Tom Gilpin, FASTSIGNS Birmingham

From Landscaping Entrepreneur to Signage Executive

Executive Summary:  

At just 23 years old, former entrepreneur Tom Gilpin acquired FASTSIGNS® Birmingham, a 30-year-old established centre with strong roots but untapped potential. By transitioning the business from a traditional high-street unit to a modern, high-capacity industrial facility, Tom optimised production, empowered a dedicated team and drove annual growth up to a projected 30% surge. Today, Tom balances running a high-performing seven-figure enterprise alongside raising twin daughters and pursuing personal projects, proving the power and flexibility of the FASTSIGNS® B2B model.  

Tom Gilpin stands with his team inside his relocated FASTSIGNS Franchise.   

The Background

From the age of 14, Tom has been an entrepreneur. From his early business teaching guitar to youngsters, to building a thriving landscaping business at 17, Tom has always been ambitious and confident of his own capabilities. At 23, alongside his father, Nigel Gilpin, Tom took over one of FASTSIGNS’ most established centres in the UK’s second city. 

FASTSIGNS Birmingham first launched in 1996 and had been under the same management for 30 years. While the previous owners of the centre had created good relationships and a solid customer base in the city, as they had grown older and achieved their life goals with the business, they were no longer pushing their business for growth. Enter Tom in 2023, with youth on his side; at the time, he was FASTSIGNS’ youngest franchisee and had a drive to achieve.

Tom’s Journey: Operational Literacy to Strategic Leadership  

Since taking on the centre, Tom has experienced tremendous growth both professionally and personally. 

Developing the Team and Driving Performance 

Over the last three years, with Nigel looking after the financial side of the business, Tom took a deep dive into the signage industry, actively choosing to spend a short period of time in both production and sales, so he could understand all aspects of his business. As he became confident, he established a team to take responsibility for each area of his business, maturing into a centre owner who is comfortable working on and speaking about his business at networking events, as well as lending a hand in production when required. By establishing his team steadily, he gained his first-hand insight into their roles, helping him to support them while providing autonomy to his employees.  

The FASTSIGNS Birmingham centre is thriving. With Tom now managing his team of:  

• Sales Professional – Part-time sales professional responsible for attending customer appointments and actively growing sales.  

• Customer service representative –  Internal sales representative responsible for handling incoming enquiries 

• Designer – Responsible for customer designs and social media 

• Production Manager – Responsible for building signage 

With a stable team handling daily execution, Tom transitioned fully into his role as Managing Director, focusing on business development, strategic networking and long-term planning.  

Planning For the Future

In 2026, Tom made the strategic business decision to relocate his centre. When FASTSIGNS Birmingham first launched in 1996, the business model called for a retail location. Whilst the centre’s previous location was nestled in the hustle and bustle of the city, it wasn’t conducive to Tom’s goals for the business.  

After 30 years on Birmingham’s high street, Tom relocated his centre to an industrial estate on the outskirts of Birmingham. This move will facilitate Tom’s focus on expanding his production capabilities through a better, free-flowing production facility, ensuring future technology can be accommodated easily, as well as creating efficiencies for this business’s financials. This shrewd move will enable FASTSIGNS Birmingham to thrive over its fourth decade in operation.  

Under Tom’s leadership, the centre has experienced steady growth, as he learned the ropes of his business and the signage industry, growing by an average of 10% each year since he took over. In 2026, that growth figure is set to kick into overdrive with sales expected to grow by 30%. With his team stable, the move facilitating additional growth and him focusing on the business strategy, the sky is the limit.   

Tom’s Personal Growth & Family Life

In 2024, Tom became a parent to twin girls, as well as buying and selling his first house with his partner, Sally-Ann. With Sally-Ann working in the business part-time as the sales executive, pulling on her experience as an estate agent to close deals and Tom able to fit his work life around their family, they are working together to build a fantastic foundation for themselves, providing flexibility and opportunities for their livelihood.  

In 2026, not only are Tom and Sally running FASTSIGNS Birmingham together, but with Nigel increasingly operating in the background, they’ve taken on their next home, which is a ‘fixer-upper’ and the ever-hands-on Tom is completing much of this work around his FASTSIGNS commitments.   

Quote from Tom:  

“Taking on an established FASTSIGNS centre gave us a massive head start. By combining a trusted 30-year brand reputation, with modern production capabilities and a great team, we’ve built a high-performing business that fits our family life perfectly.” 

— Tom Gilpin, Franchisee, FASTSIGNS® Birmingham 

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