What Express Cups does

Express Cups is a UK-based custom printed reusable cup manufacturer founded in 2016 and headquartered in Teesside (Stockton-on-Tees), operating as a dedicated brand within the Tees Valley Plastics (TVP) manufacturing group. The company manufactures BPA-free, food-grade polypropylene cups using In-Mould Labelling (IML) technology, which embeds full-colour designs permanently into the cup surface during production, producing branding that withstands 200+ commercial dishwasher wash cycles. Its product portfolio spans pint-to-line, half-pint, pint-to-brim, two-pint, stackable wine cups, champagne flutes, 16oz cocktail cups, and reusable hot drinks cups, with a patented Stack Cup design featuring an integrated multi-carry handle. All manufacturing and printing is conducted at a single UK facility, enabling express lead times of 24-72 hours.

The company's go-to-market is exclusively direct-to-consumer (B2B) through a 4-step online quote tool, phone sales, and email, with no third-party distributors or resellers. Pricing is unit-based, starting from 0.33 GBP per cup at higher volumes, with a minimum order of 50 cups and a maximum of 100,000; express orders carry 20-40% surcharges and an optional artwork design service is offered from 35 GBP. Express Cups targets festival organisers, stadium concession teams, hospitality venues, marketing agencies, and private event buyers across the UK, with UKCA certification enabling licensed alcohol service. It operates alongside six sister brands under TVP (Drinksmate, EcoCups, Printed Cups, Stack-Cup, Stadium Cup, My Festival Cup), enabling cross-referrals across segmented cup categories.

Name

Express Cups

Legal name

Express Cups

Website

https://expresscups.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Express Cups is a UK-based custom printed reusable cup manufacturer serving festivals, stadiums, hospitality venues, and event organisers with 24-72 hour express production from a single Teesside facility under the Tees Valley Plastics group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Custom Printed Reusable Cups

NAICS

Plastics Bottle Manufacturing (326160)

SIC

Beverages (2080)

akta.pro primary industry

In-Mold Labels (IML) (IMALAKAC)

Keywords

• Custom printed cups
• Reusable event drinkware
• Festival cup manufacturing
• Branded polypropylene cups
• Event cup printing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Darlington

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Custom Printed Reusable Cups: One-time transactional sales of custom branded reusable cups. Customers place orders for specified quantities with custom artwork. Revenue is generated per-unit with pricing based on quantity tiers, cup size, and print complexity. Express/urgent orders carry additional surcharges.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Express Cups is a UK-based custom manufacturer of branded reusable polypropylene cups for events, festivals, stadiums and licensed venues. The company produces a range of cup types (pints, half pints, wine cups, champagne flutes, cocktail cups, hot drink cups and the patented Stack Cup) with full-colour In-Mould Labelling (IML) printing, offering express 48-72 hour production alongside a standard 10 working day turnaround, with order quantities from 50 to 100,000 cups.

Product overview

Express Cups is a UK-based custom printed reusable cup manufacturer offering a portfolio of BPA-free, food-grade polypropylene cups across multiple sizes and styles. The core offering consists of reusable event cups including Pint to Line, Half Pint, Pint to Brim, Two Pint, Stack Cup (patented), Wine Cups, Champagne Flutes, Cocktail Cups, and Hot Drinks Cups, all featuring full-colour In-Mould Labelling (IML) printing technology. The company operates an add-on artwork design service (£35) that includes free 3D proof generation, alongside a Plain Stock unbranded cup sub-brand for customers without custom printing needs. Orders range from 50 to 100,000 cups with standard 10 working day turnaround or express 48-72 hour production. All cups are manufactured in-house at the Teesside facility.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pint to Line Reusable Cup Standard reusable pint cup marked to the UK legal pint line (568 ml capacity, 625 ml max brim), made from BPA-free food-grade polypropylene, UKCA/CE compliant for licensed alcohol service at bars, festivals, stadiums and venues across Great Britain.
• Half Pint Reusable Cup Smaller reusable cup with 330 ml capacity marked to the half-pint line, suitable for spirits and smaller servings, manufactured from food-grade BPA-free polypropylene with full-colour custom IML printing available.
• Pint to Brim Reusable Cup Reusable cup filled to actual pint capacity (600 ml) rather than the UK legal pint line, suitable for events where exact measurement compliance is not required, manufactured from BPA-free food-grade polypropylene.
• Full-Colour Printed Reusable Cups Custom branded reusable cups with vibrant full-colour In-Mould Labelling (IML) printing technology that embeds designs permanently into the cup surface during manufacturing, ensuring print does not peel, fade or wash away over 200+ wash cycles.
• Two Pint Reusable Cup Larger capacity reusable cup suitable for events requiring larger serving sizes, manufactured from food-grade BPA-free polypropylene with full custom IML printing capability.
• Stack Cup Patented reusable cup with integrated multi-carry handle design allowing multiple cups to be stacked and carried together, designed for efficient transport and serving at events and festivals.
• Stackable Wine Cup Reusable wine glass alternative designed for stacking, made from shatterproof food-grade polypropylene, suitable for outdoor events, festivals and venues.
• Champagne Flute Reusable plastic champagne flute suitable for events and celebrations, manufactured from food-grade shatterproof material with custom IML printing available.
• 16oz Cocktail Cup Reusable cocktail cup with 16oz capacity suitable for mixed drinks and cocktails at events, manufactured from food-grade BPA-free polypropylene with fully custom IML printing available.
• Reusable Hot Drinks Cup Reusable cup designed for hot beverages, manufactured from BPA-free food-grade polypropylene that withstands heat and repeated use with full-colour custom IML printing.
• Artwork Design Service Standalone design assistance service where Express Cups' in-house design team creates custom artwork and a free 3D visual proof for customer approval before production begins, priced from £35 for customers without print-ready artwork.
• Plain Stock Cups Unbranded, plain reusable cups available for customers who do not require custom printing, shipped faster by skipping the print and proof stages.

Quantifiable outcome

• 77% higher brand recall compared to digital advertising spend (British Promotional Merchandise Association 2025 study)
• +2 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Tees Valley Plastics (TVP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Tees Valley Plastics (TVP) is the parent manufacturing group of Express Cups. Founded in Teesside, TVP is one of the UK's leading manufacturing groups of sustainable and reusable products. Express Cups was created as a dedicated express manufacturing brand within the TVP group, leveraging their advanced manufacturing capability to offer rapid turnaround on custom printed cups.
• DrinksmateminorOthersSister brand under the Tees Valley Plastics group, offering drinks-related branded products. Cross-referred through the Express Cups brands page.
• EcoCupsminorOthersSister brand under the Tees Valley Plastics group, focused on eco-friendly cup solutions. Cross-referred through the Express Cups brands page.
• Stack-CupminorOthersSister brand under the Tees Valley Plastics group, offering the patented Stack Cup with multi-carry handle design. Cross-referred through the Express Cups brands page.
• Printed CupsminorOthersSister brand under the Tees Valley Plastics group. Cross-referred through the Express Cups brands page.
• Stadium CupminorOthersSister brand under the Tees Valley Plastics group, focused on stadium and sports venue cup solutions. Cross-referred through the Express Cups brands page.
• My Festival CupminorOthersSister brand under the Tees Valley Plastics group, focused on festival-specific cup solutions. Cross-referred through the Express Cups brands page.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Printed Cup Company: UK-based custom printed cup manufacturer offering branded paper and reusable cups to events, hospitality, and corporate buyers with rapid online quoting — directly comparable product, target customer, and GTM motion to Express Cups.
• CupPrint: European custom printed cup supplier serving events, cafés, and brands with low-MOQ custom orders — a directly comparable business in printed cup manufacturing with overlapping customer use cases.
• Go-Pak: UK-based foodservice packaging supplier offering branded and stock cups to hospitality, events, and takeaway customers — overlap in product category, target market, and UK distribution footprint.

Emerging players

• Ecoffee Cup: Reusable coffee cup brand serving cafés, events, and corporate customers with branded cup programs — overlapping reusable cup niche and events/coffee customer base, but as a branded take-away rather than B2B custom manufacturer.
• Vegware: UK-based specialist in compostable and plant-based foodservice packaging including branded cups — adjacent product/market, competing for the same event and hospitality sustainability budgets from a different material angle.

Broad incumbents

• Huhtamaki: Global foodservice packaging incumbent offering cups, containers, and branded serveware across retail and foodservice channels — overlapping capability with broader portfolio, but does not specialize in UK express custom-printed reusable cups.
• Berry Global: Large diversified plastic packaging manufacturer producing rigid containers and foodservice items globally — overlaps at the plastic container manufacturing level but is not focused on the UK custom-printed reusable cup niche.
• Dart Container: Major North American foodservice packaging manufacturer producing cups, containers, and lids across materials — broad-incumbent overlap in foodservice drinkware, not focused on UK custom express-printed reusable cups.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Express Cups