65 Issue 248 - August / September 2023 email: news@signlink.co.uk BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES / BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE ISA-UK on the Association and it was about this time our director sought to retire. He’d done a cracking job but we needed someone to step in whilst we looked to recruit a replacement and as I had the capacity in my schedule to help I stepped in as an interim measure. Sadly, the replacement managing director we recruited felt the role wasn’t for him after six months. I was asked to step back into the role, and that’s where we find ourselves today. I think the fact I love this industry probably has played a factor in my still being here too! What does the role of CEO of the ISA-UK entail? I jokingly say it’s like being a glorified agony aunt. I act as a councillor, advisor, and sounding board, but fundamentally all I’m interested in is helping to maintain a healthy sector for our members and sign businesses to trade in. I’m often just a conduit to share information with or pass people on to those most suited to provide a solution. Why has the ISA-UK chosen to collaborate with other industry members and associations? I think coming from a franchising background I recognise the importance of strength in numbers and working together. We have recently become part of GPMA which brings a number of trade associations together under one banner to have a louder voice when talking with Government bodies. Tell me about how you came to be in the sign industry? I started in the sign trade in 1984 as a Youth Training Scheme trainee learning to sign write. I was very fortunate as the business had a wide skillset and I worked in a number of departments picking up technical skills that have served me well during my career. I joined Signs Express as their first employee in 1989 and was heavily involved in the pilot schemes set-up and went on to run and manage the original centre. As the business evolved and became better known in the UK, I was voted onto the board of the British Franchise Association which exposed me to working with some of the biggest household names in the UK. This was a great learning opportunity that I’m incredibly grateful to have been exposed to. I went on to be a shareholder and owner of the business, finally stepping away from my role as managing director in 2018 after 29 years in the business. How did you come to be the CEO of the ISA-UK? I’d been involved with the BSA/BSGA/ISA-UK since 2000 in a voluntary capacity sitting on the technical committee and later on the board, so I knew the organisation well. When Covid-19 struck, like many businesses, our income stream diminished and we suspended membership fees for a period to assist our members. Even as a not-for-profit, this put strains As individuals, we probably wouldn’t get across the threshold but as a combined unit our voice can be heard. Again, this is all about supporting the sector, not a single trade association. How can the Association benefit industry members? We are here for our members and will continue to do all we can within our budgetary restrictions to keep our sector as healthy as possible. Through companies and individuals being involved we can all take responsibility in making sure our sector continues to thrive…often it’s the little steps that get us where we need to be. Anything to add? I’m always available to talk. I’m not going to force anyone’s arm up their back to join but I would encourage people who work in our sector to think about what they can do to improve. We are all great at spotting problems but not many offer solutions…. could you be that person? To find out more about the ISA-UK or becoming a member, visit www.uksigns. org, call 0845 338 3016, or email ask@ uksigns.org. With so much going on with the only UK trade association dedicated to the signage industry, we caught up with Craig Brown, chief executive officer of ISA-UK to find out about how he came to be in the signage industry, what the role of ISA-UK CEO entails, and what we can expect to see from the Association in the coming months: ArtSystems has partnered with ISA-UK to host a series of Open Print Forum events for 2023 ► Craig Brown, chief executive officer of ISA-UK started out in the industry as a signwriter ►
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