(All images courtesy International Sign Association)

In October of every year, the International Sign Association (ISA) hosts Sign Manufacturing Day, in which participating sign shops host open houses, facility tours, and hands-on demonstrations for high school, vocational school, and college students to show them the opportunities that exist in the sign business. The nearly decade-old annual event proves to be of great value to businesses that take full advantage of it.

Like the printing industry in general, the sign industry has been challenged with finding staff, especially production staff, and—also like the printing industry—this is not a new problem.

Several years ago, I recapped a webinar hosted by the ISA that previewed 2022’s Sign Manufacturing Day and featured two long-time participants in the event: Matt Baker, co-owner of Bakers’ Signs & Manufacturing, based in Conroe, Tex., and Bob Mattatall, Founder of Mattatall Signs, based in Dartmouth, N.S., Canada. The session also included Esau Merlin, a student who attended Sign Manufacturing Day in 2017, got excited by the business, and committed to work for Bakers’ Signs the following year. To quote my write-up:

Like a lot of people who ended up in the business, [Merlin] at first knew nothing about the industry. “I would just be riding down the street, see a sign, and, to be honest, you don’t really pay much attention from who made it or where it came from.” What attracted Merlin to Bakers’ Signs was the friendly environment and willingness of the staff to answer questions, but also the hands-on activities that the event offered. “That’s what I really liked, so many opportunities—the welding, the graphics department. It opened a whole new world and I could see there’s actually a future in this industry,” he said.

One advantage of SMD is also showing students that “signmaking” is not woodworking, hand-painted signs, or “hammer-and-nail” work. Today’s sign industry is highly technologically advanced—much like today’s commercial printing industry is not just “ink on paper.”

The first step in putting together a good Sign Manufacturing Day is to reach out to local schools—high schools, community colleges, and vocational schools. Sign business owners may also have personal relationships with local schools—either as a former student, the parent of a current student, or they may even have produced signs or otherwise done business with school administrators, teachers, or other staff. (Offering complimentary signage to schools also tends to get their attention.)

According to the ISA, as of 2025, post-COVID, participating companies in SMD average around 80–85. Each participant gets about 40–50 attendees, so that’s around 4,000 participating students each year. The ISA doesn’t capture statistics on how many companies have hired, but they have seen:

• Direct hires (some even have put in applications at the event).
• Development of internships, job shadowing, and co-ops.
• Ongoing relationships with career and technical educators, who can recommend future students, even if they don’t participate in SMD. 

• One of the intangibles is that employees get excited to showcase what they do and there's often a real pride of ownership among existing staff. 

Some companies hold multiple SMDs per year—one in the spring and one in the fall. The fact is that any company can do their own Sign Manufacturing Day any time they want.  

All that said, it’s also important to recognize that SMD or a general commercial printing equivalent may not pay dividends immediately. But it does plant seeds in the students’ minds. Surveys of students who have participated in Sign Manufacturing Day have found that, prior to a tour, 36% had never considered a career in the sign business, while after a tour, 86% would consider it.

I dwell on SMD because there is no real reason why print businesses can’t replicate it—maybe call it Print Manufacturing Day (PMD). If print businesses are having trouble finding production or other employees, why not invite local students to you’re the facility, see how printing equipment works, highlight how technologically advanced printing plants can be these days, give out samples of high-value print applications, and maybe even offer hands-on workshops. And, like SMD, working with local schools can help students see the opportunities in print.

Indeed, this is not unheard of. Wayne Lynn wrote in his “How to Find the Right Employees” in this issue about the associate program at Consolidated Graphics:

A few dozen people, selected from within the company from a number of locations, visited 25–30 colleges and universities prior to graduation every year. They were usually part of a college sponsored recruiting day. They did a fantastic job of talking to young people about Consolidated and our industry. They usually walked away with committed new hires. They were told they would be placed in a two-year management training program designed to produce company presidents. A lot of those folks still have great jobs in great companies in the industry today.

Inviting them into the plant can also be a plus.

Whether it’s SMD or PMD, planning early is the key to having a successful event. The ISA has a tool kit for hosting an effective SMD, which be easily adapted to commercial or other kinds of print.

You can download a free recording of ISA’s “Get Involved with Sign Manufacturing Day” webinar here. Sign Manufacturing Day is open to both ISA and Affiliated Association member companies and non-member companies as well. ISA will provide a free toolkit and resources to help you plan and host a successful event. Get more information here.