SignTracker Success Story: Leigh and Robin Termath, VIP Sign Services

Published by Craig Mertens on December 3, 2025

Read our story: How a Canadian Sign Shop Got Organized with SignTracker

VIP Print Services, Nanaimo, British Columbia, over 6,400 jobs processed in SignTracker since 2019

Leigh and her husband Robin have owned VI Print Services for ten years. When they took over the business from the previous owner, a talented designer who struggled with business management.

As Leigh put it, “He was a fantastic designer but not a very reliable business person. When we came in, we put in the nine-to-five, the reliability, and the systems in place.”

Taking over the shop meant building a stable operation from the ground up. The couple focused on consistency, fast turnaround, and reliability for our local customers.

But with only two people doing everything from quoting to printing to installation, managing jobs quickly became overwhelming. In the early years, they used paper quote sheets. Then they upgraded to what sounded like a step forward, a giant whiteboard. It was not.

Leigh recalled the stress clearly:
 “A customer would call and ask about their timeline, and I was flipping through piles of paper, saying I didn’t know where we were at. Then we moved to a massive whiteboard, and I was always handwriting, wiping it out, adjusting. It was almost worse than the paper.”

Trying to manage jobs, production schedules, materials, and approvals with only two people created chaos. They needed a system specifically designed for sign shops, not a generic one.

Their first software experience was a non-industry software, mainly because it was the only thing they could find that came close. But once they discovered SignTracker, everything changed.

“We found SignTracker and were much happier with it because it was specific to the sign business. It had so many features we liked better,” Leigh said ”

Building a System That Works for a Two-Person Shop

The heart of the business’s success with SignTracker stems from the way they customized their workflow to suit their production process as a two-person operation.

The biggest challenge was batching work efficiently by grouping together jobs that used similar materials.

“We would put some vinyl in for coroplast, run a couple prints, take it out, put banner material in, and then realize there was another coroplast sign we could have slid in, which was frustrating,” Leigh explained.

To fix this, they restructured SignTracker’s JobFlow columns around materials used, not traditional production stages. SignTracker is flexible, allowing them to adapt the software to their workflow.

Once a job is approved, it is assigned to the JobFlow board column based on the required materials. This lets Robin bundle work efficiently, saving time, reducing waste, and speeding up production.

“When Robin is ready to start printing, he can see everything that is going to be used on the same vinyl, so he can bundle the jobs for efficiency,” Leigh noted. 

For a team of two, this workflow has been transformational.

Instant Answers for Customers

Before SignTracker, they were constantly scrambling or asking customers to call back. Now, the couple can respond quickly and stay organized. 

“With SignTracker, I can answer questions instantly,” said Leigh. “I look and know exactly what stage everything is at. I do not have to flip through papers or ask Robin if something is printed. That has been massive for us.”

This level of clarity has completely improved customer service. Customers now rely on VI Print for fast and accurate updates, consistently turning in jobs within three to four days.

 

Faster and Accurate Quoting

One of the biggest areas of improvement is quoting speed and consistency.

Leigh built out detailed templates for their most common work, including banners, zoning signs, development signs, and more. She added every cost, every detail, and every step into line items so nothing is missed.

“I populated the quoting section with everything we could think of so I am not retyping line items,” she says.“The templates are super helpful. My development sign template is just one click.”

For repeat customers, who make up much of their business, they simply clone old jobs and update them in seconds.

Accuracy is up, quoting time is down, and extra stress is gone.

The QuickBooks Integration Is a Major Win

Leigh highlights the QuickBooks sync repeatedly as a crucial feature for the business.

“The syncing to QuickBooks is absolutely fantastic,” Leigh said. “It happens instantly. It is far superior to other software I have used. It makes administrative work so efficient for me.”

With only two people in the shop, saving time on paperwork has been a major benefit. Jobs transition smoothly from production to invoicing with minimal effort, and nothing falls through the cracks.

The Effort to Set Up the System Pays Off

Leigh is honest about the work required to get the most out of SignTracker.

“Like any software, it is as good as what you put into it. If you put in the effort to populate everything, it is so worth it in the end.”

Her advice to other Canadian sign shops is simple: the setup work looks intimidating, but once it is done, the payoff is huge. It becomes a daily advantage that saves time every single day.

 

What SignTracker Means to Their Business Today

After ten years in business, VI Print Services has established a reputation for reliability, fast turnaround times, and exceptional customer service. SignTracker supports all of that.

“Being able to let my customers know instantly what stage their job is at, that is huge,” added Leigh “That is the number one thing.”

With SignTracker, VI Print Services has seen the following results:

And most importantly, customers get a better experience.

Leigh recommends SignTracker without hesitation.

“I have recommended it to many people,” she stated, “On Facebook groups, I am always the first to say SignTracker is the way to go.”

For any Canadian sign shop trying to grow, get organized, or streamline operations, Leigh and Robin’s story shows what is possible when you put the right system in place.