Launches & openings
Store openings, product launches and premieres. Production across all three phases: anticipation, event day and what stays behind.
Openings we've
already delivered
What it means to produce a launch, and when it pays to commission the whole thing
Producing a launch or an opening means preparing all the graphic material that goes with it: what announces the store or product before it exists, what gets installed for the event itself, and what stays in place once the guests have left. It isn't a one-off piece. It's a schedule with three deliveries, and each one has to arrive on time.
It's worth commissioning the whole thing when the date is fixed and there's building work or refurbishment involved, when the store faces a street with foot traffic — because that's where the anticipation phase works on its own for weeks — or when you're opening more than one location and want them all to look the same. If all you need for the day is one piece, the most common one is a photo backdrop, and we cover that in full in photocalls and press walls for events.
This page focuses on store openings, reopenings and product launches. If what you're opening is temporary — a shop that runs for a few weeks and then disappears — the approach changes, and we cover that in pop-up stores and ephemeral retail. We also produce the sign and lettering that stay on the façade, but that has its own page at commercial signage for stores. And if the event is for your team or your clients, with no opening involved, it fits better under corporate event production. Everything else we do is in the Unical events area.
A launch is
three moments
The most expensive mistake in an opening is producing everything for a single day. A well-planned launch has three phases, and each one calls for different material. This is how we organise it.
Anticipation
The weeks before. Construction hoarding or shop-window vinyl with a countdown, signage around the area, and elements that announce without giving everything away. It's the cheapest material to produce, and the one most often forgotten.
Plan the anticipation phase → D-dayOpening day
The event itself: photocall, entrance signage, welcome elements, a clearly marked catering area and press material. Everything set up ahead of time, with someone on site in case anything goes wrong.
D-day quote → AfterwardsContinuity
What stays behind once the guests leave: permanent signage, the seasonal shop window and indoor wayfinding. It's usually produced alongside the rest, making the most of the same installation.
What stays in place →And depending on what you're opening
Product launches
When what's being launched isn't a store but a product. The material focuses on the display point and on how it looks in photos and video.
Launch a product →Reopenings and rebrands
A store that already existed and is changing its brand or concept. The anticipation phase is especially worthwhile here because you already have people walking past.
Prepare your reopening →Chain openings
Several openings in a row, following the same criteria. It's designed once, documented, and each opening reuses the same kit, adapting dates and location.
Kit for chain openings →Materials for the
ephemeral and the permanent
A launch involves two types of material: the kind that lasts three days and the kind that stays forever. Mixing them up is what makes you overspend, or forces you to redo everything two months later.
Covers the scaffolding or shop window during the refurbishment and works as an advertising hoarding for weeks. It's the best euro spent in the whole launch.
Removable, for the countdown and the "opening soon" message. It comes off with no residue the day before opening.
Photocall, entrance signage and welcome elements produced on systems that work for future activations, not just for that one day.
The sign, the lettering and the signage that stay behind. Produced in parallel so they can be installed right before opening.
The graphic backdrop behind the lectern or stage, where the speeches happen and the ribbon-cutting photos are taken. Mounted on a frame with tensioned fabric, the graphic can be swapped while the structure is reused for the next opening.
The platform that raises the speaker or the product being presented, so it's visible from the back of the room and looks good in photos. Finished with vinyl or carpet cladding and a printed skirt panel that matches the backdrop.
How we work
From the countdown
to opening the doors
- Step 01
Opening date and countdown
We start from the date and work backwards: what needs to be in place each week, including the anticipation phase, which usually gets left out of the planning.
- Step 02
Phased proposal
You get the material broken down into the three phases, with what's ephemeral and what's permanent kept separate, each with its own artwork deadline.
- Step 03
Staggered production
We produce in phases, not all at once. The construction hoarding goes out first, the event material follows, and the permanent signage arrives right before opening.
- Step 04
D-day installation and continuity
We install and stay on site on opening day, remove the ephemeral elements once it's over, and leave in place everything that stays.
Which materials from an opening get removed, and which stay
Half the money wasted on an opening comes from producing things that last days and things that last years with the same approach. Separating them from the proposal stage onward is what stops you paying twice for the same piece.
| Material type | Examples in an opening | When it works | What happens afterwards | Relative cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anticipation ephemeral | Construction hoarding, removable vinyl with countdown, area signage | The weeks before opening | Removed before or on opening day | Low |
| Event-day ephemeral | Entrance signage, dated posters, catering area | Opening day | Removed once the event ends | Low |
| Reusable | Photocall and backdrops with interchangeable graphics, platforms, welcome elements | Event day and future activations | Stored for the next opening or event | Medium |
| Permanent | Façade sign, lettering, undated shop window, indoor signage | From opening onward | Stays in place | High |
The relative cost compares the categories against each other within the same opening; it isn't a price list.
Send us the date and we'll break the material down by phase →How we calculate the quote for a launch
We don't give a single overall figure, because two openings of the same size can be completely different. The quote is delivered broken down into the three phases, with a price for each piece, so you can decide where to cut back if needed. Hoardings and vinyls are priced per square metre, event-day elements per unit, and permanent signage as a set.
What moves the quote most
- Surface area and access. The square metres of hoarding or vinyl, and whether it needs scaffolding, working at height, or a council permit to put up.
- Number of installations. A well-planned staggered installation works out cheaper than three separate visits to the store.
- Single-use or reusable. Producing event-day material on systems with interchangeable graphics costs a bit more the first time and considerably less from the second time onward.
- Installation schedule. Installing at night, on a public holiday, or with the store already open to the public affects the crew you need.
- How many openings. In chain openings, the design and documentation are done once and shared across all of them.
- Design. Whether you supply the final artwork or we prepare it ourselves based on your brand.
Google reviews
What our clients say
5,044 reviews on Google
5/5
Muy buena experiencia con Unical Graphic. Me ayudaron con el montaje de un stand en una feria del sector farmacéutico y el resultado fue impecable. Destacan por la calidad del acabado, la rapidez y lo fácil que hacen todo el proceso.
YagoGoogle · Original review in Spanish
5/5
Me acompañaron en todo el proceso y cumplieron con el plazo de entrega pese al tiempo tan ajustado y las modificaciones de última hora. Muy contentos con el resultado!
Victor Gonzalez GalvezGoogle · Original review in Spanish
5/5
Los mejores profesionales del sector en la zona. Calidad de impresión y montaje excelente, pero el servicio y el trato recibido está a otro nivel.
Oktoberfest Barcelona VIPGoogle · Original review in Spanish
We answer your questions
Everything people ask us before commissioning launches and openings: lead times, permits, materials, installation and warranty.
Can't find your question?
Ask us directlyWhen should I start preparing an opening?
What is the anticipation phase, and why do you insist on it so much?
Can you also produce the store's permanent signage?
Are you on site on opening day?
Which material stays and which is removed afterwards?
I'm opening several stores — can you repeat the same format?
Can you put up a banner on the scaffolding during the renovation?
How is the budget for a launch organised?
Do you manufacture yourselves, or do you subcontract?
Where do you manufacture and install?
Request your quote
Make your opening stand out
Tell us what you're opening, where and on what date. We'll send back a proposal split into anticipation, opening day and continuity.