Interview with Dan Lundin, owner
Q: How did you get involved in this business?
A: After retiring from the Air Force in 2001 and working for the Department of Defense in weapons systems acquisition until 2007, we wanted to change career paths and move west. When we decided on Denver, we already knew that we wanted to own and operate our own business. After months of searching, we settled on Banner Signs and Decals, a locally owned and operated company that was started in 1993. The sign industry appealed to us because it was a nice blend of light industrial fabrication and creative enterprise — we actually produce a tangible product. I run the business with my son, Jeff, who is also a seasoned veteran (U.S. Army) with three tours of duty in Iraq.
Q: What distinguishes you from other businesses in your category?
A: In the end, it’s all about satisfying your customers. We operate on the philosophy that our company must hit on three cylinders: extreme customer service, top quality and a fair pricing structure. We may not be the cheapest in town, but we strive be the very best at what we do. Our employees take a tremendous amount of pride in making our customers happy.
Q: What do you like best about your line of work?
A: Our customer base is nearly equally divided between industry, government and non-profit. I love meeting people from across the entire spectrum. We also love taking a tough visual marketing problem and turning it into a successful sign or display for our customers. It’s totally satisfying when our customers leave feeling like their money was well spent. When a new business owner sees their signage for the first time, it tends to validate their efforts and it makes them proud.
Q: What is your business’ biggest challenge?
A: There are so many challenges. In the sign industry, it takes a tremendous amount of overhead in terms of equipment, facilities and people to run a successful business. Keeping up with technology is both difficult and expensive. Our recent equipment upgrade was the biggest factor in our decision move to a larger location.
Q: Something people might be surprised to learn about you or your business:
A: We are considered a comparatively small sign company, but our client base includes many large, nationally-known companies and organizations such as Chipotle, Goodwill, Hearing Life, state of Colorado and the U.S. government, to name a few. We have shipped our products all over the world.
Profile
Business: Banner Signs and Decals
Address: 1580 Teller St., Lakewood
Hours: 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday
Founded: 1993, but owned by Dan and Carol Lundin since 2007
Contact: 303-733-8068,
Employees: 3
