Wells Fargo Re-imagines Traditional Open for Business Sign

As businesses battle to recover following months of pandemic-induced disruption, the iconic ‘open’ sign they can display at their entrance...

As businesses battle to recover following months of pandemic-induced disruption, the iconic ‘open’ sign they can display at their entrance, has been given a new lease of life.

Wells Fargo Re-imagines Open for Business Sign

Wells Fargo, a leading financial services company, is pioneering the drive to revitalize ‘open’ signs. As part of its efforts to support diverse and women-owned small businesses, Wells Fargo has welcomed graphic designer and illustrator Sophia Yeshi as the bank’s first ever artist-in-residence.

Making a Statement with the ‘Open’ Sign

Yeshi’s first project with Wells Fargo involved the reimagining of the ‘open’ sign. The rejuvenation of this must-have feature of all businesses with a physical store, is aimed at making a bold statement to symbolize the perseverance of small businesses throughout the pandemic.

An eye-catching open sign tells the world you are open for business. As markets continue to open up and life returns to some degree of normality, informing people you are open is more important than ever.

Hence why Sophia Yeshi’s reimagined signs could prove an invaluable tool in telling the world you are operating and attracting more customers into stores.

‘Critical Resources’ for Small Businesses

Referring to the “critical resources” small businesses need to recover, Sophia Yeshi commented: “I’m honoured to continue working with Wells Fargo in their pursuit of sharing the stories of resilient small business owners, and making critical resources available to all small businesses as they recover from the pandemic.

“It was very rewarding to shine a light on the stories of individual diverse small businesses as part of my recent collaboration with the bank. With the new “Open” sign I created for my first project as Artist-in-Residence, I’m excited to celebrate the passion and dedication of all small business owners as they begin a new chapter.

Tools to Steer Businesses Through Challenging Times

The Artist-in-Residence initiative is part of Wells Fargo’s commitment to provide small businesses with tools, guidance and resources to help steer them through what remains uncertain times.

Among the resources offered by the financial services company are grants and loans available from nonprofits via the Open for Business Fund. The $420 million fund donated by Wells Fargo is a recovery effort for small businesses hit hardest by the pandemic.

The Artist-in-Residence initiative follows Wells Fargo’s recent collaboration with three artists, including Sophia Yeshi. The bank worked with Yeshi, Deborah Lee and Gabriela Aleman. Through the custom-made ‘open’ signs, the artists helped bring the unique soties of diverse and women-owned small businesses to life.

The business owners had all been disproportionately impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Their stories were part of the inspiration behind Yeshi’s new and inspiring ‘open’ sign.

The newly-created open sign is available to download for free on the Wells Fargo website. Business owners will also have the chance to pick up an open sign from any Wells Fargo branch later in the summer.

Image: Depositphotos

This article, "Wells Fargo Re-imagines Traditional Open for Business Sign" was first published on Small Business Trends