“We are the educators and the innovators,” said Sarah Askari — Business Development Manager at Signbox. Innovation is one of the pillars of Signbox’s business plan. Therefore, it’s no wonder that the Innovation Award is only one of four awards they won at the UK Graphic Awards last September. Signbox's team took home four awards:

• Branded Interiors Project of the Year;
• The Innovation Award (sponsored by Compass Business Finance);
• Wide-format Print Company of the Year (30+ employees);
• Best in Show (sponsored by AGFA).

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Innovation DNA 

When innovation lies at the heart of a company’s DNA, missing out on even the tiniest shifts in the industry puts a company one step behind the competition. Studying changes, applying them to the business, and developing new products and processes helps Signbox continue its professional development. They study their supply base and customers and give lectures to architects on innovation and materials. Recognising Signbox’s focus on innovation and celebrating its mark of excellence, the company is now offering a RIBA Certified CPD on “Innovation in Materials, Sustainability, and Systems”. 

Steve Senior, Business Development Director at Signbox, also shared more about their idea on the close connection of innovation with the right investments:

“We’ve invested hard in making sure that solid works and visualisation tools lie at the heart of our design within Signbox. Some of the projects we are currently working on capitalise on those investments. Innovation extends right away through investing in the best machinery, so combined with the people in the business and these investments, we’re finding that we can push our business forward.”  

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The Most Important Asset 

After being named Wide-Format Print Company of the year with more than 30 employees, Signbox knows that the best investment is in the team. Collaboration and professional development bring everybody together and help generate the company’s best ideas.

“What we started to work on at Signbox is that there is more to a business than just a financial model. Businesses are made of people. Businesses are also made of investments, brand value, everything about the journey, and the systems that are involved in that business. For us, the secret to pushing a business forward is the people that actually make all those systems and processes work. We spend more time investing in culture, allowing all of the people on our team to be the best versions of themselves and take some positive steps towards influencing the way Signbox operates.” said Steve. 

The creative process without collaboration at Signbox is like attending the UK Graphic Awards without announcing winners. For Signbox, working together with the designers and project managers through the ideation process helps to ensure a close working relationship with clients. This way, clients understand the Signbox brand as much as their own, the project, what clients are looking to get out of it, and the demographics. 

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Developing Thought Leadership   

People don’t want to be “sold to” anymore, so successful project delivery is what matters — and what sells. Sarah said:

“We’re always trying to produce prestigious signage solutions and projects working with the best brands. At the moment, we are also trying to work with architects to become educators and innovators. So working with our clients and architects extends our professional development program by offering them advice on innovation and sustainability, while at the same time also improving offerings to our clients.”

Winning four awards at the UK Graphic Awards also continuously brings value to Signbox by assuring their customers of the quality they deliver. Steve added:

“For us, we’ve always noticed that our clients do recognise us as award winners. We’ve always been proud to be award winners and actually link to brands like UK Graphic Awards. Their logo has always added value to our brand. Having spent years in sales and marketing, I think badges make a difference. It gives you that instant credibility in front of your clients.” 

Signbox values competition and understands that with more competition comes more recognition:

“As awards winners, we would welcome as many people as possible to enter the Awards. The reason is that they become more prestigious as the competition for them increases. The better it’s for everyone and obviously for the winners.” 

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Don’t miss your chance to join the competition — the entries for the UK Graphic Awards 2022 are OFFICIALLY OPEN.