Having stumbled into a position as a graphics specialist in a motor factor, Clare Scammell has gone on to develop her skills and business. Acting editor, Benjamin Austin, paid a visit to the GKs Graphics owner to talk about how falling into the position altered her future to become a successful business owner.
‘I just fell into this industry’ is a common phrase we hear from so many within the sign and graphics business. It is a profession that seems very few seek out but once you’re in it, its talons clasp tightly, most of the time never letting go.
It’s easy to see why. There are very few industries that allow such creative licence through so many different mediums, and with so many new and interesting requests being made every day, no day is the same.
And this is the exact scenario that found itself taking hold of Clare Scammell, now owner of GKs Graphics.
Having taken her first steps into the industry 10 years ago, the colloquially named ‘sticker lady’ has grown her own sign and graphics business from a humble side-hustle in a car parts high street shop into its own and growing platform.
Clare Scammell, owner of GKs Graphics
A chance encounter
GKs Graphics was not even a passing thought a decade ago, with a financial necessity forcing Clare to seek more work.
She said: “I was working with animals before, and so this is a complete career change… I needed to top up some wages. I found a local motor factors that had a sign writing department within it. Very random, and it was such a strange makeup. There was the graphics department, there was a cycle repair shop, and then there were the motor factors like car parts.
“But I’m into my cars, so I just thought, ‘oh, I like that. I’ll do a bit of that’. The person doing the sort of signage part of the business at the time left, and so I thought, ‘Yeah, I’ll give that a pop.’ And then I fell into it that way.”
At the time, the sign writing section was just a small corner of the shop with simple equipment but Clare made this little corner her own.
“As the reins were handed over to me and as it became mine, I kind of built it and made it more business-oriented.”
“I moved the customers from sort of the last minute ‘I want this right now’ tiny little cut vinyl sticker to starting more commercial.
“I would start doing sign writing for vans, building contacts, and building relationships.”
Eventually, Clare’s little enterprise grew from its own corner to taking up a substantial section of the shop, creating a business in its own right.
Yet when taking over, Clare made a strategic decision to retain a link to the original business.
She said: “The old shop was called GK Motorfactors, so I called this GKs Graphics, to keep that connection. People often referred to me as the ‘sticker lady from GKs’. I’d spent all that time building those relationships. I still wanted people to know I’m here. I’m still the same person.”
Clare refilling her Epson printer
Growing the business
That continuity proved invaluable. The original shop had an eclectic mix of services – car parts, cycle repairs, and graphics – which meant customers often discovered signage almost by accident.
Clare capitalised on those interactions, turning casual enquiries into repeat business and long-term relationships. That meant pursuing larger, more
complex jobs – vehicle graphics, shopfronts, and signage projects that required planning and consistency.
This meant that by 2022, Clare and her former boss agreed for her to vacate the shop and go at it on her own.
She moved into a facility in Perry Way, Witham, where she has been growing ever since, gaining experience in new application methods and refreshing her equipment to keep up with modern standards, as much of the kit she took with her began to get outdated.
She said: “My old man Roland was coming up to 20 years old, and this thing was hanging on. It was doing its best for a 20-year-old machine, but even towards its end, I thought no, this could be better.
“I was realising that the processes from back in the day just weren’t cutting it anymore. The printer wasn’t cutting it anymore.”
“I would be hand-lamming – wetlamming laminate onto print, and that’s how I was taught, but now I’m like this is very inefficient.”
A defining feature of Clare’s approach is her openness to learning. Without formal training in signage, she has built her knowledge through trial, research, and – crucially – asking questions.
She said: “I wanted to do the best job I can, so working out how to do it the best way I can and going for it. I love a bit of CPD, I’m always just
researching and looking at how to do stuff better.”
Clare cutting out stickers
Knowledge limitations
She’s also refreshingly honest about the gaps in her knowledge.
Clare continued: “That’s the dirty little secret. I am quite happy to say I don’t know what I’m doing more often than not because you can’t all of the time. You have to learn it as you go.”
That mindset has opened doors within the industry. “I’ve never had any backlash of like ‘why are you asking that?’. There are a few sorts of choice mates that I pester a lot. They’ve always got time for me – and they’re a lot bigger businesses than I am.
“I genuinely wouldn’t be here today without probably all of them; everyone is so nice. I don’t know if it is just a sign industry thing.”
The past year has been a standout for GK’s Graphics. Clare said: “Last year’s turnover I somehow managed to up by 40% on the previous year.
“As one person, I’m quite impressed and quite proud of myself to do that. But I am having to wear every hat, whether it’s accounting, whether it’s
literally mopping the floor, producing signs, fitting vans.
“I’m looking forward to getting some help because I’m tired. I am so tired.”
And help Clare will get, as she has just recently hired a new part-time worker, showing once again the growth of GKs Graphics.
She said: “If I want to do that again this year, I need help. You have to let go to grow.”
A fresh perspective
Looking back, Clare is still surprised by where she’s ended up.
“Never in a million years did I think I would be here. But I wouldn’t even go back to being employed. I like owning a business. I like doing this. I like this industry. I’m here to stay.”
Behind that confidence is a strong support system, including her partner.
“Without him, I wouldn’t have been able to do this. I don’t think I would
have risked doing it if I couldn’t live. Give it a pop because if it goes wrong, you’ve tried.”
That willingness to “give it a pop” has defined Clare’s journey from the beginning. What started as a way to top up income has become a thriving business built on relationships, resilience, and a constant drive to improve.
And if the last five years are anything to go by, GK’s Graphics is only just getting started.
