Photo courtesy HTS Sign Shop
HTS Sign Shop offers a changeable banner system that uses Velcro to adhere plastic letters to the face of a vinyl banner. Photo courtesy HTS Sign Shop
	Photo courtesy Moss, Inc.
	Photo courtesy Moss, Inc.
	Photo courtesy Moss, Inc.
These stacked cylindrical forms by Expand A Sign draw the viewer’s eye toward the ceiling to deliver the advertising message in a unique way. Photo courtesy Expand A Sign
	Photo courtesy Southern Tailors

Inside Scoop

The world of signs is constantly evolving, with new materials being developed and creative people coming up with innovative ways of using old materials all the time. It’s one of the things that keeps this business interesting and challenging, whether you have been at it for 50 years or just opened your doors three months ago.

We have all been asked to make some sort of fabric sign on occasion, whether it is an awning, a banner or a nylon table cover for a trade show, and usually the traditional shapes and materials are perfectly suited for the client’s needs. But designers and advertisers expect more than rectangles and simple logos on solid colored backgrounds, and the fabric graphics industry is more than ready to deliver.

At least one company has come up with a solution for the customer that wants to be able to change the message on their banner rather than order a new one each year. HTS Sign Shop in San Marcos, Calif., www.htssignshop.com, offers a changeable banner system that uses Velcro to adhere plastic letters to the face of a vinyl banner. The kit comes with 237 letters, numbers, and symbols, and works much like an acrylic face with runners for changeable copy.

Flags are probably the most familiar fabric display, whether a stock design such as State and U.S. flags, or pennants printed with custom logos. They can be printed by screen printing, appliqué, digital print, dye sublimation or flocking, depending on the graphic and the intended use. They can be one-sided, double-sided with reverse print on the back, or double-sided with a liner to make it right-reading on both sides. Each of these options has its benefits and limitations, so consult with the flag fabrication experts to determine the best choice for a specific job.

Lightweight material can also be stretched on a wire frame to create an infinite variety of shapes for both indoor and outdoor advertising. I don’t know if the trend has hit your area yet, but you may have noticed the recent proliferation of teardrop shaped flags that move with the wind. There are also circle flags mounted in a frame that allows them to spin, and flutter flags with one edge stretched along a wire, leaving the other to fly in the breeze.

Graphics can be printed on the fabric of a dome tent to be used for shade in an outdoor event. The same is true for the traditional umbrella shape. There are also pop-up panels of various shapes that unfold very much like the ubiquitous automobile window shades, which can also be used for advertising, of course.

Then there are the retractable banner stands, with fabric attached to a horizontal bar that pulls out and up to hook onto a vertical telescoping arm, then roll up like a window blind into a handy carrying case when it’s time to pack up the display. They can be set up around a trade show booth or strategically placed in a retail environment to create quick, dynamic graphics that are portable and easy for anyone to set up.

One company has taken that concept another step further by offering retractable banners in custom shapes. Expand a sign USA, www.expandasignusa.com, is the first company globally to use a durable block-out fabric that is non-glare, washable and guaranteed not to curl at the edges. New skins can be ordered and changed without having to buy a complete stand, so you can create several different shaped display images that can be rotated, stored and re-used as needed.

The possibilities of shaped fabric structures have been thoroughly explored by Moss, Inc., www.mossinc.com, and they have a wide variety of off-the-shelf stretched fabric towers, walls, suspended shapes, flags, mobiles, and lampshades that will add color and energy to any retail or exhibit environment. Graphics can be printed on any of the shapes to create lush signage, decorative light fixtures and imaginative retail displays in organic forms and shapes.

Moss also offers a vast selection of rental inventory, allowing clients to create a fresh look with lower costs and more flexibility. Rentals can be further customized with printed graphics or lighting, or combined with other forms of signage to fill the space with texture, light and color.

With all of the options available, it should be possible to bring your customer’s vision to life with vibrant, flexible, lightweight and creative soft signs.

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