What is the range?

GF Smith has selected six papers from Japanese company Takeo’s range to permanently stock in the UK.

The papers in the range include Tamashiki Arare, available in 81gsm, 116gsm and 233gsm in white and 81gsm in vermillion. Tassel GA is available in white and grey at 93gsm and 244gsm. Pachica, Takeo’s smooth natural white paper is offered at 151gsm or 407gsm. Tela is offered at 80gsm in grey, black and light blue and 80gsm and 120gsm in white. Yomoshi, a coarse-textured white paper, is available in 128gsm, 221gsm and 291gsm. Tant Select TS-1 completes the collection in four colours from Takeo’s colour chart, including off-white and charcoal grey, all at 116gsm.

Customers can also access the rest of Takeo’s papers through GF Smith, which includes grades such as Leathac 96 Orihime, which resembles antique woven cloth, and Edokosome, which features three patterns: scales (uroko), haze (kasumi) and flowers (hana).

Lead times will be longer for papers not stocked by GF Smith as they will need to be shipped from Japan.

When were the papers taken on and what market are they aimed at?
GF Smith unveiled its selection of Takeo papers at its Beauty in the Making event in April 2012. The product development team visited Takeo’s Tokyo HQ in 2010 to view the papers and decided to bring a selection to the European market. According to GF Smith, it is the first UK merchant to sell traditional Japanese papers.

The distributor says that the intricate and versatile papers are well suited to use in the graphic arts sector, and the range is being actively promoted to designers and brands as well as high-end printers.

The papers are suitable for litho, screen and letterpress printing as well as a number of finishes, including embossing, die-stamping and hot-foiling.

What is the USP of the product?
GF Smith managing director John Haslam lists the stand-out aspects of the range: "unique; fresh and dynamic; this range of papers challenges the norm and makes designers think".

Each paper has a distinctive application or finish: for example, when debossed, Pachica’s impressed areas become transparent, producing a unique look to business cards or invitations. Tant Select TS-1 features debossing on both sides, creating a linen-like appearance that becomes translucent in the light. Tassel GA takes on a woven look thanks to its diagonal waffle pattern and single-sided embossing.

Tamashiki Arare incorporates a traditional Japanese papermaking technique called Sukashi: relief designs are attached to the mould surface when creating the sheet, leaving impressions where the pulp is thinner over these relief areas. The Arare range features a full polka-dot pattern inspired by traditional Japanese motifs.

Both Tela and Yomoshi feature a woven appearance, Yomoshi’s being achieved by incorporating sheeps wool into the make-up (15%) to create a coarse surface texture.

How easy is it to use?
Benwells managing director Paul Haslam, a GF Smith Takeo customer, said that the uniqueness and delicacy of the papers means applications are restricted. His team are still in the process of testing the capabilities of the papers and he expects that, because they are so new on the UK market, customers may be currently struggling to understand the best applications for them.

How much does it cost?
Tassel GA starts at £64 for 1,500 sheets. Orders between one and 24 sheets are sold on a per-sheet basis. Pachica is the highest priced paper, costing £14.83 per 407gsm sheet for orders of less than 24 sheets. All orders over £95 in mainland UK are sent with postage and packaging paid by normal transport methods. Orders of less than that incur a £9.50 additional fee for standard next day delivery.

SPECIFICATIONS