Tuesday, 04 Nov 2014 12:03 GMT

Leo Maher

Sophie Jones talks to Leo Maher, managing director of Sign+Digital, about expanding its UK operations and that multi-coloured neon van

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You team seems very passionate and motivated. How have you achieved this?

We believe a big part of our success is the development of a great team. When people join the team at Sign+Digital, they stay with us for a long time, which is one of the reasons that our team remains motivated. The other reason is that we invest heavily in training and education, as well as in our vibrant work environment.

When we recruit, we look for people who are interested in helping the customer in different ways—such as by growing their business—and those who have a similar outlook to ours. After all, who else in the industry brings not only the product, but also advice and knowledge, straight to the customer’s doorstep?

After all, who else in the industry brings not only the product, but also advice and knowledge, straight to the customer’s doorstep?”


So, what is the unique-selling-point of Sign+Digital?

In terms of our UK activities, one of our USPs is that we have a local representative in Richard Collins, a man who has extensive knowledge and awareness of the signage industry. That is true about many of our staff at Sign+Digital: they understand the products, they can sympathise with the customer’s problems and they have practical experience that helps a client find the right solution.

What we offer is very different to many other suppliers. Every customer knows what a roll of vinyl in a box looks like, and anyone can supply that. We, on the other hand, pride ourselves on making our service unforgettable. One of our slogans is ‘we go the distance so you don’t have to’—and that is evident in how we connect with our customers. We visit companies in our Creative Cruiser, our mobile show-room, bringing new ideas and new products straight to them. We are also very hands-on with our products and are able to show customers better solutions for what they are trying to do.

Our annual catalogue continues in the same vein, sharing advice and useful information alongside the product ranges we are able to provide. We work to make it better and more helpful every year, so that when a sign-maker places their order, they have an insight into how it can be used as well.

What are your market ambitions?

We have been going for eleven years in the Irish market and have had a lot of success, which we are now looking to replicate in the UK. We want to establish ourselves as a value-added supplier that customers can turn to for knowledge, advice and great products. We are known for the high level of customer service we give to our Irish clients and we are hoping to extend that to our customers in the UK.

It is all about getting the right information across and into customers’ hands to help them grow their business”


Our mission at Sign+Digital is to share all our sign-making knowledge with our customers, and advise them on different fronts to help them build successful businesses. It’s all about getting the right information across and into customers’ hands to help them grow their business: the more successful they become, the more successful we will be.

Can you give us a little bit of history on your company and how it has grown its current status?

I started the business in 2003 with the view that we can make life easier for sign-makers. With this in mind, we pulled together a product range that made us a one-stop-shop.

We put a huge amount of time and effort into training and educating our staff so that, when customers rang us, we were able to provide a solution to pretty much any sign-making problem. These are the things we have worked hard on over the last ten years, and this is what we will bring to our customer base in the UK.

Vehicle wrapping has been a key focus sector for many in the industry. What is next for this market sector?

It is an interesting area because, as the materials have matured and evolved, people have begun to wrap virtually anything, from walls and floors to furniture and doors. With vehicle wrapping, we see a great opportunity and a tangible growth area.


Vehicle wrapping is a key growth sector for Sign+Digital. The company has an extensive range of materials and tools to service the sector, and also runs training courses and annual skill competitions



We sell vehicle-wrapping materials but we also provide training, and we employ some of the best vehicle wraps training techniques in the world, with the help of experts like Justin Page. Moreover, we run a competition every year called the All-Ireland Vehicle Championships, which is essentially a festival for vehicle wrapping. We are promoting the fun and educational side, while finding the best wrapper around the country.

Your Creative Cruiser is a pretty funky van, what’s it all about?

The Creative Cruiser has been part of our strategy from day one. When we make a sales call, we want to leave the customer better off than when we called in but we also want to give them a ‘wow’ factor.


The Sign+Digital Creative Cruiser hit the streets some eleven years ago and is designed to showcase how sign-making can be ‘made-easy’ and bears the credo, 'we go the distance so you don't have to'



When developing our business strategy eleven years ago, I needed a tool that would make us stand out from competitors and in our customers’ minds, so that whenever we left their premises they would be impressed.

Out of this strategy came our slogan was ‘sign-making just got easier’ and it has now evolved into ‘making it easy’.

One of our other slogans for the Creative Cruiser is that ‘we go the distance so you don't have to’. Everyone, from those at the top to those working on the machines and on the production floors, will have the opportunity to get a feel for a product before they start working with it. We are able to have conversations about issues onsite—and also provide the tools or knowledge to solve those problems.


Key Company Stats

  • Date founded: 2003
  • Number of employees: 22
  • Number of brands stocked: 40+
  • Product sectors covered: 100+


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