Signs & Large Format Print
Illustrative visualisationA garage is rarely right on the main street. More often it is a unit round the back, on a side road or at the far end of a yard. The customer first has to find it, then recognise what gets fixed there: mechanical, auto electrics, air conditioning, wheel alignment. Most new customers arrive by recommendation or from the map on their phone, so the signage mainly has to confirm they have come to the right place.
The second thing is the customer who has already been. People come back to their garage every year, for the MOT or service, an oil change, tyres. A sticker with the date of the next change and a phone number on a mirror hanger do more here than leaflets. Few garages think about it, yet it is the cheapest advertising in the trade.
1. Facade, workshop door and approach
Above the vehicle door there is usually room for a 3–5 m band, and a light box or a dibond sign works best there. If the garage sits at the back of a site, a sign on the building is not enough – you need one at the roadside. Mind the permissions: a sign by the highway is a different matter from a sign on your own building, so check with the local council or highway authority first.
- Light box over the vehicle door→Name and main services visible even in winter at 4 pm, when the customer collects the car in the dark.
- Double-sided projecting sign on a bracket→It sticks out at right angles to the street, so it can be seen from both directions even when the facade is tucked away.
- Directional sign on the main road→Arrow, name and distance. For a garage on a side street this often matters more than the shop sign itself.
- Services banner on the fence→Air con, alignment, diagnostics – people don't know you do it until they read it.
2. Reception and waiting area
Reception is where the customer asks about price. A clear price list for the basic jobs on the wall shortens conversations and builds trust. Add clear signs showing where customers may go and where they may not.
- Service price list on a board→Oil change, brake pads, air con service – printed on foam PVC or dibond, easy to replace when prices change.
- Signs: reception, payments, staff only→Customers shouldn't wander into the workshop between the lifts. A door sign sorts that out without explanations.
3. Workshop and bays
In the workshop what matters is order and safety, not decoration. Large numbers on the doors make it easy to tell customers where to pull in, and floor markings organise movement.
- Vinyl door and bay numbers→50–80 cm digits cut from vinyl on sectional doors – 'pull up at number two' and that's that.
- Floor markings→Waiting area, customer walkway, vehicle collection point. Vinyl with R10 anti-slip laminate.
4. The customer's car and paperwork
This is where a garage earns from returning customers. Every car leaves with something that reminds the driver where it was fixed. Numbered job cards and check-in forms keep the paperwork in order and look more professional than office printouts.
- Oil change reminder stickers→A small sticker on the windscreen or door pillar: date, mileage, phone. The customer looks at it every day for a year.
- Mirror hangers→Job number at check-in on one side, your name and phone on the other. It stays in the car longer than you would think.
- Numbered job cards and check-in forms→Printed with sequential numbering, in pads or loose, with space for the customer's signature.
- Wall calendar for regular customers→Hangs in the customer's garage or office all year, with your phone number on every page.
5. Team, company vehicles and the season
A mechanic in a branded T-shirt at handover looks like a business, not like the neighbour's garage. A recovery truck or service van is advertising driving round the area. And twice a year there is a season worth announcing: tyres and air con in spring, a winter check in autumn.
- Branded workwear→Print on T-shirts and sweatshirts. From a few dozen pieces the print costs just a few euros per item.
- Livery for a recovery truck or service van→Name, services and phone – big and readable from tens of metres. Cast vinyl with laminate stands up to washing.
- Seasonal banner: air con, winter check→A cheap economy banner for 2–3 months, hung on the same fence every year.
- 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.
To start with — an indicative package
A typical package garages start with when refreshing their signage. Every item can be ordered separately.
| Single-sided LED light box 300 × 60 cm (1.8 m² × from approx. €320) | from approx. €576 net |
| Double-sided illuminated projecting sign with bracket | from approx. €300 net |
| Dibond sign 200 × 100 cm on a galvanised frame | from approx. €165 net |
| Coated PVC banner 510 g with your services, 3 × 1 m (3 m² × approx. €13) | approx. €39 net |
| Sheet stickers on white vinyl | approx. €6–12 net / m² + kiss-cutting approx. €1.20 / linear metre |
| A4 print on T-shirts, 20–49 pcs | approx. €3.30 net / pc |
Indicative net prices; an exact quote follows a short description and photos of the site. Minimum order value is approx. €24 net.
From our experience — what to watch out for
- List 3–4 main services on the sign, not twelve. Nobody reads a long list from a moving car.
- Make the phone number big on the sign and the roadside board. It is often the only thing people remember.
- Mount the light box over the door so that it doesn't clash with the sectional door tracks – check this before measuring up.
- Fix a banner to a mesh fence with cable ties at every eyelet, and for a large area choose mesh. More in our guide to [hanging a banner on a fence](/poradnik/jak-powiesic-baner-na-ogrodzeniu).
- Order a year's supply of service stickers. A reprint of 200 costs almost as much as 1,000.