It all started in 1982 with a Provincial loan of $30,000 for an electrical company working out of their family home. 

Signex owner Ken Pankratz, remembers partnering with his Dad over 25 years ago. “We were looking at diversifying our base business from electrical, (my Dad was an electrical contractor) because we understood the illumination part, so it was just about the graphics and the building back in those days.”

Pankratz says in those days an illuminated sign was just a sheet metal box with some flourescent lighting and illuminated panels with spray paint. He says it was very labour intensive and a complicated process.

“The base business started off with illuminated signage, and over the years it has diversified quite a bit. We currently run a a couple of C&C bending machines, so the signage is a lot more automated and digital printing is involved.”

Pankratz says, “What we started out doing, we do almost none of today. The whole business has changed from the types of lighting, from fluorescent to L.E.D. And how the graphics are applied and so on. Other than we still use sheet metal, there's almost nothing the same as what we did 25 years ago.”

Signex has manufactured signs all across Canada and as far as New York's Time Square. Aside from many local signs, a few others you may recognize are at Ikea, and Investors Group Field.

Pankratz says what helped their business grow, is the support of prominent businesses, developers and contracting companies that believed in supporting a new business like theirs. “They want to see other local businesses succeed, so that would be a big part of how we got started.”

Pankratz would like to recognize their innovative staff, with some employees having been with the company for over 30 years.  

 This is Small Business Month, a time set aside to recognize the achievements of small businesses.