Project Display, a manufacturer of sale display products and wholesaler of retail display and shopfitting equipment to the sign trade, has recently marked a significant milestone by adding a new manufacturing facility in Thetford, Norfolk.
The company was formed in 2020 by Chloe Dixon, its managing director, with the core objective of allowing retail display customers to use products sourced in Europe. “Retail display has become a huge market, but I always felt it was hampered by its reliance on products sourced from China and the Far East, where the focus is on mass production and economies of scale.”
She continues, “I wanted sign-makers to have the option of buying better quality products more locally and with greater flexibility in terms of volume and choice. This allows them to purchase products specifically for the projects they are working on rather than buying in bulk and then finding the work. This is why I formed Project Display, and it has been a model that has proven very popular and successful.”
Project Display supplies a broad range of products to the sign trade, primarily sourced from Turkish partner manufacturers. “We hold plenty of stock in our Doncaster warehouse to enable our customers to purchase what they need, when they need it. Customers can order just the products they need for a particular roll-out, safe in the knowledge that we will have it available and can deliver it to them or their customers promptly. This customer relationship is a hugely important element of our business.”
Bringing manufacturing inhouse
In 2023, Project Display won a long-term contract to supply textile frames and light-boxes. “We were outsourcing the manufacture of these products, but it got to a point where with the volume we were producing, it made much better business sense to manufacture them ourselves. We brought down the cost and gained much better control of the production process, enabling us to deliver better quality products more quickly and to specific requirements.”
Chloe continues, “We had a long-term relationship with a company in Norfolk that manufactured retail display products but which sadly became insolvent in 2023. We identified a facility in Thetford, which was close to that company, and we offered the staff who were facing redundancy a new role with us where they wouldn’t need to relocate. I’m delighted to say they all joined us, and we have developed this fantastic manufacturing facility together.”
She adds, “Having our own manufacturing capability in both the UK and Turkey means we can produce anything from a prototype through to mass production at any given budget. This is the beauty of working with us, we use the same materials and parts regardless of facility. We can produce a prototype within 24 hours in the UK and then take an order for 10 or 10,000, depending on budget and timescale. We can present our customers with the best solution, which allows them to go on and win the work.”
Chloe concludes, “We consider all of our trade customers to be partners. We say to them every day; ‘You go and get the work, and we will do what is needed to make sure you can deliver it’. We can always find a solution that fits their customers’ budgets and application requirements. Thanks to our new facility, which is now fully up and running, we have added a new dimension to our capabilities.”
