The drop shipping business, which was founded in 2013 by Latvians Davis Siksnans and Lauris Liberts, and is now headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, US, employs over 1,800 staff globally.

Its first facility was launched in California in 2017 and it currently operates ten in-house facilities globally, four of which are in Europe – two in Latvia, one in Spain, and now one in the UK.

The new 8,360sqm facility was officially opened on Wednesday (23 March) and marks the company’s first expansion into the UK. The move is set to create an estimated 50 jobs during its first year of operation.

The facility will start by providing services such as DTG (direct-to-garment), embroidery, and printing for home and living items, eventually adding other fulfilment options.

The opening event was attended by Ivita Burmistre, the Latvian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, who made a speech highlighting the long history of active economic cooperation between Latvia and the UK.

She also said Printful’s investment in the West Midlands was one of the largest foreign direct investments in the UK from the Baltics in the recent years.

“This opening ceremony is another affirmation of the interest of Latvian businesses in the UK market,” she said.

“It is also affirmation of Latvian businesses’ determination and resilience, as Printful managed to go ahead with the plan, while having to adjust to the challenges brought by Covid.”

By opening a facility in the UK, Printful will be able to provide local fulfilment and faster shipping times – delivery within the country will take around two business days. It said that this, in turn, will attract and maintain clients for who delivery time is essential.

“We chose the UK as our next location because it’s the largest e-commerce market in Europe. Printful has a loyal and growing base of customers in the UK who have anticipated our UK expansion for a while and we're thrilled to finally do it,” said Printful CEO & co-founder Davis Siksnans.

“Additionally, it will allow us to significantly shorten shipping times within the UK, making it easy to reach many new customers.”

In 2020 the business achieved over $200m (£152m) revenue. It has recently become the first unicorn company – valued at over $1bn – with Latvian roots, after it landed $130m investment from equity firm Bregal Sagemount in May.