This year, the International Sign Association (ISA) celebrates the 75th anniversary since its founding. This has been 75 years of constant change, and we are honored that ISA and ISA International Sign Expo® continue to provide you with the resources you need to build your business.
75 years is a long time. So long, that ISA and ISA Sign Expo were once known under different names. And logos.
The National Electric Sign Association (NESA) was founded on January 11, 1944 in the Chicago, IL area. The executive director, or executive secretary as it was said at that time, was Maury Ely. In the mid-1990s, NESA became ISA and has since been located in Alexandria, VA.
For many years, membership in NESA was heavily focused on electric sign manufacturers, which made up the large majority of sign companies. Today’s industry is much more diverse. ISA Sign Expo annually brings together the breadth of the sign, graphics and visual communications industry, ranging from neon and LEDs to print and soft signage.
The size of the industry and membership in ISA has grown substantially since its foundation, with over 20,000 attendees expected at this year’s ISA Sign Expo.
After 75 years of significant change, we are humbled that ISA and ISA Sign Expo continue to be a leading force for change towards the future for both members and the sign, graphics and visual communications industry as a whole.
Honoring decades of progress, we are also excited to look forward to new ideas, technologies and strategies that will continue to bring change. And we look forward to playing a role in helping your business thrive through these advancements.
To mark this occasion, ISA is celebrating our anniversary throughout the year and at ISA Sign Expo 2019. ISA will not only acknowledge past accomplishments but also strive for improvement, while preparing the industry for disruptive technologies that are on the horizon.
If you have a story about your company’s longstanding history that you would like to feature on ISA’s blog, please reach out to mmc@signs.org.
