Milton & King Vs.Traditional Manufacturing

How do you source a product that’s made with transparency, authenticity and honesty? What is the true cost of a roll of wallpaper, not just a dollar value but how big of a footprint does this one roll leave?

If you, like so many others are embracing the demand for local, personalized and ethically made products that meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance and public transparency, then Milton & King should be your primary resource for wallpaper.

The way products are manufactured has evolved significantly in recent years and wallpaper production is no exception to this evolution.

The social change in consumer demands will eventually see the demise of globalized large-scale production. Decentralizing traditional wallpaper factories and with that will come the reduction in standing inventory and waste.

The key to unlocking these opportunities lies in a distributed manufacturing operation – one that relies on a network of smaller, more agile and flexible factories around the world located closer to where customers are. Decreasing the time it takes to create, receive, schedule, and process a client’s order. We have adopted a more sustainable approach based on made-to-order manufacturing strategy. Simply put, we are driven to make high quality wallpaper, with short lead times in a factory closest to your location.

Thus providing a meaningful reduction in logistics costs, emissions derived from manufacturing and distribution operations, supporting more sustainable business practices such as waste reduction and support of local economy as well as removing the risk of Global Supply Chain volatility. We always have a production backup!

Traditionally, the wallpaper industry has relied on physical inventory to meet market needs and mass production to keep costs down. The result is the buildup of complicated global supply, distribution and sales networks. However, the unpredictability of human behavior, local markets and global trends means there is no perfect projection formula to ensure that the right product is available quickly and in the right location. Storing wallpaper collections for the possibility of their use requires a generally large physical footprint, as well as facility upkeep and the personnel to keep it running. Expensive, massive warehouses of product sit in wait to supply demand that may or may not come – and may or may not be localized enough to be helpful for areas of demand.

“Digital inventory” is a backbone of our supply chain management. More than a buzzword, the underlying principle is that rather than stock a physical warehouse with mass quantities of wallpaper that may or may not be in demand at any given time, we manufacture on-demand in a production facility located near the source of need. Sharing digital files, color profiles and IP seamlessly across our own network.

1. By manufacturing orders on-demand and closer to their end destination, we reduce logistics cost, lead times and environmental impact. Satisfying consumer demand for faster delivery and customized service.

2. Direct-to-Consumer: From the factory floor to your door. We manufacture, market, and distribute our own products without middlemen, which enables us to reduce costs, interact directly with consumers, and provide a seamless start-to-finish buyer’s experience.

3. We Are Agile: Not only are we incredibly flexible with our localized manufacturing but we are super stretchy with getting product from initial concept through to market. We can design, test and launch products in days not months.

4. We Embrace Technology: Modern technology allows us to adjust and update our production techniques in real time. In addition, our e-commerce approach makes it possible to keep our retail customers and trade clients on forward footing with targeted and timely communication and the click of a few buttons. Within a few days you can have your very own sample of the latest designs to create beautiful flat-lays, color coordinate finishes or to simply touch and feel the quality. Yay technology!

5. Minimal Waste: We run a very lean manufacturing process with less than 5% production waste. We only print what sells. So we’re not left with masses of old standing inventory that no longer fits the trends. We have a smaller manufacturing footprint which helps reach our sustainability goals.