With the holiday shopping season in full swing, a Pittsburgh startup has brought Santa's workshop to two regional Toys “R” Us locations, installing 3D printing kiosks that create custom gifts on the spot.
PieceMaker Technologies has placed its PieceMaker Factory™ 3D printing system at Toys “R” Us stores in Cranberry Township and Totowa, N.J.
“The pilot program with Toys “R” Us marks a progression for 3D printing into big box retailing,” says CEO and co-founder Arden Rosenblatt. “For the first time, a national retailer will offer custom 3D printing, on demand, in store.”
The kiosks allow shoppers to design and fabricate customized items, including jewelry, key chains and toys, in mere minutes. Rosenblatt says it’s too early to report on how the pilot is performing, but the thrill of seeing the prototypes in action is undeniable.
“Seeing young kids, some under 10, creating their own designs and products, and then staring wide-eyed into the printer as it’s created [is] exactly the reaction we set out to create when we started all this,” he adds. “Simply put, the families that make a piece love it, and that never ceases to bring us joy.”
An AlphaLab Gear graduate, Piecemaker moved into shared office space in East Liberty earlier this year and hired its first two full-time employees, with four more hires contracted for early next year. The company has continued to tweak the printers, which are built and assembled in-house, so that they are fully automated and easy for shoppers and retail staff to operate.
In addition, PieceMaker continues to build its product library, which now offers over 100 items that can be personalized in a variety of ways from color, to adding a personal message to including built-in symbols and emojis.
Looking ahead, Rosenblatt says, “We will incorporate new technologies, new materials and new personalization tools to expand into various industries and increase the degree of freedom that consumers have in creating their world.”
Source: Arden Rosenblatt, PieceMaker Technologies
Writer: Elise Vider