This year marks a pretty big milestone for us – FASTSIGNS Leeds is celebrating 30 years in business. It's been a fantastic journey, and we couldn't have reached this point without our team, the support of the Leeds community and the trust of our customers who keep coming back to us.
Our celebrations are already underway and will continue throughout the year. After 30 years of helping businesses across Leeds and West Yorkshire make their statement, it feels like the right time to give something back to the community.
FASTSIGNS Leeds opening night, 1995.
12 charities, 12 months of giving back
To mark our 30th anniversary, each member of our team has chosen a charity close to their heart to support over the year. With 12 staff members, that means 12 different charitable causes will benefit from our anniversary celebrations.
Our first project: Supporting Mike Bates' ocean rowing challenge
We're starting with something we're really excited about – wrapping an ocean rowing boat for Mike Bates. We helped Mike out in 2022 with his Atlantic rowing challenge, and now he’s back taking on an incredible challenge to raise £57 million for Motor Neurone Disease research.
Mike is currently rowing from Land's End to John o' Groats. In 2026, he’ll be circumnavigating the UK before finally attempting to break the world record rowing from New York to London in 2027.
We've donated all the graphics and labour to help his boat stand out on the water. Mike's genuinely committed to raising awareness for MND, and we're proud to help however we can.
Want to track Mike’s progress? You can keep up with his rowing challenge by following @row4mnd on Instagram.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DLujGent3q9/
What else we've got planned
The team has come up with some great ideas for the months ahead – small but meaningful ways we can make a difference:
- Donating our time to help charities directly at their premises
- Creating banners and signs for local causes
- Organising a clothes collection at the workshop
We'll be updating our social media with photos, behind-the-scenes content and stories from each charitable project – make sure you're following us to see how we're giving back to the community throughout our anniversary year. You can find us on LinkedIn and Facebook.
The Lourdes trip: a community tradition
There's also a special project that's close to our hearts. Our co-founder Chris organises an annual pilgrimage to Lourdes with St Benedict's Church in Garforth – something he's been doing for 30 years. This year’s trip includes 49 people, with family members even travelling from Canada to take part.
We'll be printing and donating signs and stickers for the group. It's a lovely example of the community connections that have always been important to us at FASTSIGNS Leeds.
A celebration to remember
Of course, no 30th birthday would be complete without a proper celebration. We're planning a special event in October to mark the milestone, bringing together the people who've been part of our journey over the years. We'll be sharing more details closer to the time.
Looking ahead
As we celebrate 30 years of business, we're so grateful for the continued support of our customers and the Leeds community. It's been amazing to work with businesses across so many different sectors, helping them communicate their messages through signs and graphics that really make an impact.
We'll be sharing updates about our anniversary activities throughout the year on our social media channels, so make sure to follow along and see what we're up to.
Want to get in touch or find out more about how we can help your business? Contact our team – we'd love to hear from you. And follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook for more anniversary updates and our latest work around Leeds.