The team at CC Supplies and Workwear
From construction signs to perspex portraits of Dizzie Rascal, CC Supplies and Workwear has been making headway in the signage market. With the company growing its influence so quickly, Sign Update’s assistant editor, Ben Austin, went to pay them a visit to find out more.
Working from the Medway City Estate in Strood, the company has seen massive growth in the last year, increasing its turnover by £1 million in one year.
It is now looking to expand further, hoping to double its floor space by expanding into the unit next door.
Two sides to a coin
The company specialises in signage for hospitality and construction companies, as well as logo embroidery and printing onto garments – blending two markets into one cohesive business.
Andy Wall, the company’s production director, said: “The two sides to the business have always sort of been there because the type of customers we deal with are construction companies.
“We would deal with customers typical for embroidery companies; bars and restaurants, builders and carpenters, hospitality and people off the street – we’ve always done that.
“The construction companies tend to want signage as well.
“And it’s those companies that have moved us on with the signage because although we do the trade side, we have our own customers now and we do the signage for them.
“We do the embroidery on the polos etc. then we’d do the high vis vests on our direct to film printers and then do stickers for vehicles or actual signage for the site: First Aid cluster points, all the signs they need, and the bigger the company the more signs they need.”
Vanguards of a new movement
The company has found a way to blend both mediums through its use of branding.
A job will come in and provide a logo to be placed on either a sign, banner, or item of clothing and it is redrawn in-house so it can be reused on every product supplied in the future.
Andy’s background is in branding, having previously lectured at the University of Creative Arts in graphic design.
He continued: “We redraw every logo that comes in so it is vectorised, high quality, and on our system.
“We have the artwork already then as well and we can scale it and put it on anything. We already have their branding so we print it and it just goes out.
“We’ve got control of it, and if we run out of logos, our machine is there, and we can press print and start again and have them ready for the next day.
“If we redraw it, then it’s easier to upsell because we have the artwork already, and we can scale it and put it on anything, signs, banners, or clothing.”
Tools of the trade
The company owns three printers, two Roland models – the VersaCAMM VS-640i and the Versaart RE-640 – and the Mimaki JV300-160 UV sublimation.
CCS bought the latter after seeing it exhibited at last year’s Sign & Digital UK when he saw how it makes offering quality signage to customers even easier.
The printer enables the business to provide scratch-resistant prints without the need for lamination – keeping costs down for customers and speeding up production times.
The Mimaki JV300-160 UV sublimation
“We ask what the costs are for a job and what people are asking for. What do we need to do? Is it going to be a job we will continue to do and then if the answer is yes, we’ll buy the machinery”, said Andy.
“We won’t do anything on the wrong machine. That’s why we bought the Mimaki UV printer.
“We’re trying to turn these jobs around quickly, and with the UV prints, we can cut them and apply them to the board, and in that time, it’s already dry.”
It takes two
Alongside Andy works managing director, Jason Harman. Coming from a sales background within construction, he has brought knowledge of the clientele as well as the administration needed to operate the business.
Andy said: “Both company directors have worked to make sure their whole team is focused on quantity and organisation.
“One side of the business has focused on maintaining customers branding and the other side has organised the efficiency of the operation.
“There is a mentality to say in this business it is seven days until a job comes in and it going out, especially from the larger workwear and PPE suppliers.
“Jason has changed that. He wouldn’t expect to wait that long, so why should our customers?
“We have a great team of staff who are also reactive, so if we have a massive job in the team will react and the job will be turned round quicker.
“Now people are looking at us, saying these guys are great they are so reactive to our job, and the artwork and print are good, and the timing is great, and they don’t let us down.”
Making a name for themselves
With a growing reputation, big names are requesting work and not just from the construction industry.
Dizzie Rascal with his large print poster
Andy said: “We do a lot of Festival Signage and we’ve done things for Dizzie Rascal and did some signage for his flat.
“It was a big room so they wanted it on a 3.2m and we said it’s probably going to be too big. I suggested doing a 2x4m plasterboard sheet, so we did that.
“It’s on10mm foamboard printed with a perspex face on it, and it’s hung above his couch.
“We don’t care who the client is we offer the same service.”
Currently, there are some limitations to the company’s work. Without a large format printer, the largest size CC Supplies can print is 1.6m.
This means some larger jobs are subbed out to other companies, but with the expansion into the next-door unit imminent, CCS is looking at adding hardware needed to supply to this market.
Growth plans
But the potential is there and despite only working under its current model for two years the company has seen rapid growth and there is nothing to say it cannot continue.
And it was that potential Shaun Stockdale, the company’s regional sales and development manager, saw when joining the company.
He has been working with Andy and Jason since October, but having worked in sales for years, he has extensive knowledge of the industry and has lists of people he has served over time and built strong relationships with.
He said: “As a salesperson, I can see a company here that will double in size and get bigger.
“Whether you are a small trader looking for supplies or one of the biggest construction companies in the world that want all their branding on their clothes and signs, that will all be done here.
“There are not a lot of companies in this industry that can do everything under one roof.”
So, it seems CC Supplies and Workwear has found a niche it fills perfectly.
Through an emphasis on branding, it can blend quick and simple signage printing with garment personalisation, meeting almost every need any trader may have and do so with efficiency and flexibility.
With the print industry reportedly hitting a boom similar to a time pre-COVID, there’s no reason for its growth to slow down.
