Starting a Wall
Printing Business

National Wall Printers works with people entering the industry as well as established sign companies, artists, decorators and contractors adding wall printing to what they already do. In either case, the printer is only the beginning.

Treat It Like a Business

The GT3200 and NWP-FL1 give you the equipment to produce large-format graphics directly on walls and floors. Building a business around that equipment also means learning how to quote projects, prepare artwork, evaluate job sites, schedule work, maintain the machine and find customers.

There is real opportunity in wall printing, but it is not a passive-income business and the machine does not create the customers for you.

The operators who give themselves the best chance of succeeding are the ones who learn the equipment, practice before taking paid work and build a real business around what the printer can do.

Who Starts a Wall Printing Business?

Wall printing can complement a number of existing businesses and creative professions.

Muralists and artists can reproduce detailed designs at architectural scale. Sign and graphics companies can add direct-to-wall printing to their existing services. Contractors and decorators can offer custom finishes without traditional wallpaper, vinyl or hand-painted murals.

Others enter wall printing as an entirely new business. For those owners especially, understanding both the equipment and the commercial side of the work is important.

Training Matters

We strongly recommend that every new owner take advantage of our hands-on training before putting the printer into commercial service.

Our two-day training takes place at our Bay Shore, New York demo center using the actual equipment. You learn setup, calibration, image preparation, operation, maintenance and troubleshooting by working directly with the printer.

A paying customer's wall should not be the first place you learn the machine.

Spend time printing. Work with different surfaces. Learn what good artwork looks like before it reaches the printer. Practice setup, breakdown and maintenance. The more familiar you are with the equipment before taking your first commercial job, the better prepared you will be when something unexpected happens on site.

For people starting a new wall printing company, we also recommend our $499 online wall printing business course, which covers the commercial side of the industry, including estimating, proposals and building the business itself.

Our technical support continues after training, but hands-on experience with your own machine matters.

Think Beyond One Printer

Many operators begin with one wall printer, and that can be a practical way to get started.

If your goal is to build a full-time wall printing company, however, we recommend planning for at least two machines.

Commercial equipment requires maintenance. Occasionally a machine will need repair. And as the business grows, you may have overlapping projects or opportunities that a single printer cannot handle efficiently.

With two machines, you gain additional production capacity and, just as importantly, redundancy. One equipment issue does not have to bring the entire business to a stop.

You do not necessarily need to purchase two printers on day one. But if you are building a serious wall printing operation, the second machine should be part of the plan.

What Can You Sell?

Wall printing is not limited to traditional murals.

Operators can produce branding, decorative graphics, signage, photography, artwork, wayfinding, architectural graphics and custom installations for commercial clients.

The NWP-FL1 expands that capability to floors, while easels allow wall printers to work with flat materials such as metal, glass, wood, tile, canvas and plastic.

That gives an operator opportunities beyond the original wall project. A customer asking about a lobby wall may also have floors, panels, signage or other printable surfaces worth discussing.

What Can a Wall Printing Business Charge?

Wall printing jobs commonly fall in the range of approximately $15 to $30 per square foot, depending on the project.

Pricing can vary based on print size, location, surface conditions, accessibility, artwork preparation and the complexity of the installation.

Many wall printing projects can be completed in roughly two to seven hours, depending on the size and conditions of the job.

Those numbers can help an operator understand the potential value of the service, but they are not an earnings guarantee.

A printer can produce the work. It cannot determine how effectively you market the business, price projects, build relationships or keep your schedule filled.

We would rather be realistic about that than promise a return that depends on decisions only you can make.

Financing the Equipment

Equipment financing is available through Geneva Capital for qualified buyers.

Financing can help a new or expanding business acquire equipment while preserving capital for the other things a business needs, including marketing, transportation, supplies, insurance and operating expenses.

Support Beyond the Sale

Our goal is not simply to deliver a printer.

We want owners to understand the equipment, know how to maintain it and have somewhere to turn when questions come up in the field.

That is why we put so much emphasis on training and why technical support continues after the purchase.

If you are considering starting a wall printing business, come see the equipment operate, ask questions and understand what running the business actually involves before making the investment.