FOREAL x StickerApp

You don't need a billboard budget to make a visual impact. Plus, unlike a digital ad, people actually thank you for giving them a sticker.

FOREAL: The One-Stop Design Shop

Benjamin and Dirk are the founders and creative leads behind FOREAL, a design and animation studio obsessed with making ideas loud, bold, and unapologetically colorful.

What started in 2013 as a two-person venture has grown into a tight-knit crew of eight artists and self-proclaimed CGI nerds, all based in their hometown of Trier, Germany. Not exactly a global metropolis, right? But FOREAL has proved that you do not need big city lights to make serious noise worldwide, just solid Wi-Fi, sharp skills, and a whole lot of passion.

From global tech giants like Google to the beloved pizza place around the corner, their client list is as diverse as their visual style. The mission stays the same every time: create high-end 3D visuals and animations that feel tactile, playful, and impossible to scroll past.

FOREAL lives in that sweet spot where big agency quality meets direct collaboration. Clients work hand in hand with the actual artists crafting the visuals, no corporate maze, no meetings about meetings, just clear communication, good energy, and serious creative firepower.

Two men standing in front of a dark wall, one wearing a gray shirt over a white tee, the other in a light tee and cap, both smiling.
Founders Dirk, to the left, and Benjamin, to the right.
Hand holding a pack of "Overtime Originals" stickers featuring colorful, dynamic designs. Background blurred, focus on stickers.
The magnificent Overtime Originals sticker pack.

StickerApp: Hi Benjamin, great to have you with us! How did the idea for the Overtime Originals sticker pack come to life? And why a sticker pack in the first place?

Benjamin: Honestly, as digital artists, we spend 99 percent of our lives staring at pixels behind glass, obsessing over textures, light, velvet, gold. But you cannot touch a pixel. Working with you guys was our excuse to finally break that barrier and turn our digital vibe into something physical.

We had already been printing small runs as client giveaways and were hooked on the quality, so creating a full custom sticker pack felt like the natural next step.

“Overtime Originals” is a playful nod to agency culture. Not crunch time, but that creative flow that kicks in when the emails stop and you finally get to experiment. We mixed our decade-long greatest hits with brand new ideas from the team, capturing our inside jokes, struggles, and small wins along the way. It became a true crew effort, and a simple but special way to represent our whole studio.

StickerApp: It's a fantastic curation of designs! What role did physical print, and stickers in particular, play in expressing your creative identity compared to digital work?

Benjamin: It’s the ultimate reality check. In our digital workflow, there is always an "Undo" button. In print, once it’s done, it’s done. That adds a layer of excitement (and maybe a little sweating) to the process. For us, print adds a sense of permanence; seeing our work on a friend’s MacBook gives it a life beyond a fleeting Instagram post. It makes the digital tangible, which is extremely satisfying for a bunch of CGI nerds.

Stickers are basically the smallest possible canvas for the biggest possible impact. We usually work on complex animations or large campaigns, so distilling our studio vibe down to a few square centimeters was a fun challenge. We love that stickers are "democratic art". They turn everyday objects like laptops, water bottles, or street signs into mini exhibition spaces. It is a way to get our visual language out into the real world without it feeling like traditional advertising. It’s branding, but the kind people actually want to engage with.

StickerApp: How do stickers help translate your digital-first ideas into something tangible?

Benjamin: Standard print often flattens the magic of 3D, but the material options here were a total game-changer. By using holographic foils and Pixie Dust glitter, we could actually mimic how light behaves in our software. It adds an extra layer to our work, a new dimension where the sticker reacts to the real-world environment, shifting and sparkling just like a render. It bridges the gap perfectly, giving a flat print the depth and volume of our digital originals.

StickerApp: What do stickers allow you to communicate that screens alone don’t?

Benjamin: Commitment. On a screen, everything is fleeting; you scroll past in a second. But sticking something onto your personal gear is a conscious choice that says "I vibe with this." It creates a lasting physical connection with our brand that an algorithm simply can’t replicate. A sticker doesn’t disappear when you close the app.

A hand with yellow nails holds a colorful sticker reading "Emotion Deserves Love" with a smiling blue and purple face.

StickerApp: You brought the sticker packs to Adobe MAX and regularly share them with clients and partners. How does a physical product help you stand out in a digital world?

Benjamin: We all live in a state of digital fatigue. At events like Adobe MAX, you are bombarded with screens and software demos. Giving someone a physical, tactile object creates a totally different anchor. It cuts through the noise because it’s not just another cheap swag that ends up in the trash. It’s a souvenir. A website is forgotten, but a high-quality sticker pack ends up on their desk. The real payoff came days later. We saw so many people posting photos on social media, tagging us with their new sticker setups on laptops or workspace monitors.

Also, with AI and social media flooding our screens, the perceived value of purely digital content is naturally dropping; it’s just everywhere. In contrast, holding something physical feels rare and valuable again. We hope that this appreciation rubs off on our brand. If a client holds a premium, well-crafted sticker, they subconsciously project that same standard onto the digital services we provide. Hopefully. Fingers crossed.

StickerApp: Amazing! So, how was it actually producing the sticker pack? Did it live up to your standards?

Benjamin: Honestly, it was super smooth, which surprised us. Hitting “send” on print files usually stresses us out because we are picky about specs and details. But the process felt intuitive, and the support team immediately understood what we cared about. No back-and-forth headaches, just clean execution.

What mattered most to us was control. We wanted to decide exactly where the glitter shines and where the foil hits. Those small decisions make a big difference when your whole studio identity is built on precision and craft.

For us, the physical product had to prove our digital quality. We cannot sell premium design and hand out a flimsy sticker. As we like to say, “If it feels cheap, we look cheap. If it feels premium, it elevates everything.” The sticker is not just merch; it is a physical extension of our brand.

StickerApp: 10/10, would recommend?

Benjamin: Absolutely. It’s an easy way to get your art out there. You don't need a billboard budget to make a visual impact. Plus, unlike a digital ad, people actually thank you for giving them a sticker. It turns branding into a gift rather than an annoyance.

And what really surprised us was the longevity! Promo material usually disappears fast, but months later, we still spot our stickers on laptops at conferences or in video calls. A tiny giveaway turns into permanent ad space that people actually protect.

To us, physical print is a way to show appreciation and signal quality. Digital content is everywhere, which makes tangible objects feel rare again. When you hand someone a well-crafted sticker pack, you are proving that you care about the details. And that is something a screen simply cannot communicate.

Thank you, Benjamin, for taking the time to chat to us! To see more of FOREAL, visit their website or check out their Instagram.

The Sticker Pack Marketing Hack

"The ordering process was super smooth. We’re always pretty picky about print specs, but the process was intuitive, and the support team got it right away. No headaches, just great results. You don't need a billboard budget to make a visual impact. Plus, unlike a digital ad, people actually thank you for giving them a sticker.

Benjamin Simon, co-founder at FOREAL

Like what you see? I'm here to help.

Your stickers deserve the best, and we don’t mess around. Premium materials, top-tier printing, and durability that laughs in the face of rain, sun, and dishwashers. Stickers from StickerApp stand the test of time as much as they stand out from the crowd, which is what your stunning designs deserve.

Questions? Wild sticker ideas? Shoot me an email at nora@stickerapp.com or smash that button below.

Other brands that stick with StickerApp

  1. Porsche

    "With Stickerapp we have found the right partner to take our storytelling to the next level."

    Porsche /endorsements/porsche
  2. Yamay Sauce

    "At Yamay, we order labels from StickerApp for our products and are thrilled with the results. The stickers come in convenient rolls, ideal for our bottle application process, and the quality exceeds our expectations. The seamless ordering process and exceptional support from their staff make StickerApp a standout choice. We highly recommend them."

    Yamay Amakuchi Soy Sauce yamaysauce.com
  3. Hello Merch

    "Been ordering stickers for over two decades and StickerApp is by far the best I’ve ever come across. Awesome ordering experience, quality and service"

    HelloMerch www.hellomerch.com
  4. Absolute Merch

    "Working with sticker app has been so amazing, we’ve been partners for years! Love what they do and how they do it."

    Absolute Merch absolutemerch.com
  5. "We have been using sticker app for a couple years to create fun extras for our packages. Our customers LOVE receiving our sticker and have started collaging them on their water bottles and computers! It’s an extra fun perk to opening an order from us."

    Beckie With The Good Stuff beckiewiththegoodstuff.com