It was Signs Express (Manchester) that provided Sky Pro Cycling with car graphics and signage for the riders and team support vehicles at the Tour de France this year.
Signs Express has travelled across Europe during the road cycling season for the past four years to be on call for the team and the Tour de France 2013 represented a unique opportunity.
The 21 stage Tour de France is viewed by millions across the world and with the last stage of the 2,000 mile journey on route to Paris, and Chris Froome in the driving seat to win, Team Sky commissioned Signs Express to start the final stage preparations.
The team’s two Jaguar XF Sportbrake cars and bus, used to support the riders along the route, were rebranded with partial vehicle wraps. Signs Express specified All Print Supplies multi-fix vinyl which was digitally printed with the striking yellow graphic.
After the success of the yellow vehicle branding in 2012, the team and vehicle manufacturer Jaguar were keen show their appreciation of the fans and supporters by launching a competition to have supporters silhouettes included on the graphics. By using the hash tag #behindteamsky on Twitter they created the ultimate fan livery graphic which was then produced and applied to their brand new F-Type model the early morning that the final stage began.
Signs Express (Manchester) co-owner Lee Eaton said: “We feel very privileged to have been involved in such a prestigious occasion and were delighted to pull out all the stops as the timing was crucial. There was enormous excitement at the last stage as the whole team had worked so hard. With the left over vinyl from the car graphics we even branded up the team’s iPhone cases which added the finishing touches to the whole experience and the party atmosphere as a result of the win.”
“We have also been asked to complete follow-up promotional work with the team vehicle manufacturer by Jaguar, who commissioned for the graphics to be applied to an F- Type Jaguar, given as a gift to Chris Froome to celebrate the win.”