Design

Wicked Wraps Keeps It Clean for Housekeepers’ Ride

Wrap reflects clients’ desire for clean, upbeat brand

Published

11 years ago

May 14, 2013

Steve Aust Signs of the Times May 2013 Issue

Clean & Simple, a Seattle-based housecleaning company, had one of its vehicles damaged in an accident. The company’s insurance carried arranged to replace the previous wrap. Clean & Simple’s owner contacted Lynnwood, WA-based Wicked Wraps to decorate the vehicle.

“The customer was very unhappy with the previous wrap’s design, quality or installation,” Katherine Becher, who co-owns Wicked Wraps with her husband Wade, said. “The previous provider, who’s now out of business, had done the wrap with a poor-quality calendered film that left behind lots of residue.”

The Bechers spent nearly three days removing adhesive from the vehicle and washing it before they could begin installation. And, once they’d completed cleaning, the found numerous razor blades that marred the paint’s finish.

The customer provided a cartoon-character icon and logo for the design. Katherine said the customer wanted the wrap to emphasize fun – with lots of pink and a vibrant, starburst background. Wicked Wraps completed the design with Adobe’s Photoshop Creative Suite 6 and used a template from The Bad Wrap (backed up with manual measurements) to effectively apply the design.

The printed the wrap for seamless installation. Both sides were printed in single, 5-ft.-wide, 14-ft.-long panels, with the hood, roof and truck produced as separate panels. They produced it with Avery MPI 1005 Supercast Easy Apply RS air-release media on the shop’s HP L26500 latex-ink printer. with HP Designjet 792 inks. Caldera’s Visual RIP software helped them proof the wrap’s in process.

“In the cold, rainy Pacific Northwest climate, a cast material that conforms and stretches around contours is essential,” Wade said.

They installed the wrap with Geek Wraps felt magnetics, microfiber-covered Yello Tools squeegees, Yello Tools Titan blades, Knifeless Tech Systems Finish Line tape and Image One Impact Wrap Glove installation gloves.

“Sometimes, we have to put our squeegees in our mouth to free up our hands during installation, so we’re glad that Yello Tools products are made with food-grade plastics,” Katherine quipped.

She continued, “One of the biggest challenges of this job was earning the customer’s trust. She was very leery after her bad experience with the previous wrap. We arranged to handle the installation over a weekend so she could stop by and watch as it took place. Her excited reaction over the wrap’s successful completion was very rewarding.”

Past Vehicle Wraps Month Case Studies

Wrap Goes All In for Football, Wounded Warrior Project

SunPro Graphics Wrap Identifies "Fashion Police" Force

Car Wrap Lady Puts Poetry in Motion

FlipSide Graphics Give Matyka Bike a Wrap with Mojo

Silverado Wrap Shapes Up Personal Trainers’ Bottom Line

SunPro Graphics’ Food-Truck Wrap Helps Customers Find Their Mamma

Wicked Wraps Helps Motley Bunch Earn Its Stripes

SignWorks’ Truck Wrap Tells Shop’s Story

click to Comment(Comment)

Introducing the Sign Industry Podcast

The Sign Industry Podcast is a platform for every sign person out there — from the old-timers who bent neon and hand-lettered boats to those venturing into new technologies — we want to get their stories out for everyone to hear. Come join us and listen to stories, learn tricks or techniques, and get insights of what’s to come. We are the world’s second oldest profession. The folks who started the world’s oldest profession needed a sign.