This is topic RECESSION: Anyone Feeling It? in forum Old Archives at The Letterville BullBoard.


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Posted by Tim Whitcher (Member # 685) on :
 
Had a talk with the sales rep from our main materials supplier, who claims that orders from customers on his sales route are WAY down this quarter, compared to last year. Being a little concerned, I compared last quarter's books to last years. Sales were practically the same, within a few hundred dollars. My question: is anyone feeling a down turn in business this year?

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Tim Whitcher
Quality Signs & Design
107 E Adrian St
Blissfield, MI 49228
qualitysigns@cass.net
 

Posted by David Wright (Member # 111) on :
 
Asking individuals or small companies about economic conditions can be sometimes misleading. Large corporations draw from a large demographic and can see and feel trends. All it takes with our shop is a large order or two from a few select companies and it's a roaring economy. Same for the converse, if we lose a few good ones.
That said, all indicators do show a slow down for the nation, but that doesn't mean we have to participate.
What was the old adage?
"A recession is when your neighbor is out of work, and a depression is when you are."
It has been a different kind of year for us, with sales surprisingly up about 25% over any other.

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Wright Signs
Wyandotte, Michigan
Since 1978
www.wrightsigns.outputto.com
All change isn't progress, and all progress isn't forward.
 

Posted by old paint (Member # 549) on :
 
this economic downturn started last year april,may 0f 2000 ....killed me..closed the shop, moved to the house june 2000. untill jan-feb 2001 it started to pick up and has been good since..what the stock market and the big business feel, we are the 1st to get the hit..and in this area it was apr/may 2000...as things picked up here the larger market feels the down turn a lot longer and deeper...so this why the news is talkin about all the bad economy and us down here are over it.....the big boys will take another 6 mos to a year to feel the diff. if gas price come down more and other energy cost dont go bonkers again this winter...things will get better, but if gas goes up again and energy prices go up...its gona get worse down here in the trenches...

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joe pribish-A SIGN MINT
2811 longleaf Dr.
pensacola, fl 32526
850-944-5060
BEWARE THE TRUTH.....YOU MAY NOT LIKE WHAT YOU FIND


 

Posted by Mike Pipes (Member # 1573) on :
 
Nope there's no recession..

This was just on the news a couple nights ago, saw the story on TV as I was waking up from a nap on the couch.. something about the Gross National Product (the main economic indicator for the US) being up by almost 6% last year, versus .7% this year.. so we're basically at the same point we were last year..

Anyways... no, I dont feel any recession at all.. in fact, I'm quite a bit busier now than this time last year and frankly, it's pissing me off... It's cuttin into my beach time.

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Mike Pipes
Digital Illusion Custom Graphics
Lake Havasu City, AZ
http://www.stickerpimp.com


 

Posted by Bruce Bowers (Member # 892) on :
 
it's a funny thing... spme of the other shops around us are crying because they are broke. a bigger shop just closed a bit ago and the owner went skipping out of town under the cover of darkness. another smaller shop just went bankrupt recently and the owner went to go to work for another shop.

we had our best year ever last year by over 20% from the previous high and we are probably over 30% higher than we were at this point last year. it will be interesting because we had an absolute amazing third quarter last year.

i, personally, don't see a major slow down with us but i do see a downturn with other shops. i would be extremely happy to be where we were last year. oh yeah....

it will be interesting, also to se, as joe alluded to, the costs of natural gas, electric, and gasoline in the future. prices are down for now but i expect them to rise as the demand goes up. we will see.

it is going to be an interesting year, i guarantee it.

have a great one!

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Bruce Bowers
DrCAS
Signtech

"how great are His signs..."
Daniel 4:3

i am a proud supporter of this website!


 

Posted by Steve Shortreed (Member # 436) on :
 
Sounds to me, this supplier needs to set up shop in Letterville. Tell him about us Tim.

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Steve Shortreed
144 Hill St., E.
Fergus, Ontario
Canada N1M 1G9
519-787-2673
steve@letterhead.com
ICQ 316338
www.letterhead.com/profiles/shortreed/
 

Posted by Joey Madden (Member # 1192) on :
 
And in Mendocino county the cash crop is up to almost $5000. a pound

Guess its a growers market!

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HotLines Joey Madden,47 years in the Classic Art of Pinstriping
Grants Pass, Oregon
Learn something......
http://members.tripod.com/Inflite
 

Posted by Pierre St.Marie (Member # 1462) on :
 
Yep...................my hairline's receding.

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St.Marie Graphics
& Makin' Tracks Sound Studio
Kalispell, Montana
stmariegraphics@centurytel.net http://www.stmariegraphics.com
800 735-8026
We're chiseling every day of the week! :^)



 

Posted by Dave Grundy (Member # 103) on :
 
Despite a 3 week slowdown..so far this year is the best one so far! Only 8 years to compare though.

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Dave Grundy
AKA "applicator" on mIRC
"stickin' sticky stuff to valuable vessels and vehicles!"
in Granton, Ontario, Canada
1-519-225-2634
dave.grundy@quadro.net
www.quadro.net/~shirley
 

Posted by Dave Draper (Member # 102) on :
 
Hi Heads,

I just notice a lot more competition, and some big companies opening up their own in house sign shops. The businesses we do work for seem to be busy, the car dealers seem to be in a slow down, and we don't do any work for them anyway.

I think people are being very careful with the money they have right now. If they nedd their truck lettered, I don't think this is something they are putting off. Just my observations.

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Draper The Signmaker
Bloomington Illinois USA

Get To A Letterhead
Meet This Summer! See
you there!
309-828-7110
drapersigns@hotmail.com
Draper_Dave on mIRC chat
 

Posted by goddinfla (Member # 1502) on :
 
We've been slow for a couple of weeks, however we just missed out on a good sized job which would have kept our 2 man shop pretty busy. Customer took bids, ours was $3000 lower than the highest. They went with the highest because somebody fed them a load of bull. We weren't bidding apples and oranges, just apples and more expensive apples. This job was for another sign shop, so I didn't talk directly to the customer or I would have outbulled the other guy.

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Dennis Goddard
Excalibur Signs & Graphics
Tampa Fl
 

Posted by Mikes Mischeif (Member # 1744) on :
 
A Large portion of my work is real estate related. I seem to profit from companies coming and going.

The straw poll in against the shop wall shows more "grand opening/ coming soon" signs than "Final closeout- Going out of business" signs.

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Mike Duncan
Lettercraft Signs
Alexandria VA

From here on down, its all up hill.
 



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