How to build a wall printing business that runs without you

Most wall printing businesses start the same way: one owner, one printer, every job. That’s the right way to start. It’s the wrong way to stay. The owners who grow aren’t the ones doing every print themselves.

These are the three phases we walk through in every Business Blueprint session, what each one asks of you, and what to put in place before you move to the next one.

Phase 1: Operator

You run the machine, sell the jobs and learn the business. Every owner starts here. It’s where you build three things you can’t skip: confidence on the printer, a portfolio of walls you can show people, and your first client relationships.

Now I wear all the hats. Do what you can each day, build trust with your customers, and do good work.

Keep notes on every job: how long setup and breakdown took (about 30 minutes for most owners), how long the print ran, what you charged and what the client said afterward. Those notes become the menu and the process you hand off in the next phase.

I was over-complicating it. It really is quite straightforward. It’s repetition. I wrote it down, step one, step two.

Phase 2: Manager

Train someone to run the machine. Build repeatable processes and a menu of services with set pricing. While they print, you sell.

Hand off the work that follows a checklist first:

• The maintenance routine. Written down, so it happens the same way every time.
• Setup and breakdown. Loading the van, squaring the printer to the wall, packing up.
• File prep standards. Sizes, resolution and color settings you’ve already proven.
• Job photos. Before, during and after, on every job.

Keep the work that builds the business: quoting, client relationships and walking the building after every job to find the next one.

Kelly J. already works this way at Modrn Ink Wall Printing, with a contract operator on the printer. Training is one full day, your whole team is welcome, and it’s recorded, so a new operator can go back to it later.

I’ve learned that if I’m going to offer something, I practice it here first so I’m not over-promising.

Phase 3: Owner

The first machine runs while you sell the second. More printers, hired operators and systems that hold up without you on every job.

This is where multi-printer pricing and market agreements come in. Owners with more than one printer can secure a set population tied to machine count, production and ink usage. Ask us how that works for your area.

Shop work helps a second printer stay busy. Panels, canvas and signs can be printed in your own space between wall jobs. Read print in your shop.

What has to be true before you add a printer

• Your first printer is booked more than you can cover yourself.
• Your process is written down well enough that someone else can follow it.
• You have an operator trained, or a plan to train one.
• Your prices still work with an operator’s pay in the cost.

Check that last one before anything else. The payback calculator lets you put labor in and see what’s left.

If you’re afraid to talk to people, that’s going to be your biggest hindrance. You are generating your own leads. No one’s going to help you do it.

That’s the thread through all three phases. The printer prints. The owner sells.

Questions people ask

Can I run a wall printer part-time?

Yes, if you plan your week around the jobs. Setup and breakdown take about 30 minutes, a quick job is two to three hours of printing and a mid-range job is half a day to a full day.

When should I hire an operator?

When your first printer is booked more than you can cover, your process is written down well enough for someone else to follow it, and your prices still work with an operator in the cost.

Is there pricing for more than one printer?

Yes. Ask about multi-printer pricing and market agreements, a set population tied to machine count, production and ink usage.