It’s time to freshen up your business. A new awning comes to mind, but here are three things you might need other than a new awning.
1. Maybe you need something you don’t think of as a “new awning.”
Summer’s right around the corner, and structures that add shady space come in more than the traditional forms we associate with awnings and canopies. Consider these two examples for your “other than” awning:
A pergola.
These wonderful structures are gaining popularity with businesses because they’re so attractive. You can create a narrow trellis to accent your front entrance or cover a walkway, or you can cover an entire dining patio. Add a retractable fabric “ceiling,” or just enjoy the lovely shadows created by your pergola’s slatted roof. Or grow a cool, leafy canopy of climbing vines.
Pergolas can be exceptionally beautiful. They’re made of natural materials – usually wood – and they blend seamlessly with any architectural style or type of business. They are a type of awning, but they’re unexpected.
A tension membrane, or sail.
Like pergolas, these lovely structures can be virtually any size. In fact tension membranes are a supremely good choice when you want a new awning to cover a very large expanse but you don’t want the visual or physical barriers created by interior support posts.
They give your space a “floaty” look that’s different from a typical new awning, yet they’re plenty practical. They can fulfill aesthetic needs like drawing attention to your new band stage or down-to-earth needs like covering a parking area.
Make your sail an unusual shape – a triangle, or a trapezoid. Make it bright yellow, or pink, to create an eye-catching “hot spot.” Or make it a soft green that blends gently into your landscaping. Tension membranes can be especially pretty at night, when they’re illuminated from underneath.
2. Maybe you need window blinds.
Not the old-fashioned kind, but the cool new ones. You’ve seen them in trendy businesses, but perhaps didn’t know what they were. While a new awning can do many excellent things for your business, these new window shades add a very different visual dimension and new opportunities for promotion, privacy, shade and cooling.
Window blinds that double as promotional chameleons can coordinate smartly with your awnings, support your branding and sell your latest promotion, too. What business couldn’t use all that?
3. Maybe you need to think in three dimensions.
You don’t have to be a movie producer to order up a “set piece.” Did you know your full-service awning company can create virtually any fabric-covered structure? With all their engineering skill, knowledge of specialty fabrics and creative design talent, they have just what it takes to conjure up something unique, fun and eye-catching for your business.
Dunkin Donuts has their famous enormous coffee cup, and your business can have something equally cool. It doesn’t have to be huge or sit atop your entrance awning. It could sit outside your front entrance to beckon shoppers or diners, or hang from your ceiling. Take it to trade shows or other off-site events. Make it part of your marketing.
No, it’s not a new awning, but it will be an exceptional conversation-starter and a truly memorable icon for your business.
These things aside, maybe what you need really is a new awning.
Your business could probably benefit from all these “non-awning” ideas. But sometimes a new traditional awning is just the ticket. Why not give a call to your local commercial awning company? You don’t have to puzzle through all this yourself, you can pick their brains. They have loads of hands-on experience, so they’re full of insight, great ideas and recommendations. Things you’d never have thought of yourself.
They’ll help you figure out if you need a new awning or something other than a new awning.
