Daughter's Wish Yields Thriving South American Sign Shop

Helmer Londoño's daughter told him that if he ever started his own business, he should name it Dream, and so he did, in memory of her beautiful spirit. Dream Signs opened in the city of Armenia in Quindio, Colombia, in 2012. Its logo is a lady holding a dream in her hands.

“We knew we wanted a Roland and the VersaCAMM offers us a lot of flexibility.”

Helmer started his company with two friends and a Roland GX series vinyl cutter. In the beginning they offered promotional products, including personalized Parcheesi sets, puzzles, small pictures and decorated wine boxes.

As their business grew, Dream Signs invested in a Roland VersaCAMM SP-300i 30-inch wide-format digital printer/cutter. Adding digital printing capability opened new markets for Dream Signs. “We knew we wanted a Roland and the VersaCAMM offers us a lot of flexibility,” said Helmer. “This is a very small town and there are too many sign shops for us to offer just one application.”

Today Dream Signs specializes in indoor and outdoor signage, providing design and print services for canvas, glass and wood applications in addition to lettering and directional signage. They continue to offer promotional products such as banners, t-shirts and decals, along with wall decor and photo enlargements. “With the VersaCAMM we can satisfy all of our customers’ needs,” said Helmer. “We are constantly adding new products.”

“We knew we wanted a Roland and the VersaCAMM offers us a lot of flexibility.”

Dream Signs’ clients include hospitals, construction companies, retailers and the government as well as walk-in customers. Helmer typically develops his designs in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, and RIPs his graphics with Roland’s VersaWorks software. Dream Signs uses only Roland inks for consistent and precise color matching. “In addition to being easy to use, the VersaCAMM makes beautiful prints, as all Roland printers do,” said Helmer. “We can always print the colors we need.”

Dream Signs recently completed a complex project for the sales office of a commercial real estate development, handling everything from logo design to printing and installing the sales office displays and directional signage. Professionally printed graphics were an important part of showcasing the features of the development, and Helmer and his team worked overtime to meet their client’s deadline. “Our client loved both the look and the quality of the prints,” said Helmer.

With the wide variety of projects they now have coming through their door, “The VersaCAMM’s print and cut feature is huge for us,” said Helmer. “The cutting is very precise.” Dream Signs’ business has increased to the point where they are using both their Rolands some days to keep up with demand.

In spite of the workload, Helmer takes pride in each project. He explains his business philosophy as a formula: “Begin with a lot of passion for what you do, add a sense of responsibility for your work, apply constant effort, and always keep in mind where your business is heading. Then you will find solutions to overcome any obstacle that appears in your way.” When a problem occurs, he says, “It means that one of the ingredients is missing.”

Dream Signs anticipates continued growth and looks forward to adding space, staff and more Roland equipment. “We want to become the best print provider in our town,” said Helmer. “We’re using the best printing equipment to help us get there.”