Fastsigns
 The Fastsigns logo | |
 Fastsigns in Markham, Ontario | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Signage |
| Founded | 1985 |
| Headquarters | Carrollton, Texas, U.S. |
Number of locations | 700 |
Area served | United States Canada United Kingdom Mexico Australia Cayman Islands Saudi Arabia UAE |
| Products | Signs, graphics, decals, displays, and visual communications |
| Owner | Levine Leichtman Capital Partners |
| Website | fastsigns.com |
Fastsigns International Inc. (stylized as FASTSIGNS) is the franchisor of Fastsigns centers which provide custom sign and graphics products.[1]
There are currently over 700 Fastsigns locations worldwide in United States, Canada, the U.K., the Cayman Islands, Mexico, Saudi Arabia,[2] the UAE, Chile and Australia (where centers operate under the name Signwave). Countries where the company formerly had locations but no longer operates include Brazil (from which it withdrew in 1996) and Argentina.[3]
Fastsigns was founded in Austin in 1985 by Gary Salomon and Bob Schanbaum. The first franchise was sold in December 1986,[4] with its first international franchise sold in 1991.[citation needed] The company was bought in October 2003 by Roark Capital Group, an Atlanta-based private equity firm.[1] In 2009, former president of PIP Printing, Catherine Monson, was named CEO of Fastsigns.[5] In July 2014, Fastsigns was acquired by Levine Leichtman Capital Partners, a Beverly Hills-based investment firm.[6]
The creation and growth of Fastsigns was profiled in a case study in the textbook Managing: A Competency-Based Approach.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Atlanta private equity group buys Fastsigns". Dallas Business Journal. 2003-10-02. Retrieved 2011-04-05.
- ^ "Fastsigns to open first franchise in Saudi Arabia". outputmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
- ^ Tahmincioglu, Eve (2004-02-12). "It's Not Only the Giants with Franchises Abroad". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
- ^ "About Fastsigns". official web site, archived 1997-02-02. Fastsigns. Archived from the original on 1997-02-20. Retrieved 2020-02-26.
- ^ Audra London (2008-10-18). "FASTSIGNS® Names Catherine Monson CEO" (Press release). Marketwire. Archived from the original on 2014-08-12. Retrieved 2011-02-05.
- ^ "Levine Leichtman Partners With Management to Acquire FASTSIGNS International, Inc" (Press release). Archived from the original on 2014-07-29. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ Hellriegel, Don; Susan E. Jackson; John W. Slocum Jr. (2008). "Chapter 6: Fostering Entrepreneurship". Managing: A Competency-Based Approach (11th ed.). Mason, Ohio: Thomson South-Western. pp. 198, 210. ISBN 978-0-324-54375-9. Retrieved 2011-04-23.