Learn the basics of the San Jose approach to sign layout

The most profitable skill a sign maker can possess is to be able to create effective, appealing layouts—quickly. That’s where understanding the principles of sign design can pay off. They make layout faster and easier, and they make the resulting signs easy to read and more attractive.

That’s how the “San Jose Style” came to be. The sign painters in San Jose, California, like all sign painters, were working against the clock. As with any manual endeavor, one is limited by the amount of work you can turn out with your two hands. But their signs had to be good-looking and legible.

The solution was to develop an approach to sign layout that yielded good results every time. It remains just as effective today and works with any type of sign regardless how it is produced—printed, painted, 3D or cut vinyl. Successful sign designers continue to use those principles day in and day out.