Your sign is the first thing most customers see, and often the only thing that decides whether they walk in. Getting one made isn't complicated, but the order matters. Most delays come from doing step three before steps one and two.
Here's the sequence that works.
Before contacting a sign company, get clear on two things: how your sign should look and what it needs to do.
Pull your brand colors, fonts, and logo files together now. If your logo only exists as a JPG or PNG, you'll need a vector version for production. Your original designer usually has it.
A mood board of signs you like speeds this up more than any written description. Photos of your own storefront help too.
This is the step most business owners skip, and it's the most expensive one to skip.
Nearly every commercial lease includes sign criteria, often in a document called a Master Sign Program. It typically limits size, colors, materials, mounting method, illumination, and exact placement. Shopping centers are usually the strictest.
Ask your landlord or property manager for it in writing before you approve any design. If you haven't signed the lease yet, read it before you do. Signage restrictions are negotiable while the lease is being negotiated and almost never afterward.
Two things to confirm:
If the criteria rule out what you had in mind, there's often room to negotiate, especially on a corner or high-visibility space.
Sign companies aren't interchangeable. Some only fabricate, some only install, and some handle everything. What you want to know before committing:
California requires a contractor's license for most sign installation, and many cities won't issue a permit without one. Ask for the CSLB number and verify it at cslb.ca.gov.
In Los Angeles, permitting is usually the longest part of the timeline. If the sign company doesn't handle it, that work lands on you.
Buying a sign from one company and finding an installer separately adds cost, time, and finger-pointing if something goes wrong.
Sign codes differ between Los Angeles, Glendale, Burbank, Santa Monica, and every other city in the county. Experience in your jurisdiction saves weeks.
A full-service sign company handles four stages:
Design. You should see a rendering of your sign on a photo of your actual storefront before anything is produced. If a company won't show you that, keep looking.
Permitting. They prepare drawings, submit to the city, manage plan check corrections, and get landlord approval.
Production. Your sign is built to the approved drawings. Most signs take 2 to 6 weeks after design approval.
Installation. Old signage removed, new sign mounted, electrical connected, final city inspection scheduled.
Plan on 6 to 12 weeks from first conversation to installed sign, with permitting as the biggest variable. Simple signs that don't need a permit can be done in as little as 2 to 3 weeks.
If you have an opening date, start the sign process as early as your buildout. Waiting until construction is finished is the most common reason businesses open with a blank storefront.
As soon as you sign your lease. Design, landlord approval, and permitting can all move forward while your buildout continues.
Most exterior signs in Los Angeles do, and illuminated signs usually need an electrical permit too. Your sign company should confirm what your specific location requires.
Ask for the specific criteria you violated, then revise. Most rejections involve size, illumination, or mounting method, and all three usually have a compliant alternative.
Yes. A sign company can take your designer's files and produce the technical drawings needed for permitting, as long as the design meets code and landlord criteria.
Most sign companies can recreate your logo for production. Ask up front, since some charge for it.
Tell us your location, your opening date, and what you have so far. We'll tell you what's possible and what it takes.
Keep Reading
Costs, sizing, permits, and timelines. Straight answers to the questions every business owner asks before ordering a sign.
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Sign Spot is a licensed Los Angeles sign company (CSLB #1080621) providing custom sign design, permitting, and installation for businesses across LA and Southern California since 2016.
