Neon Creations exclusively produces neon signage
Shining bright
When someone mentions “neon signage”, you cannot help but allow your mind to be drawn to the bright lights of Las Vegas. Flanking both sides of the famous Strip, neon signs draw you into the casinos with promises of huge jackpots and all-you-can-eat buffets.
While some of the famous Las Vegas sites have been taken over by digital forms of signage, neon still holds its own in the city. The same can also be said this side of the pond, with neon signs still shining bright in windows and outside stores and restaurants around the UK.
With this, we speak to some of the companies in the neon signage market to find out more about this art and why offering this form of signage is anything but a gamble.
Timeless classic
Bolton-based Neon Creations is one such company, offering a wide range of hand-made signs to customers of all kinds. Founded in July 2005 by Catherine Spink and her husband Tony, Neon Creations focuses exclusively on neon signage.
Neon Creations employs a team of six people, including three full-time glass blowers to create the signs
“We have three full-time glass benders and three of us working in the office” Catherine Spink says, adding: “We mainly custom-make signage to the client’s specification, but we do also have some neon designs available to buy. We also have a range of neon signs that we hire out for events, as well as TV and film production.
“Neon is a timeless classic and creates a sense of nostalgia. In my opinion, none of the alternative LED or faux neon products on the market look as good, or have the same crisp vibrancy.”
Neon is a timeless classic and creates a sense of nostalgia”
While Spink admits that the last 12 months have been tough for Neon Creations due to the Covid-19 pandemic, demand has picked up again in recent weeks and she is fully confident that this will continue to be the case as the country returns to some sense of normality towards the summer and beyond.
“Each time we have gone into lockdown, it has created uncertainty from buyers, so created a couple of quiet months, and then usually one busy month,” Spink says, adding: “However, over the last few weeks or so, things have started to really pick up again.”
Spink adds attention to detail, as well as working closely with clients throughout the process, means that neon signage offers a much more personal and bespoke experience to customers, increasing the chances of them returning for more work.
This includes being up front with the customer about the type of material that the company is working with, with Spink explaining that companies are promoting their LED signs as neon signs, and, according to Spink, deliberately misleading customers.
“We wouldn’t dream of doing this, and would always let a potential client know if we didn’t think that their design would translate well into neon,” Spink says.
“As a company, we pride ourselves on our attention to detail throughout the whole customer journey, from the receipt of the original enquiry, right through to delivery of the neon sign.
“We produce very high-quality neon signs and make sure that all of the relevant standards are adhered to in terms of safety. We are reliable, and our team of glass benders have over 90 years experience between them.”
Best of the best
Another company that specialises in traditional neon signage, as well as other forms of signage, is family-run A1deSIGNS. Based in London, the company has been operating for more than 35 years and employs a team with a combined experience of over 150 years.
Managing director Andy Nash is a passionate advocate of traditional neon signs over their modern, LED alternative, saying that classic neon offers qualities that cannot be matched by imitation neon.
“Neon just has something about it that other light sources simply do not have,” Nash says, adding: “There are things that imitate it, but they just aren’t the same as when you have traditional neon signs. While other options may work better in some situations, you just cannot beat the glow of real neon signage.”
O Factoid: The first neon tubes were manufactured in 1910 in France. O
While the Covid-19 pandemic inevitably had an impact on demand for neon signs at A1deSIGNS, Nash says that, overall, business has been good for the company, with a steady flow of work and customers. Since restrictions have started to ease and the UK having began edging back towards some sort of normal, demand has actually started to increase, with a variety of jobs coming in for A1deSIGNS.
“We would like to think demand will continue,” Nash comments, adding: “We work quite hard at trying to get the correct messaging out to the public about neon. It can be a struggle, as there is a great deal of misinformation put out by companies that don’t know anything about neon.”
A1deSIGNS says it is critical to get the correct messaging out to the public about neon signage, due to the amount of misinformation about the product
Nash goes on to explain that A1deSIGNS spent time putting together information about neon signs, with the aim of tackling the common myths that surround this form of signage. The document can be downloaded from the A1deSIGNS website.
“We have an extensive wealth of knowledge around the subject of neon signs and are happy to try almost any challenge,” Nash adds.
Glamour and luxury
Elsewhere, Hardy Signs in Burton upon Trent offers a wide range of signage, counting the likes of Nestle, the NHS, Liverpool Football Club, B&Q, Muller Milk, Plastic Omnium and Carling among its clients Marketing manager Daniel Nikolla says there has been a huge demand for health and safety, social distancing and lean manufacturing signs due to Covid-19, and while there has only been limited enquiries for neon, he describes this market as being “huge”.
Hardy Signs counts neon signage as one of the many types of work it can produce
“Traditional neon is still very popular because of the colours, versatility and the artistic view that they have.” Nikolla says, adding: “They are a synonym from glamour and luxury which is the reason why they became so popular in Paris and Las Vegas.”
Looking towards what the future might hold for neon signage, Nikolla says that while Covid-19 lockdowns and restrictions have had a huge impact on the market as a whole, he is optimistic about neon and its outlook.
“In our experience, neon is predominantly used in four sectors: beauty, professional services, events and retail,” Nikolla says, adding: “The global lockdown and the financial difficulties experienced in these sectors, have resulted in a sharp decrease for traditional and ‘LED neon’ in comparison to the years before.
Hardy Signs works with a number of major brands on neon projects, including sandwich store chain Subway
“It looks like demand for neon is growing again, especially in large cosmopolitan cities, retail spaces and hospitality
venues.
It looks like demand for neon is growing again, especially in large cosmopolitan cities, retail spaces and hospitality venues”
“We offer an end-to-end signage package, starting from initial concept, to design, manufacturing and installation.
Our capabilities allow customers to deal with one team from the beginning to the end.”
Like certain other sectors within the wider sign market, neon signage has been hit hard by the pandemic, with demand for this type of sign dropping significantly over the past 12 months. This is mainly due to the sectors in which these signs are most common – retail, leisure and hospitality – having been forced to cut budgets due to closures and continuous interruptions.
Hardy Signs says despite the impact of the pandemic, the neon signage market is still “huge”
However, with restrictions now starting to ease and sectors beginning to open up again, demand is rising once more, and talented glass benders right across the country are getting back to their creative ways.
Neon is regarded as one of the stalwart sectors of the sign-making industry, and will continue to shine bright for many years to come.
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