Laguna Hills, CA – January 25th, 2013 – Signworld, a turn-key sign business opportunity, announces the celebration of 25 years in business.
Since 1988, Signworld has evolved from a single retail sign company, offering simple cut graphic signs, to an organization consisting of 260 commercial sign companies, spread across North America, offering everything from banners and tradeshow displays to monument signs and channel letters.
Signworld founder, Ken Kindt, with years of experience as a financial planner and as an executive for Ford Motor Co., had a passion for manufacturing and a strong desire to be an entrepreneur. Thus, Signworld’s precursor was created as a single sign company, fulfilling the growing need for signs as businesses continued to grow around him. Kindt soon realized that his business model could be duplicated, but the thought of franchising didn’t appeal to him. He opposed all of the rules and royalties enforced by franchise concepts and felt they would hinder the ability for the small business owner to grow, and more importantly, maintain control of their success. Kindt determined that a business opportunity or a licensing model would best suit his concept, hence Signworld was established on January 25, 1988, in Honolulu, HI.
“What started out 25 years ago as a desire to create a system that could be duplicated in the small manufacturing setting, while also creating an alternative to the restrictive franchise world, far exceeded any expectations that I had during our very humble beginning. We’ve made a lot of progress over the last 25 years, Signworld has transitioned from the retail store front to a light industrial property; from marketing in the yellow pages to utilizing the power of websites and internet dominance; from simple vinyl signs to large format photographic signage, displayed in unique ways and places; and from a handful of entrepreneurs to a family of 260 Signworld Owners, spread across the United States and Canada”, stated Kindt.
Jack Werner, Executive V.P. of Signworld and a former Signworld Owner says, “Signworld started in 1988 with a handful of operations trained by the Signworld staff and loosely connected to each other. Over the years, the organization has grown to over 260 operations throughout the US and into Canada. Many have been passed from generation to generation. Camaraderie has increased, interaction has flourished with owners sharing projects, advising each other on suppliers and best practices, forming mastermind groups, attending internal webinars, and creating a network of close knit allies meeting annually to share and learn together. Over the years Signworld has become a “family”. It’s the one feature that truly makes us unique as an organization and makes me proud to be a part of”.
Of the many changes that have been made over the years is the use of the internet for marketing. “The Internet has offered a unique opportunity to market your business more effectively than ever before. It allows the content to be driven by your customer base rather than traditional methods of creating an advertisement that you want your customers to buy into. Best of all, most web-based marketing is free and can be easily modified without the help of a professional. The internet is always working and potential customers are always searching for solutions. With our internet marketing model, many owners attain 50%+ of their new business from the web, making an owners web presence an unpaid and highly successful sales representative.” Dan Werner, V.P. of Operations, added.
Sign technology has also come a long way in the last 25 years. “What started out as simple cut-graphic signs, made on a small vinyl cutter, has morphed into photo-realistic images being printed on a number of materials, via inkjet technology. The inks, equipment, materials and application processes have improved immensely in a relatively short period of time. Signworld has stayed on the forefront of new industry technology by working closely with manufacturers and suppliers and will continue to stay at the top of the technological pyramid” stated Paul Wagner, Signworld’s V.P. of Technology since 1990.
