Welcome to
Introducing a new service to retail entrepreneurs:
Are you opening or expanding a ‘brick & mortar’ retail business within the Greater Seattle area?
As the old saying goes “A business with no sign is a sign of no business.” Yet restrictions placed on businesses and business sites by both landlords and local government all work to limit the type, size and number of signs you are allowed.
But don’t you have enough to do opening a new business without attempting to run the gauntlet of landlord sign criteria and government sign code? Before you make a commitment, before you sign on the dotted line let my 30 years of experience in the sign industry work for you.
4S can provide you with a detailed analysis of the site in question, informing you of all pertinent codes and restrictions. We can even provide a preliminary cost estimate for the type of signage required, all of this before you are committed to a purchase or a lease agreement.
A case in point:
A local corporation with several retail outlets saw the opportunity to expand when a single, similar store became available in a prime neighborhood. The purchase of the business would tap most of their available resources but all of the expensive equipment was already in place so additional expenses would be minimal.
There was a relatively large marquee sign over the front entrance that could be refaced inexpensively. Additionally they felt that if they could get a good deal on a sign on the end of the building it would go a long way toward increasing their exposure and assuring the success of the new store.
Being the impulsive entrepreneurs that they were they jumped in with both feet, making the purchase and taking over the lease.
Reality sets in:
It was not until the sign company they hired filed for permits (Permits that they did not realize that they had to have.) that they learned two things: (1) The sign that they hoped to put on the end of the building was actually on the leased wall of the business next door and so was not allowed. (2) They learned that because the installation of the marquee did not conform to current building code, if used it would have to be removed and restructured at an estimated cost of several thousand dollars. Not having budgeted for this contingency the company pulled out of their agreement with the sign company, losing several hundred dollars in permit and administrative fees.
For a period of time the store operated under the original name until another sign vendor was found to replace the faces in the marquee. The last information received was that the city issued a violation notice for installing a sign without a permit.
4S can help you after you have found your space as well.
You have done your due diligence. You know what types of signs you can have, how big and how many. You have taken this information to three local sign shops and they have come back to you with a half dozen completely different proposals and between them, near infinite possibilities. How do you know which designs will work best for you when you don’t know a can from a pan or an LED from an EMC? Again, my 30 years in the sign trade will help you to know what will work best for your business, at your location. Though I will recommend one sign design over another, the decision of who you select to supply that sign will be left entirely to you.
Before you make a commitment call for a quote on the services you need.
Paul Peterson - Seattle Sign Survey Services - 425-246-6044
A division of Prototype Graphics
As the old saying goes “A business with no sign is a sign of no business.” Yet restrictions placed on businesses and business sites by both landlords and local government all work to limit the type, size and number of signs you are allowed.
But don’t you have enough to do opening a new business without attempting to run the gauntlet of landlord sign criteria and government sign code? Before you make a commitment, before you sign on the dotted line let my 30 years of experience in the sign industry work for you.
4S can provide you with a detailed analysis of the site in question, informing you of all pertinent codes and restrictions. We can even provide a preliminary cost estimate for the type of signage required, all of this before you are committed to a purchase or a lease agreement.
A case in point:
A local corporation with several retail outlets saw the opportunity to expand when a single, similar store became available in a prime neighborhood. The purchase of the business would tap most of their available resources but all of the expensive equipment was already in place so additional expenses would be minimal.
There was a relatively large marquee sign over the front entrance that could be refaced inexpensively. Additionally they felt that if they could get a good deal on a sign on the end of the building it would go a long way toward increasing their exposure and assuring the success of the new store.
Being the impulsive entrepreneurs that they were they jumped in with both feet, making the purchase and taking over the lease.
Reality sets in:
It was not until the sign company they hired filed for permits (Permits that they did not realize that they had to have.) that they learned two things: (1) The sign that they hoped to put on the end of the building was actually on the leased wall of the business next door and so was not allowed. (2) They learned that because the installation of the marquee did not conform to current building code, if used it would have to be removed and restructured at an estimated cost of several thousand dollars. Not having budgeted for this contingency the company pulled out of their agreement with the sign company, losing several hundred dollars in permit and administrative fees.
For a period of time the store operated under the original name until another sign vendor was found to replace the faces in the marquee. The last information received was that the city issued a violation notice for installing a sign without a permit.
4S can help you after you have found your space as well.
You have done your due diligence. You know what types of signs you can have, how big and how many. You have taken this information to three local sign shops and they have come back to you with a half dozen completely different proposals and between them, near infinite possibilities. How do you know which designs will work best for you when you don’t know a can from a pan or an LED from an EMC? Again, my 30 years in the sign trade will help you to know what will work best for your business, at your location. Though I will recommend one sign design over another, the decision of who you select to supply that sign will be left entirely to you.
Before you make a commitment call for a quote on the services you need.
Paul Peterson - Seattle Sign Survey Services - 425-246-6044
A division of Prototype Graphics
PROTOTYPE GRAPHICS
KIRKLAND, WA
CONTACT PAUL PETERSON
425-246-6044
paul@prototypegraphics.com
KIRKLAND, WA
CONTACT PAUL PETERSON
425-246-6044
paul@prototypegraphics.com