Signs & Large Format Print
What happens to your order at the printer
From the outside a printer looks simple: you send a file and receive a parcel. Inside there are three separate stages, each with its own people and machines.
Pre-press (DTP). Someone opens your file and checks whether it can be printed the way you imagine: size, bleed, image resolution, CMYK colours, fonts converted to outlines. For small format print there is also imposition – arranging many copies on one sheet so paper is not wasted. This stage is described in more detail in our guide DTP and pre-press.
Printing. The right machine for the product and run: digital for short runs, offset for long paper runs, large format for banners, vinyl and boards, screen printing or flexography for specific applications. One printer rarely has everything, which is why it helps to know the types of printing company and what each is for.
Finishing (bindery). Cutting, creasing, folding, stitching, gluing, laminating, and in large format, welding hems, eyeleting, pole pockets and fabric hemming. Clients often underestimate this stage, yet it decides whether a leaflet folds straight and whether a banner survives the first gust of wind.
In our experience most time is lost at the first stage. A file in RGB, a photo from a messaging app, no bleed, a logo pasted in as a small image – all of this is caught before printing, but every correction means another exchange of emails.
What you can order from a printer – an overview with prices
| Group | Examples | Indicative price |
|---|---|---|
| Commercial print (small format) | business cards, flyers, letterheads, folders | business cards 1000 pcs approx. €25; A4 letterhead, 500 pcs approx. €49 |
| Multi-page print | catalogues, brochures, manuals, books | A4 catalogue, 16 pages, 100 pcs approx. €220 |
| Roll-to-roll large format | banners, mesh, posters, vinyl | banner approx. €6–13/m²; monomeric vinyl approx. €6–12/m² |
| Print on boards | shop signs, panels, plaques, stands | 3 mm dibond approx. €35–55/m²; 3 mm PVC approx. €21–33/m² |
| Packaging and labels | boxes, labels on rolls, logo tape | folding carton, 100 pcs approx. €210; printed tape, 36 rolls approx. €290 |
| Textiles | flags, display walls, clothing print | UV-printed flag approx. €10–18/m²; A4 T-shirt print approx. €1.90–3.30 each |
Prices in the table are a reference point, not an offer – each item depends on the exact size, quantity, finishing and lead time. The rate per m² in large format falls as the area grows, and very small formats carry a minimum print and finishing value. Indicative prices for small-format print such as business cards and flyers are in our product catalogue.
What you usually will not get from a printer alone
A printer prints what it is given. That is a fair division of roles, and worth knowing before you call.
- Strategy and campaign ideas. Slogans, channel choice, a promotion plan, online campaigns – that is the job of agencies. We cover the differences in what an advertising agency does.
- Extensive design included in the print price. Many printers have a designer, but for technical corrections and simple designs. A visual identity from scratch is separate work, quoted separately.
- Installation. A classic printer hands over the product in a box. Who applies the window vinyl or hangs the light box on the facade is agreed with a sign maker who has crews and equipment.
- Three-dimensional production. 3D letters, light boxes and pylons are not print but fabrication: routing, bending, LED electrics, structure. The difference is described in sign manufacturer vs printer.
In practice the boundaries blur. There are printers with their own studio and installation crews, and agencies that print nothing themselves and subcontract production. So at first contact it is best to ask directly what the company does in-house.
- 01Brief
Description, sizes, site photos and deadline — a few sentences are enough.
- 02Design and quote
Our designers prepare artwork or a visualisation and you get a price.
- 03Approval
You approve the design; for brand colours we provide a proof.
- 04Production
35+ machines in our own plant in Poland: 3.2 m UV print, CNC, laser, 3D, sewing.
- 05Installation or delivery
Own crews and vehicles across Europe, partner network, couriers worldwide.
How to order print without surprises
- Say what it is and where it is going. 'A flyer for letterboxes' and 'a flyer for the counter' need different paper. 'A banner for a roadside fence' and 'a banner for a sports hall' need different material.
- Give the size and quantity. For a banner – the finished size after finishing. For small print – the format and run, ideally in two options, because the unit price falls sharply at larger quantities.
- Describe the finishing. Eyelets, pole pockets, laminate, rounded corners, folding, binding. If you are not sure, say what the product is for – we will choose.
- Prepare the file or commission a design. A PDF in CMYK, with bleed, fonts converted to outlines. Not having a file is no problem, but say so straight away.
- State the deadline up front. Our standard is approx. 3 working days; 24-hour express costs on average approx. 40% more. Often, when we know the date from the start, it can be met without express.
- Approve the proof. Production starts after file approval, not after the enquiry is sent.
A template of a good enquiry is in our guide how to order signage and print.
A printer that also designs and installs – how it works with us
Wielka Reklama in Wieluń, Poland, has been operating since 1991. We started as a typical printer; today we are more a combination of a large format printer and a sign manufacturer. On the shop floor we have two industrial 3.2 m wide UV printers (banners without welds up to that width, roll-to-roll and direct to board), small format digital print, dye-sublimation, a CNC router, a laser, a cutting and creasing plotter, a sewing room and a farm of 3D printers. Design and file preparation are done in-house, and illuminated signage and larger projects are installed by our own crews.
For the client that means business cards, a fence banner, window graphics and a light box over the entrance can all be sorted in one place, with one design and one invoice, and delivered across the EU and to the UK with our own transport or by courier. The minimum order value is approx. €24 net. More about the plant itself on the printing company in Wieluń page.