Understanding FLX-Paint
- FLX-Paint™ is paint on a roll and is made with OEM automotive paint - we apply our custom coatings at the same thickness as paint is applied to new cars at the factory (1 to 2 mils paint, 2 mils clear coat)
- FLX-Paint is not just a new product, it's creating a whole new market - wrapping with FLX-Paint - which makes tint/clear bra and wrap shops the new home of custom paint – Think about it - this is a BIG TIME market shift - until now, to get a paint job, you had to go to a body shop or custom paint shop to get your car painted. Now you can go to a tint/clear bra or wrap shop to get a "paint skin" that's made with real paint, in a fraction of the time and for less money than a traditional paint job - and a FLX-Paint paint skin is removable
- FLX-Paint is not intended to be cheap replacement for traditional paint – is made with premium materials – is intended to be paint skin that provides beauty, durability & paint protection plus is removable
- FLX-Paint is highly flexible and stretchable - allows tint / clear bra or wrap shop to install just like clear bra or vinyl wrap
- Tint / Clear Bra and Wrap shops can use software they are already paying for to estimate usage and create templates to cut FLX-Paint – for ppf software, just add to template dimensions to “wrap” body panel
- FLX-Paint comes on 12' (4 yards) rolls - this is due to clear coat; is automotive clear coat - once applied, film cannot be rolled up after minimum 2 hours in batch ovens. 12' covers the longest automotive applications
- FLX-Paint NOT competitive against vinyl but is very competitive against traditional paint shop paint job. Don’t try to sell against vinyl - is different product with very different long term results
- However, FLX-Paint is not really competing against traditional paint - is a new way to paint - real paint that is removable
- Car guys "get it" once you explain to them that it’s a paint skin made with real paint & is removable. Most want to preserve factory finish while adding personal touch and are willing to pay for a premium finish that is worthy of their car
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
The Satin / Matte look and a Passion for Perfect Paint
Our goal is not just to provide a New Way to Paint but to push the envelope with colors and finishes that can only be achieved with real automotive paint. Our new UltraMatte colors are a perfect example.
We are at the beginning of a huge global trend towards matte finishes. Look at the matte colors coming out of Lamborghini and Ferrari and you will see the future. A simple matte finish can be achieved with vinyl but to get the super smooth satin sheen look, you need paint. However, virtually all the matte paint jobs we saw at SEMA 09 were simple matte or semi gloss finishes – nothing resembling the perfect satin sheen found on the Italian supercars – why use paint if you don’t take advantage of what it can really do?
When we created our UltraMatte colors, we wanted the super smooth satin sheen that can only be achieved by paint – we have no interest in creating a finish that looks like everything else on the market. We did countless variations of our matte clear coat to get just the right texture. As a note, matte clear coats are more expensive than gloss clear coats, require very good coating conditions and mixing – the whole production chain for matte clears requires very good calibration of materials, equipment and processes. Many painters will simply “dumb down” a gloss clear coat by adding more reducer but that kills the durability and only achieves a simple matte finish – again, why bother using a premium paint system if that’s all you are going to do?
So, fast forward through the development process and we now have our ultramatte colors. We are giddy about the finish; we feel it’s as good as anything in the “traditional” paint world. It has all the durability of paint with a perfect satin finish but it’s FLX-Paint so it’s fast, easy to apply and semi-permanent – we think it’s the best of both worlds. Please let me know your thoughts. Dude
We are at the beginning of a huge global trend towards matte finishes. Look at the matte colors coming out of Lamborghini and Ferrari and you will see the future. A simple matte finish can be achieved with vinyl but to get the super smooth satin sheen look, you need paint. However, virtually all the matte paint jobs we saw at SEMA 09 were simple matte or semi gloss finishes – nothing resembling the perfect satin sheen found on the Italian supercars – why use paint if you don’t take advantage of what it can really do?
When we created our UltraMatte colors, we wanted the super smooth satin sheen that can only be achieved by paint – we have no interest in creating a finish that looks like everything else on the market. We did countless variations of our matte clear coat to get just the right texture. As a note, matte clear coats are more expensive than gloss clear coats, require very good coating conditions and mixing – the whole production chain for matte clears requires very good calibration of materials, equipment and processes. Many painters will simply “dumb down” a gloss clear coat by adding more reducer but that kills the durability and only achieves a simple matte finish – again, why bother using a premium paint system if that’s all you are going to do?
So, fast forward through the development process and we now have our ultramatte colors. We are giddy about the finish; we feel it’s as good as anything in the “traditional” paint world. It has all the durability of paint with a perfect satin finish but it’s FLX-Paint so it’s fast, easy to apply and semi-permanent – we think it’s the best of both worlds. Please let me know your thoughts. Dude
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Why FLX-Paint is A New Way To Paint
When we first developed FLX-Paint, we quickly realized we had a hit because every time we showed it, we got the same strong reaction, "wow, look at that!" – was (and is) the standard response.
We knew we had a killer product but we needed to understand the automotive aftermarket paint market if we were going to find a way to sell it. We soon realized there was a huge void in this market. For all practical purposes, car owners could not get a quality aftermarket paint job without a serious investment in time and money. The result is most car owners don't get aftermarket paint jobs because of the price and inconvenience - which makes aftermarket paint a limited, niche market - the way it has been for decades
We also learned that innovation in automotive aftermarket painting basically doesn't exist. With the exception of the recent matte black trend, there has been very little innovation in aftermarket painting. The market is characterized by painfully slow evolutionary changes to coatings and application techniques with nothing revolutionary since the introduction of urethane finishes. Combine this with looming environmental regulations that will force dramatic changes to the entire automotive painting industry and you can see that traditional aftermarket painting is ready for a revolutionary change
We also learned that people want paint - in spite of all the progress in the vinyl wrap market, the fundamental truth is people want real paint - they want the stunning colors, brilliant metallics, rich pearls and a wet-as-water clear coat that can only come from a premium automotive paint system
The net result is you have a product (a fabulous painted finish) that people really desire but a market, in its present form, that can’t deliver the product at a price point or convenience point customers are willing to pay
Long story short, we consider FLX-Paint to be the Next Big Thing in the world of automotive painting – an innovative product that provides the stunning painted finish that car owners want at a price and convenience point they are willing to pay. We are singularly focused on the ongoing development of our “Wrap With Paint” program that provides a completely New Way To Paint. Stay tuned for more.
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