About Foilco

Foilco was established in 1987 by David Hornby, located in the North West of England, situated between Greater Manchester and Warrington.

Foilco is still very much a family run business, guided by the hands of the Hornby family. We strongly believe that giving our customers the most efficient service, best quality products and going the extra mile, makes working with us a beneficial experience.

We have a longstanding history within the industry for being flexible and approachable (arguably our most distinguishing and admired characteristics) offering completely bespoke products and services to meet any of our customers’ requirements. We can offer complimentary access to our testing facilities and services, which allow brands and creatives the chance to test out new combinations of foil and materials. We want new projects to flourish and if we can support everyone in that decision making process, you have our experience, knowledge and resources available to you whenever you need it.

Let us collaborate with you to find the perfect foil for your project. Not only can we help you with your choices, but we can also help your preferred printer/finisher to select the correct available grades.


 

Our Mission Statement

“Our mission is to create and develop a sustainable and quality service for our customers. Meeting and often exceeding expectations through a skilled team, while looking at ways to continuously improve our social and environmental impact via initiatives such as ZeroFoil2Landfill.”

1987

Foil Import

David Hornby imports foils from Germany and the USA from his converted transport garage. He later takes investment from one of the oldest foil manufacturers in the world, Oeserwerk, in Germany.

1990

Foilco Moves

Foilco moves to Linstock Way and a larger industrial unit. Son of the MD, Paul Hornby, joins the business. As the business grows Foilco expands to take on three new units on the site.

1992

Bespoke Foil Effects

Foilco starts making bespoke woodgrains and antique effect foils in Germany to help expand the UK picture frame industry. This leads to developing ranges of unique and individual designs.

1997

David Buys Back

Founder David Hornby buys back stake from Oeserwerk to become a solely owned business.

2000

Holographic Foil

Huge interest in the use of holographic effects in packaging emerges.  Foilco set up a separate division to service demand for holographic lamination films and foils in this sector.

2005

Foilco Begins Exporting

Foilco actively starts developing an export business. This interest has grown and instigated the establishment of agents in several countries in and outside of the EU.

2008

Approaching Graphic Designers

As a result of the recession, we had a restructure and set out a new strategy to better approach and engage the graphic design community.

2010

D1 Booklet

Foilco showcase stamping foils with the creation of the D1 Booklet. Offering extensive tear strips or ‘chips’; a working tool for the graphic designers and printers alike.

2013

FSEA Award

Foilco wins the FSEA industry awards for promotion. Foilco starts creating unique art pieces for each year.  We exhibit at the Luxe Pack in Monaco and now attend every year. In 2014 Foilco wins its first Print Solutions Award in London. Good Times.

2016

First Multiplicity Event

Foilco hosted their first Multiplicity event at Drygate in Glasgow, launched the largest collection of foils in the D4 edition, won Print solutions 2016 and Wigan Chamber of Commerce Family Business award. Wow, busy year.

2017

30 Years of Trading

Foilco celebrates 30 years of trading with the launch of the 30×30 book and postcard pack. Still bringing in new colours and ranges and expanding our global network.

2018

ZeroFoil2Landfill

Foilco announces a new initiative within the foil industry and is delighted to be the first foil company to be accredited (and certified) as a ZeroFoil2Landfill company.

2019

Largest Multiplicity Event

Foilco host the largest Multiplicity to date in London, joined by some of the best design talents in the world – and that’s just the guests! Foilco unveils the new brand identity and the launch of this website.

2019

Queen’s Award Winners

Foilco are awarded the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade for the year 2019.

2020

Re-Pulpability Study Results

Foilco raise industry-recognised re-pulpability benchmarks to 80% foil coverage of a product, following independent testing.

2021

Living Wage Employer

Foilco accredited as a Living Wage Employer, committing to pay the real Living Wages and delivering a fair day’s pay for a hard day’s work.

2023

Certified B Corp

Foilco is officially certified B Corp and joins a community of over 6000 businesses striving to meet high social and environmental performance standards, transparency, and accountability.

What truly makes Foilco different?


Click on each of our eight core principles and values below
to learn more about what makes us stand out from the crowd.

With a foundation built from the plastics and print industries, Foilco began over 30 years ago – every day and every application brings a learning for us. We are presented with new challenges, new boards, new artwork, new skill bases almost on a daily basis. We have a very strong and technically minded approach to stamping foils, which by working closely with our customers, allows us to provide guidance on achieving the optimum results.

Foilco colours, collections and effects are evolving all the time. We offer the broadest spectrum of foil colours, effects and finishes in the printing industry. With over 350 shades in stock and over 1400 products on the shelves, we can offer stamping foils for every type and style of project. If you’re looking for something different, that is further removed from our stock items, be sure to get in touch because we may have exactly what you are looking for on our shelves.

Foilco are the only foil supplier to offer complimentary testing of our products with any desired material and substrate available on the market. We offer three core Testing & Sampling services – Foilco Test Cards, Specified Stock Sample and Grade Testing.
Test cards– Ideal for showing potential clients larger examples of foiled prints.
Specified Stock sample– Ideal for showing clients stock and foil combinations.
Grade Testing– Service identifying foil shades that are available to your specific project.

We aim to inspire the print and creative communities by hosting events such as Multiplicity and educational workshops. This gives the community a chance to explore innovative ways of using foil. But more importantly, it bridges the gap between suppliers and specifiers. Resulting in the type of collaboration needed for the high-quality end result.
Multiplicity
Workshop

Foilco always want to push the boundaries of what can be achieved with foils and constantly extend our product offerings, which is currently the most diverse catalogue available in the marketplace. Brands often approach us knowing that we can provide unique finishes and bespoke colours, which can really help products stand out from the crowd. We also love trialling new materials and substrates so contact us today and we can help you find the correct foils for your unique project.

Foilco are not happy to allow products to leave their facility unless we can make assurances that the quality of the product is perfect. Foilco have their very own state of the art Quality Control Centre that batch test every single foil roll that enters and leaves the facility. We were one of the first foil companies in Europe to achieve ISO9001 in 1991 and we have proudly kept that accreditation ever since. Each and every factory roll that is handled by our staff is tested for colour, shade, and release.

Foilco are the best in the business when it comes to delivery of items. We endeavour to despatch orders for foil held in stock within 48 hours. If a faster service is required we aim to meet our customers’ requirements. We have been known to despatch within the hour! We aim to provide every order with the exact length and width required and we also hold the largest quantity of pre-reeled stocks (of our most popular foils), cutting our turnaround times to a fraction of that of our nearest competitors.

Foilco are here to lead the industry into changing some misconceptions and perceptions about foil and to do something about the way that companies handle their foil waste. We are so passionate about the environment and our stance on environmentally friendly practices and products that we offer, we can now support our customers through the Zero Foil 2 Landfill initiative by collecting their foil waste and placing it through our own specialist waste management systems.

FOILCO INSPIRE CREATIVES AND SUPPORT THE PRINT COMMUNITY

Foilco strive to inspire the use of the most varied and diverse range of stamping foils in the industry. It is our genuine aim to keep hot stamping foils as relevant and impactful as possible. This is achieved through educational programmes (Workshop), design events (Multiplicity), high-level technical support and a continued dedication to developing new colours, patterns and themes.

An eco-conscious company, we supply and support those in the luxury product markets, FMCG packaging sector, label makers and graphic arts community.

Designers and creatives


DISCOVER A RANGE OF NEW POSSIBILITIES WITH FOIL

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Multiplicity events

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Learn more about foils
through our workshops

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foil for your project

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