Ben Gregory gave himself 28 days to track down the full original Kenner line and build an exhibition stand around it
Most exhibitors spend the month before a show planning layouts and preparing for product launches. Ben Gregory has spent it bidding on eBay. The managing director of Trade Signs UK in Chippenham set a challenge on 1 September to find all 99 of the original Kenner Star Wars figures and build a display out of them using his own sign materials, ready for The Print Show. He calls it Sign Wars, and there has been a video update on social media most days since.
Ben tells us, “This is our first time as an exhibitor at The Print Show and we wanted to do something to really grab attention. People come to an exhibition looking for products, but as an exhibitor, we also need to give them a good reason to stop and find out what we do. A wall of childhood toys mounted on the very boards and vinyls we want to show them does both jobs at once. It’s also given us four weeks of build-up, which most trade sign companies can’t manage. We have an audience already watching before the doors have even opened.”
A communal journey
In short time, many people have been hooked by Ben’s relentless dedication, often tense and sometimes pricey search for these rare collectables. You can follow the journey on his profile on LinkedIn.
Behind the hunt for figurines, Ben is also building a stand to match the effort. “We are building the stand using Xanita board from Antalis, printing with our HP Latex machines, layering Drytac vinyls and cutting it using our fantastic Vivid VeloBlade. We are also putting together comprehensive sample packs with support from Drytac, Antalis and Premier. My good friends at Signgeer have also sent some miniature squeegee keyrings for us to give away,” says Ben.
Trade Signs will also be launching six limited edition figures of its own at the show, Darth Vinyl, Princess Layup, Fluke Signwriter, ChewBanner, R2-CNC and C3-PVC. Using its in-house 3D printing service capability and some bespoke packaging, Ben is displaying some new characters alongside the old. Sign-ups to Trade Signs UK’s new Sign Reseller shop app https://sign-works.app/ will be able to take their pick. Their new reseller app is a bespoke branded shop portal selling their entire range designed for print and sign shops without online shops to instantly add the service with a customer management dashboard, simple quoting, bespoke markups and much more!
He adds, “I admit it. I am a Star Wars nerd, and I am loving collecting these figurines. But there is also an important message that we want to get across at the show. We’re highlighting the products, techniques, superior quality, and creativity that our customers ask of us every day. It’s been a great way to show off to the trade who we are and what we do, with the grand finale on our stand from the 29th.”
It’s a tale of late-night research, last-second eBay snipings, and the highs and lows of a man fully committed to a near-impossible quest.
Yoda concludes, “Have them all does he? On stand P584 you will find.”