What’s having the greatest impact on your business at the moment?
At the time being it is companies advertising to gain work. Large and small companies are unsure of their future and are looking at advertising prospects to get them through or get that extra work. This has lead to upgrades with nearly all of our current signage machinery and in hiring more staff to meet the demand.
Where do you see the greatest wide-format opportunities?
I see the greatest opportunities in things like banners and in many other types large-format prints, but the problem is that customers don’t know about all the options so it is often overlooked. Ideally we want to get noticed by architects and developers so that we get the word out about possibilities at the start of projects.
What would make your day-to-day operations easier?
A piece of equipment we don’t have, but which has been recommended by a lot of other sign companies, is a Rolls Roller which we are looking into as it would speed up operations.
Your favourite bit of kit is..?
…our new Epson SC-S80600 printer. It has cut printing and drying times drastically and at the same time opened up the option for larger wide-format prints than we were able to print previously.
What’s the best bit of business advice you’ve been given?
That is always strive to put out the best work possible. It helps to have a little bit of OCD in the signage trade - that way you strive to put out a better product every time.
What are you most proud of achieving?
I have only been in the sign trade for around four years and started as a general fitter. Now I run a printroom and workshop and the work we put out is the best we ever have. I put this down to the great achievement we have made as a team. We have expended into different sectors and we have amazing staff that strive for only the best.
What lesson does the wide-format sector need to learn?
There Is new equipment coming out all the time that makes it possible to print larger, quicker and with better resolution. All this means that pricing fluctuates a lot throughout different suppliers.
Mikey Walker, workshop and fabrications manager, Signs Express (Nottingham) www.theprinthive.co.uk