Blog - Augusta Sign Company

God Provides; He Always Does

November 28, 2025 By Mark Hackley

HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM

As I take a break to celebrate Thanksgiving with family and friends, I have time to reflect on one of the most financially-challenging years as a small business owner. At the start of the year cash was plentiful. I had been pre-paid for several large projects at the end of the preceding fiscal year; The stock market was rising; and a new president was moving into the White House. It wasn’t very long though until physical, business, and polical climates began to change all around me. Somewhere in mid-January I became ill with Covid for the second time since 2020. It wasn’t as bad as the first time, but it slowed things down at the sign company for a few weeks.

LET IT SNOW

Then to extend the pain, right after I started feeling somewhat better, our area was hit with several back-to-back ice and snow storms, bringing things to a wintery stand-still. By the end of March, my first-quarter sales were down tremendously and I hadn’t been out much doing new surveys or drumming up future work. Then, the final blow came from the economic uncertainty surrounding the new Trump tarriffs. All this added up to abnormally low sales and production levels not seen since 2016 when I was at my shop in Waynesboro. My wife and I decided to keep our spring break vacation plans intact and regroup upon our return.

BLESSED ASSURANCE

Fortunately, I was blessed to have secured several large interior display projects in Verona and Harrisonburg, and these jobs served as the foundation for me to rebuild my sales pipeline going forward in the year. I brushed off the dust and thanked God for new work. Then, I prayed about things and moved forward a little at a time. Eventually I added some personal capital to make up for the underperforming first quarter and things have been better since.

THANKFUL REFLECTION AND POSITIVE OUTLOOK AHEAD

Now that the year is almost over, I see how God has pulled me through a difficult business cycle, and I look forward to a more profitable time ahead. Pondering the meaning of “profit”, I wonder if sometimes this word is overused relative to monetary gains? Remembering that God is always at the helm, I have renewed faith that I am profitting in deeper, more meaningful ways that I can even imagine, even through the bad times!

The following are the lyrics to one of my favorite inspirational songs called “God on the Mountain” by Tracy Dartt, who passed away in 2022:

Life is easy, when you’re up on the mountain
And you’ve got peace of mind, like you’ve never known
But things change when you’re down in the valley
Don’t lose faith, for you’re never alone

For the God on the mountain, is still God in the valley
When things go wrong, He’ll make them right
And the God of the good times, is still God in the bad times
The God of the day is still God in the night

You talk of faith when you’re up on the mountain
But talk comes so easy when life’s at it’s best
Now it’s down in the valleys, of trials and temptations
That’s where your faith, is really put to the test

For the God on the mountain is still God in the valley
When things go wrong, He’ll make them right
And the God of the good times, is still God in the bad times
The God of the day, is still God in the night
The God of the day, is still God in the night

Mark Hackley owns and operates Augusta Sign Company, PO Box 519 Waynesboro, VA 22980. 540-943-9818

How I Made Signs in the Staunton Historic District

November 28, 2025 By Mark Hackley

MAKING SIGNAGE HISTORY

Several months before his planned opening I received a phone call from a California customer who owned commercial property in the Staunton Historic District. The historic downtown of Staunton, Virginia is a great place to locate a retail business for owners wanting to operate in a small town setting that is rich in history. When I saw the initial call come in, I thought it was just another spam call after noticing an unusual area code. I allowed the call to go to voice mail, and found out that it was a legitimate new sign request.

www.augustasigncompany.com-downtown-signage-staunton-virginia-historic-signs

RENOVATION EXPECTATIONS

The customer had recently renovated space to house two retail stores, a small cafe and a much-needed laundromat, and he wanted to interview me to see if I could help him with signage. After our initial meeting, I was able to determine his needs and get him a price based on design drawings provided by his architect. Starting a new business requires a lot of start-up capital so to limit his expense of the new signage, I was able to provide him with contact information to the specified sign bracket supplier from which he could order the customized brackets specified by the architect himself. This would save him the cost of my markup, and I was eager to help him with that if he ordered the custom ACM sign panels and the installation of the signs and brackets from Augusta Sign Company.

www.augustasigncompany.com-ACM signs-Aluminum Signs-composite metal signs-downtown signs and graphics-Staunton-VA-24401-Waynesboro-VA-22980

CALIFORNIA DREAMING

Since he lived in California and only came to the Staunton area every month or two, we timed our meetings to when he was in town. We determined a reasonable completion date to align with his final inspection and I proceeded with the construction of the signage. Once ready, I delivered the signs and installed the custom aluminum brackets into the old brick of the historic brick walls with anchor bolts reinforced with epoxy adhesive. It was an unusually windy summer evening with a passing thunderstorm in the area, but I was able to get the brackets and sign panels installed by the pre-determined deadline. While I was at it, I lettered his front door window as well!

www.augustasigncompany.com-staunton-va-laundromat-sign-special sign brackets

Mark Hackley is owner/operator of Augusta Sign Company. Augusta Sign Company is a VA Class B Contractor and is based in Augusta County, Virginia. Inquiries for new sign projects can be directed to mark@augustasigncompany.com, 540-943-9818.

Helping Waynesboro Find The Cook Colonnade

January 24, 2025 By jalexspringer

HISTORIC HERITAGE

There were 23,182 people considered Waynesboroites in 2024. You see, when I am not making signs or playing music out somewhere, or hanging around doing fun things with my wife Jennifer and dog Cooper, I am hand-writing the Bible. Pretty much on a daily basis I am writing about the Reubenites, or the Danites or the Gileadites, or the Perizzites, etc., but today I get to feature a story about the Waynesboroites! Waynesboro, Virginia was officially recognized as a town in 1801, and incorporated in 1834. However, the area’s history dates back to 1739. That is about the same time the early settlers began settling the area where my sign shop is located over at Arbor Hill.

www.augustasigncompany.com-waynesboro-va-colonial-wood-signs — *The Old Sign on Broad Street Prior to Rehab.*

LOTS OF TOURISTS

Direct visitor spending for Waynesboro reached $77.8 million last year! That is a lot of dough!! I am not exactly sure how many annual tourists it takes to spend that kind of money, but several meals, a hotel or bed and breakfast, and a tank of gas would cost at least $200-300 per visitor meaning there could be an average of 5,000 strangers in town each week looking around, trying to find things to do.

By building a set of brand new signs for a few long-time customers last fall, (Cook Realtors, Cross Stitch Station, South River Watershed Coalition, and Waynesboro Music), I hope I was able to help many of those thousands of visitors and residents alike find the cool shops located at the Hamilton-Cook Colonnade, a local specialty shopping center located at 520 West Broad Street in Waynesboro, Virginia,(established way back in 1910, when my late grandmas were age 21 and age 7).

www.augustasigncompany.com-waynesboro-va-crimora-tree-street-signs-540-943-9818 — *Mark working on building the signs in his workshop in Staunton, VA*

ROB HAD A DREAM

It all started when Rob Seal, the owner of Waynesboro Music located at the Colonnade, reached out for an estimate on making a free-standing sign for the back entrance to the center off Lumos Plaza. Rob thought it would be very cool to have a new sign at the back so Appalachian Trail hikers wandering through town could see the advertising signs for the stores in case they were interested in those kinds of things. Rob had spent some time investigating Downtown Redevelopment Grants and found out that the shopping center was eligible for financial help from the City of Waynesboro for sign and landscaping upgrades.

www.augustasigncompany.com-waynesboro-va-22980-shopping center signs — *Installing the new sign that was paid for with Downtown Redevelopment Grant funding.*

CHOOSING THE BEST MATERIAL FOR THE JOB

I met with the owner of the complex, Jim Cook, about what type of materials he wanted to use for the new signage. After some discussion, we determined that painted aluminum signage was the best investment for durability and ability to make changes and updates through the years. So I was able to come up with conceptual drawings and pricing for the new sign at the back, and Jim requested that while I was doing it I should also give a quote and design to update the large tenant sign out front on Broad Street.

www.augustasigncompany.com-aluminum signage-22980-24401 — *The finished aluminum sign with updated landscaping.*

STEP RIGHT UP AND SEE THE COOL SHOPPES AT THE HISTORIC COOK COLONNADE!!

After a few back and forth communications, we settled on a design and cost, and Rob was able to secure some funding for Jim! Wouldn’t it be great if all commercial landlords could harness the inititiative of tenants like Rob Seal? Once the deposit was received, I applied for the permits needed from the city and began ordering materials for the project. At this particular time there was a blip in the supply chain for aluminum and it took a little longer than the usual 6-8 weeks to get the posts and framing materials in; but once everything was in, it only took a week or two to complete the new signs.

www.augustasigncompany.com-cook-colonnade-signage — *The updated tenant sign on Broad Street still waiting for the two hand-turned wooden spindles like before.*

As I get older, I opt not to do some of the high installation work that I used to do when I was younger. Jim was able to find a sub-contractor for the rebuild of the wooden sign and a sub for the background painting for the large sign. I only provided the design and manufacture of the individual ACM panels with cut vinyl graphics. At this time, Jim is still waiting on the two decorative colonial wooden spindles for the sides. The Lumos Boulevard sign was up just in time to catch the usual 20,000 visitors at the Waynesboro Fall Foliage Festival in October, 2024. I hope they will do a good job in helping many people find these great small businesses over many years to come. As a small business myself serving Waynesboro, Staunton, and Augusta County, I thoroughly enjoy building signs that can help others succeed in business.

Mark Hackley is owner/operator of Augusta Sign Company, 1619 Middlebrook Road, Staunton, VA

540-943-9818

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Branding a Non-Profit, Part 2

January 12, 2025 By jalexspringer

LONG-TIME CUSTOMER

I had worked with the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank on many signage projects in the past, but nothing was quite as ambitious as this one! It started back in the late summer/early fall when we were contracted to make and install window and wall graphics in the main entry foyer. The multi-phase sign project is being coordinated by my long-time customer, Jon Styer, who recently started up his own private graphic design firm, AtEase Design and Consulting. Les Sinclair, the Food Bank communications manager helped coordinate everything between Augusta Signs and AtEase. The first phase included entry and lobby signage, volunteer directions, and large interior warehouse wall graphics; this second phase had us making several large interior warehouse wall murals which were interesting indeed. Jon’s wife, Rhoda Miller, drew the art for the murals. She is amazing!!

WORK OVER HOLIDAY BREAK

The Food Bank Network had a big holiday break coming up and wanted us to use that time for the installation to keep us out of the way of all the Food Bank operations. The Food Bank distributes a whole lot of food to agencies across a broad region of Virginia with service brancehs in Verona, Lynchburg, Charlottesville, and Winchester. It is pretty amazing how much geography they cover, and most importantly how many people in need they serve on an annual basis. My helper Doug and I were able to work over the Christmas break to help out with logistics of it all. Since we use rolling scaffold for the wall murals, it takes up a lot of floor space, and we definitely didn’t want to disrupt the operations of the Food Bank, especially over the rough winter we were having when access to donated food is extremely important for some people in our area.

EXPECTED GLITCHES OVERCOME

Once the order was officially placed, I worked closely with Jon and my digital print supplier to make all the 3M prints required for the job. I was able to cut all the vinyl letters on my plotter at the shop. The wall graphics were unique in that the main mural backgrounds were applied separately from the lettering. That way we had more control over where the lettering would be placed. Jon helped us make sure we situated the graphics where they should go according to his drawings. But, as in every good project, there’s always a glitch. For the wall letters at the selfie wall we used my height to place the main lettering which Les wanted to be visible in their press meetings in the warehouse area. Unfortunately I am a little taller than average and the lettering ended up being a smidge higher than the customer expected. When Phase 3 is installed, I pledged to cut new letters for that area and replace them at no extra cost. One of the beauties of using 3M material is it makes things easier when removal is needed. Although I have not removed vinyl from vinyl, I believe the 3M product should lift off quite well when the time comes to replace the graphics.

*ACM wall panel with stand-offs like in the entrance lobby.*

DIRECTING VOLUNTEERS

The project included wayfinding graphics to help orient new volunteers. All through the passage from entry to the warehouse area volunteer directions were clearly marked.

*Volunteer-friendly signage system by Jon Styer.*

All in all it was a neat project, but only the second part of a three phase sign system. So stay tuned for more pictures as things are completed.

Mark Hackley owns Augusta Sign Company, Staunton, VA. 540-943-9818

*Doug standing by the large warehouse wall graphic over 50 feet long and about 18′ high*!

Branding a Non-Profit

October 2, 2024 By jalexspringer

LONG-TIME CUSTOMER

I had worked with the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank on many signage projects in the past, but nothing was quite as ambitious as this one! I was installing some door name signs at the Food Bank’s Charlottesville, Virginia branch and just happened to meet Les Sinclair, their communications manager. Les was looking for a firm capable of designing signage and graphics to help brand their headquarters building in Verona, Virginia. It just so happened that my point of contact with Eastern Mennonite, Brand Manager Jon Styer, had recently set up his own private consulting business, At Ease Design and Consulting, so I referred Les to call Jon. A few months later I received a call from Jon saying that he was selected for the project and that he wanted to use me as the sign manufacturer/installer! It was planned out as a two-phase job: The first phase included entry and lobby signage, volunteer directions, and large interior warehouse wall graphics; the second phase included several large exterior warehouse wall signs.

BIG MEETING PLANNED

The Food Bank Network had a big meeting planned in Verona where all four branches of the organization would converge on September 20th. It would be a morale-building meeting and they really wanted us to have the new branding completed by the meeting date if possible. Also because of the heavy foot traffic during normal work hours, the Food Bank requested that we work in the evenings. This arrangement was great since I had many other projects going on that I could tend to during the day.

*The lobby wall before applying the gloss vinyl letters.*

EXPECTED GLITCHES OVERCOME

Once the order was officially placed for the first part of Phase 1, I worked with Jon and my digital print supplier to make all the 3M prints required for the job. I was able to cut all the cut vinyl letters on my plotter at the shop. The wall graphics were unique in that the main mural backgrounds were laminated with a satin overlay while the lettering had a gloss finish. Printing the background and lettering separately made it easier to line up things in the field. Jon inspected all the prints prior to installation and we found a few items that needed reprinting. Sometimes the art from the design software we use isn’t read exactly the same by the printer’s rip software making things come out a little differently than expected. Changing the file type corrected the issues we had on a few prints.

*Three of four ACM wall panels with stand-offs in the entrance lobby.*

A WELCOMING MESSAGE

The project included a welcome wall that had “Welcome” written across the main wall in various languages. Over by the elevator, we installed a logo panel and we hung three stacked wall panels to the right of the receptionist area. At the main entrance we spanned three storefront glass windows with an important message, “Everyone Should Have Enough to Eat”. The graphics on the top were made from 3M Controltac vinyl material and the bottom “mountain” portion was made from perforated vinyl so people could see out from the inside of the lobby area.

*The exterior window graphics utilized two different vinyl products.*

All in all it was a neat project, but only the first part of a large undertaking. So stay tuned for more pictures as things are completed.

Mark Hackley owns Augusta Sign Company, Staunton, VA. 540-943-9818