At 38, Maxime Tijou already has 23 years of experience in large-format printing. The former employee of the ICI printing company is now opening his own print shop, Atelier Signaé, located in Montrevault-sur-Èvre in the Maine-et-Loire department.
"I've worked in every position in the graphic design process," "That's how the executive, who is passionate about his work, sums it up." "For the past seven years, I was in charge of the signage and wallpaper workshop at the ICI printing plant in Beaupréau-en-Mauges. Atelier Signaé is a continuation of my professional journey?the logical next step."
And when asked if he is concerned about the current economic situation, he replies: "The timing isn't ideal. I realize that, since a lot of people are congratulating me on 'taking the plunge right now'! But that doesn't scare me?I've settled into my city. I have a network, and I have 23 years of experience."
In addition, Maxime Tijou has another advantage: he plans to set Atelier Signaé apart by offering products that are more environmentally friendly than traditional ones. "There is strong demand from many local governments for recycled materials, but also to provide a solution for what to do with the materials after they've been used ."
To do this, Maxime Tijou has equipped himself with an HP Latex 630W, which uses water-based inks. He also chooses recycled and recyclable materials. To achieve this, he also relies on material libraries and suppliers, including Hexis, which processes PVC to make pipes and insulation liners. "I also put a lot of effort into sorting my trash to generate as little waste as possible." ", he adds.
In production for a week now, his HP Latex printer has already produced several batches of products, including PVC-free banners and adhesive labels for vehicles and food vending machines. The liners are stored in the workshop to be picked up by the supplier, who will process them, just as the adhesive labels will be processed once they have been used by the customer.
While he isn't getting ahead of himself, the manager plans to expand his workshop gradually. "In the future, I plan to hire?as needed?an installer, maybe a graphic designer, and also some work-study students. I?ve always been trained through work-study programs, so this is something that?s really close to my heart."
However, he does not want to expand his team at any cost. "During my apprenticeship, I worked at a company where there were just the four of us, and it worked really well. It allows you to stay in direct contact with customers. These are simple things that I missed and that I want to experience again."
