A new era for Fastsigns/Signwave is starting with a restructure of support mechanisms, objectives, goals and brand repositioning.
And to set this in motion Catherine Monson, CEO and director of Fastsigns International Inc, has visited Australia touring Signwave stores across the country to share the success stories of the group and talk about Fastsigns/SignwaveÕs direction and plans for the future.
The Australian visit follows 28 ÔTown Hall MeetingsÕ across the US and UK, meeting with more than 160 franchise partners. Catherine has been Fastsigns International CEO and director since January 2009 and heads the business with a wealth of experience in both the franchise sector and the print industry; she was president of Printing and Document Services Inc. (PIP) from April 1999 to December 2008 and also served as director of franchise services at Sir Speedy Inc and Multicopy Europe. Catherine is also a board member of the International Franchise Association.
As a direct result of a deliberate focus on brand awareness and franchise development activity throughout 2009, and in part thanks to economic confidence returning, we have seen a sharp increase in franchise inquiries.
Andrew McKay, general manager Signwave Australia, says “This year is an exciting time for Fastsigns/Signwave.
“We are very proud of our franchise partners — not only for their sales performance but also for the passion they have for their businesses and the professionalism they display. We actively listen to our franchise partners and place a lot of importance on franchisee satisfaction.
“Signwave owners took part in an independent franchisee satisfaction survey, conducted by leading market research company 10Thousand Feet, late in 2009. We were really excited with the results: Signwave was ranked at number one for passion, number two for lifestyle, number three for support and listed fifth overall across all Australian franchises surveyed.
“We are always looking at ways we, as management, can provide the necessary support and infrastructure to assist our owners to grow their businesses and achieve their goals. We will concentrate on implementing and promoting programs, systems and tools to increase our store sales volume with a focus on profitability for all of our franchise partners.”
Signwave is part of the Fastsigns group, with more than 525 franchised units across the US, Canada, Australia, UK, Brazil and South America. Signwave stores provide a diverse range of signage products for the business customer — from the simple to the simply impossible.