Sign Pros on Now vs. Their “Good Old Days”

ABOVE PHOTO: GABE GRIFFIN, CLEAR SIGN & DESIGN

QUESTION:

Do you like your job better now vs. your “good old days,” whenever they may have been?

Yes: 67%

• Most probably wouldn’t consider me old enough yet to have “good old days” but my last job was in classic big-box retail so… yeah, this is way better. — Lauren Cassel, Fastsigns of Harrisburg, PA
• I appreciate the “good old days” for the foundation they built, but I genuinely enjoy my job more now. The industry has evolved, and so have I. There’s more innovation, more collaboration and a greater ability to make a real impact on both clients and our team. — Tricia Samuel, D10 Signs + Graphics, Kirkland, WA
• We have grown and become more organized. — Marvin Carre, Capital Signs & Awnings, Bunkie, LA
• When I first got into the sign business, I was hand-lettering everything. I finally had to purchase a vinyl-cutting machine. Made life so much simpler and the ability to manufacture signs much quicker… That was 35 years ago and still going strong with more plotters, printers and a CNC machine. — Jack Thurmond, Jack’s Signs & Graphics, Washington, Ga
• That’s tough! The good old days (early 2000’s) were a much simpler time in the sign biz. Old school workers and some true craftsmen. Fast forward, today I feel we are much more efficient with technology but that has come with a price… — Matt Baker, Bakers’ Signs & Mfg., Conroe, TX

No: 33%

• I’ve owned my own shop since 2007, started in signs in 1998, and the best time was the first six months when I went out solo and just had to pay my own mortgage to get by. Now I have a team of people counting on me every day and it’s exhausting. — Aaron Pedrick, Signature Dezigns, Apopka, FL
• There is no loyalty. Dealing with people that don’t have a clue about the sign business and ask for ridiculous pricing. No one seems to care anymore. — Tish Scialampo, Absolute Sign Inc., Los Alamitos, CA

One Quick Question:

Which facet of signmaking has changed the most during your career?

AI in the Sign Industry:
If your shop uses generative AI in any capacity, how often do you have to make corrections to its output?