A Space for Socially Distanced Dining
The Derby Market Place was an alfresco dining & entertainment space created by Derby City Council during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. This was a space where local people could dine in a safe and socially distanced manner, all within the historic city centre.
The aims of this initiative was to not only create a safe place for the local community to spend time together, but equally to support Derby’s economic recovery and generate revenue for food businesses who were adversely impacted by the lockdown: a win-win.
John E Wright & Co were contacted alongside several other businesses to contribute to the construction of this award-winning space. Our role was to produce and install the hoardings and associated graphics for the space, including bespoke menus, floor decals and wayfinding signage.
The Challenges and Our Solutions
The main challenge of this job was the timeframe with which it was completed. As we were one of several contractors, we had to liaise with other companies producing the woodwork and creative designs.
The initial build was completed in three days, a logistical hurdle which we overcame with smart planning and hard-work. As the wooden huts were constructed, we built our hoarding structure around them. Furthermore, our graphics were installed almost as soon as they were printed.
For the main plywood hoarding surrounding the space, Derby City Council hired local street artists to produce artwork that decorated the hoarding. After this artwork was painted directly onto the plywood, we clad it with dibond panel graphics. To maintain the bright and attractive colour scheme of the space across all areas, we also produced several heras fence banners.
As this space was a controlled environment that maintained safe social distancing, it was vital that it was accurately and clearly directed. One of our roles in this job was to produce wayfinding signage and floor decals which clearly pointed visitors in the correct direction and maintained a safe flow of foot traffic.
A Continued Partnership
An important aspect of this job was that it required us to continue producing work for it long after the initial installation. Given the success of the space, Derby City Council continued to expand it throughout 2020, later adding a stage for live music and a large marquee.
We continued our work with them, producing a bespoke tension frame graphic which decorated the front of the marquee, measuring a gigantic 25m x 6m. John E Wright & Co is proud to have been one part of this runaway success-story of the pandemic. With this job, we valued not only the production of high-quality print and signage, but equally that our work was able to aid a city’s community during a difficult period.
How can we help you?
If you have a branding, interior, exterior, exhibition or signage project to plan, please CONTACT US or email graphics@johnewright.com
