Mata Amritanandamayi) global humanitarian work, but we don’t do mediocre. It doesn’t pay off.

And just for the record, Debi’s 1990s Japanese cat stickers will never, ever be used. Not the furry ones and not the padded ones either.