Blog – Dave Shannessy: Lightbox Displays, The Key to Visual Branding in Retail

Dave Shannessy – Account Manager

Read on as Account Manager, Dave Shannessy, explores the benefits of using lightbox displays in visual merchandising.

“Every retailer wants their branding to stand out, so creating a visually stunning and cohesive shopping experience for customers is vital. When you walk into most stores, you’re greeted immediately with a display of colour, light, and an array of artwork, and increasingly retailers are turning to lightbox displays as a key part of branding their stores.

Installing lightbox displays make up a significant part of the work we do with retailers throughout the UK. Having their brand in our hands is a big responsibility, but it is what we do best and we love a challenge.

For us, it isn’t just about the graphics. Our ability to handle both the hardware and the graphics provides an integrated approach that eliminates potential issues, and above all makes our clients’ lives easier.

From designing and producing lightbox displays, to colour matching and installing at shops across the UK and beyond, our expertise spans every part of the process.

We approach every job with the same level of dedication, regardless of the project’s size or scope. We want to ensure that each retailer feels their brands and products stand out – and achieving that means having the most vibrant, highest-quality colours.

Indeed, our profiling and colour-matching techniques display the team’s commitment to handling precious branding. This is where we truly show the art of MacroArt!

Before printing anything onto a substrate, we profile every printer to maintain pinpoint accuracy and the highest quality. This is not just a one-off process. Whenever we get a new fabric to print on, which in the ever-changing landscape of materials can be quite often, or if any significant changes have been made, we will profile each machine.

Constantly profiling ensures precision and avoids colour drift or inaccuracies that can happen overtime. This meticulous profiling process ensures that even if an issue arises with a machine mid-project, it can be quickly reset maintaining our pinpoint accuracy of print and vibrancy of lightbox display colours.

In the world of retail, full-colour lifestyle imagery is a powerful tool. While achieving the desired vibrancy and accuracy can be challenging, through following the proper processes we can avoid graphics looking washed out and grainy.

Of course, consistency is always key, and our team works with every retailer to ensure colours match their precise brand requirements. Initially, this can involve extensive sampling, which sometimes highlights unexpected issues. For example, we worked alongside one high-end brand and after several rounds of testing, we discovered that their light viewing boxes differed from the ones which we used, as a different colour of lamp was used. Consistent lighting is essential for consistency of colour and so we set up our testing to match theirs exactly and the colour approvals were passed. It’s this level of detail that shows there isn’t a problem we can’t solve, and we now have a viewing light box specifically designed for that customer and their colour range!

Our bespoke approach at every level is vital to our success in each retail project. From profiling our machines to colour matching substrates and installing at retail outlets across the UK, we take tremendous pride in helping brands bring their stores to life. Ensuring that the art of MacroArt is demonstrated in every step of our lightbox displays and retail graphics service is just what we do.”