The trade body staged a gala celebration at the East Midlands Conference Centre at Nottingham University on November 3, with nominees, media and industry members in attendance, with broadcaster Bill Turnbull serving as the master of ceremonies for the event.
Newman Displays was crowned the overall winner this year, taking home the top honour for the sign it created to celebrate the arrival of ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’ at the Palace Theatre in London’s West End.
“Overseas tourists might not be able to get tickets for the show but they still turn up in their droves to take pictures of the sign,” Turnbull said, hailing the winning entry.
David Catanach, director of the BSGA, was also complementary of the Newman project, but was also quick to pay tribute to the many other entries, winners and nominees singled out for their work during the past 12 months.
Overseas tourists might not be able to get tickets for the show but they still turn up in their droves to take pictures of the sign”
John Anthony Signs, by Sign of the Times, Signs Now, isGroup, The Graphic History Company and Signbox were also in the running for the top award.
Catanach said: “In any other year, any one of these exceptional signs could have taken the top award, which is a testament to the skills and abilities of British sign-makers.”
Meanwhile, Damian Jacobs of Allen Signs and Kirsty Donald of Owen Pilling Graphics were announced as joint winners of the ‘Young Signmaker of the Year’ award, while Sign 2000 picked up the ‘Roll-out Programme of the Year’ gong for its Post Office re-brand project.
The ‘Commercial Graphics of the Year’ award went to Elite Signs for its work with Stagecoach, while John Anthony Signs won the ‘Architectural Sign of the Year’ honour.
In any other year, any one of these exceptional signs could have taken the top award, which is a testament to the skills and abilities of British sign-makers”
The ‘2016 Innovation Award’ was handed to Shimmerdisc for its shimmering sequinned displays; The Graphic History Company and Signbox went home with the ‘Interior Signage Scheme of the Year’ gong; while Signs Now won ‘Leisure Industry Sign of the Year’.
Other winners included Sign of the Times, which picked up ‘The Craftsman Award’, while PVL UK won ‘Wrap of the Year’ for its 3D wrap for Gatwick Diamond Business.
isGroup went home with the ‘Illuminated Sign of the Year’ award for its work at The Printworks in Manchester, as well as the ‘Wayfinding Scheme of the Year’ gong; Identity Group won ‘Retail Sign of the Year’; while 4D Creations picked up the ‘Wide Format Project of the Year’ award.
‘The Sign Construction Award’, sponsored by SignLink, also went to Newman Displays for its Harry Potter project; N1 Visual Solutions was crowned ‘Small Signmaker of the Year’; and SkySiren PCS, Nationwide Platforms, picked up the ‘2016 Product of the Year’.
