The Colour House
Jo Golding speaks to Anthony Roberts, managing director of The Colour House, about building back his business and the four key factors of standing out in the competitive sign industry
Wednesday, 23 May 2018 12:12 GMT
(Above and below) “I believe that investing in equipment gives you that edge over your competitors,” says Anthony Roberts
Building blocks for success
An important thing to remember in life, I think, is that things do not always go to plan—and that is ok. It is what you do after a fall that sets you apart. For Anthony Roberts, managing director of The Colour House, coming back with a bang after previous business challenges was all in a day's work.
“I’ve worked in signs all my life,” says Roberts, who adds: “I started as a self-taught sign-maker in 2000 under the name Zodiac Signs and took a partner on in 2008, but unfortunately it didn’t work out, so we liquidated the company in 2015. In 2015, I re-emerged as The Colour House after I bought everything back from the liquidator. I’ve been trading for 18 years in one form or another.”
Despite numerous challenges, The Colour House seems to be thriving, producing signage throughout Wales, as well as offering trade print and shipping all across the UK. It is the main signage contractor for Barrett Homes in South Wales, Taylor Wimpey in South Wales and Bristol, and David Wilson Homes, as well as having many other clients—big and small.
However, it was a surprise phone call from Downing Street that resulted in one of Roberts’ biggest achievements in the sign industry so far. He explains: “I think my proudest moment was producing a hoarding for the NATO Summit that took place at Rodney Parade in Newport. When we had the phone call from Downing Street I didn’t believe it at first, that was quite an experience.
I think my proudest moment was producing a hoarding for the NATO Summit that took place at Rodney Parade in Newport”
“The hoarding, which was 306m long on composite, was digitally printed direct to substrate using our Canon Océ Arizona 460 XT. That was printed and turned around within ten working days. To produce the hoarding for the NATO Summit was quite an achievement.”
Roberts highlights investing in the latest technology as an important part of the business’ success, saying: “I’m one of these people that believes in having a niche in a very over-populated market, as there are loads of sign companies. I believe that investing in equipment gives you that edge over your competitors.”
The Colour House currently owns a Roland DG Versa Camm VP-540i, Roland DG Versa Camm VS-640, and Canon Océ Arizona 460 XT in-house. On top of this, around ten months ago the company purchased a Roland DG True Vis VG-640 and is seeing several benefits already.
“It’s running really well, there have been no glitches and it has improved the quality of the print. Roland are second to none when it comes to the print and the colours are really vibrant,” Roberts enthuses.
Seal of approval
As well as technology investments, Roberts sees much importance in training staff members: “Training our staff is imperative. We are all CSCS, Safe Contractor, CHAS, IPAF, and PASMA accredited. We try our very best to stay ahead of our competitors in the valleys where we are. There are larger sign companies that are able to do more than us, but for our size I think we are pretty well stocked. I’d like to think that we are one of the major players in our area.”
The Colour House produces a range of signage and print from its Merthyr Tydfil base
When it comes to why The Colour House stands out in the market, Roberts boils it down to four factors—with technology investment and staff training being two of them. Other than that, it is its focus on customer service and unity that makes the company ahead of the curve.
“We are very customer orientated and we try our very best to make sure our customers feel welcomed. We explain all the different products to them and make sure they get the right product for what they need. Another factor is unity; we don’t treat people like staff, we treat them as family. We’re all cogs in a big machine and if we all turn together, it works. We don’t say that we’re bosses, we’re team leaders who listen to everyone’s opinion and everyone has a say.”
(Above & below) The Colour House is the main signage contractor for Barratt Homes South Wales and Acorn Property Group
We are always talking about diversifying in the sign industry and adding new services to your portfolio. For Roberts, it is the fast growing, popular label market that he sees potential in and has started to think about how to enter this market. He says: “We are presently looking at new markets, especially at ways to tap into the label market. With the Roland DG Versa Camm VS-640, we believe we have the capacity to start that, and if not, we would think about buying another VS-640 to get into it properly.”
Roberts says he will also look at buying his own premises in the next three years, as they are currently renting. He summarises his outlook on the future of the company: “There’s no illusions of grandeur, we want to make the best of what we’ve got and look for new clients. Most of our clients come to us by referral rather than through marketing. We want to become the complete sign company with the tools we’ve got.”
There’s no illusions of grandeur, we want to make the best of what we’ve got and look for new clients”
Speaking to Roberts reminds me that there really is no substitute for doing a good job. No matter how tech savvy you are with social media and online marketing, old fashioned word of mouth is still very important. No short cuts, no tricks, just hard work—which is exactly what I expect the friendly and dedicated team at The Colour House will continue to do.
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