I recently read an article that encourages new entrepreneurs to narrow their focus. This is nothing new of course, over the years I've read entire books on the topic. There's much to be said for this concept in certain circumstances such as in the story about a men's jeans company that has grew...

Here’s a common story. See if you recognize this scenario . . .  A sign shop is not meeting profit expectations. What is usually the first thing that happens? The owner looks for more sales and looks for cost-cutting opportunities, right? And what is the obvious cost-cutting target? Material...

By now we all know that plastic waste not handled properly contributes to the huge microplastic ecological problem. It’s a pity that it has taken so long for most of us to finally become aware of it, and a greater pity that not enough is being done about it. So the big question then becomes one of...

I've urged before that you make a point of paying regular visits to the Roland website for the useful information they post. In literally a couple of minutes a month, you may find something that could be a significant time saver and money-spinner. But, since you probably haven't visited the site...

Large organizations and governments frequently undertake simplification exercises or projects which they like to refer to as “red tape reduction.” Essentially it’s a process of eliminating unnecessary activities and streamlining others to achieve the simplification we all crave when things just...

If you're a regular reader, you'll know by now that I'm an enthusiastic promoter of trade show attendance. It's where you keep up to date on developments in your industry, where you make useful contacts, where your creativity is stimulated. I don't believe that without that kind of exposure you're...

If, like a third to a half of the population, you are an introvert, the chances are that you hate prospecting, meeting new customers, or interacting with people you don’t know. The problem this poses for the introverted shop owner is that interacting with customers and prospects is an essential...

How often have you had to deal with a "customer service" rep who didn't seem to have a clue what the job really involved? Haven't you found that some of them are so poorly trained or unsuited to the job (which is really a management problem in either case) that you, the customer, far from...

I recently came across this list of The 8 KEEPS of small business while searching through some old files. There's no mention of the source so, unfortunately, I'm unable to credit the the originator. It's not just good advice for someone starting out, it's also a good reminder even if you've been...

Following the posting of the previous item on controversial or shocking signs, I received an email from a reader who had worked in a large printing company in South Africa. Here are two excerpts from that email that further demonstrate the issues that can arise when accepting "controversial" jobs:...

When a client places an order for a sign, banner or billboard that you instinctively know is likely to be controversial or shocking, what do you do? Do you produce such an order without question or do you exercise some degree of censorship? Controversial messages have in the past included a wide...

Nowadays its not hard to find articles and posts encouraging sign shops to consider diversifying. And not just diversifying into more obvious areas, such as, say,  vehicle wraps or digital signs, but also into other, somewhat related, activities and products. Popular examples are fabric prints,...

What should the Canadian sign industry expect from the rest of 2024? I did some research and it seems to boil down to five main topics against a background of technological advancements, changing consumer preferences, and a renewed focus on sustainability. Personalized and interactive signage:...

It's always good business practice to periodically review processes to ensure that they're still relevant and contributing the efficiency and/or control that they were originally implemented for. One such process that has a direct impact on the quality of the end product and could be embarrassing,...

Fellow small business owners can't do business with your shop if they don't know about it. There are of course the usual promotional methods of various forms of advertising but how often do you have an opportunity to tell a potential customer or word-of-mouth promoter about your business and...

Today I posted an article about cybersecurity on the Stanley's textile blog. And I'm doing so again here because it's something serious that's not being taken seriously enough by the vast majority of small to medium-sized (SME) businesses in Canada. You can see the textile article by clicking...

Writing this blog causes me to take a special interest in signs and billboards. And many times I've seen a sign or billboard and wondered how the designer chose the colours. I've wondered if the choice was deliberate according to some scientifically-determined formula or simply reflected the...

We're in the middle of winter in Canada again and it's therefore a good time for a reminder that it could mean shipping problems. I was reminded of this when I saw a recent report that Highway 3 to Yellowknife had closed down, probably due to a blizzard or some other winter-weather condition. I...

Your customer needs a sign. Not just any sign but one that will grab attention and draw people into the store—which is after all the primary purpose of a store sign. So you pick a good example such as the Best Buy sign where they apparently discovered that 17 percent of customers were people who...

Welcome to 2024. Stanley's is back and the crew are refreshed and ready to help make good things happen in the Canadian sign and graphics industry. The signs point to a good year for the industry. Let's make it happen!

For about 8 years, this blog has been steaming along at the rate of two posts a week. This last post is here merely to explain that older posts are archived and that we only show three-month's worth of posts in order to keep the site current and limited to a reasonable length. But, not to worry,...