(WSVN) - You see them on the street twirling signs. They’re paid to take their advertising to a whole new level. They’re in the 7 Spotlight. Here’s Karen Hensel.
Max Durovic, AArrow Sign Spinners: “All right, are you ready? Spin it!”
They spin … and toss.
Sign Spinner: “Throw it again. Yeah, nice!”
Practicing their routines and working hard to get their flips and kicks just right.
Sign Spinner: “Oh, yeah. Long hair, don’t care, baby!”
They are AArrow Sign Spinners, headquartered in South Florida.
Max Durovic: “Don’t forget to get that flick. There it is, Manny!”
The moves and the company were “spin-vented” by Max Durovic in San Diego 20 years ago.
Max Durovic: “Back when I was in high school, I got hired to hold a sign, and I’ll point to some model homes, and I thought it was the worst job in the world.”
Max was bored, so instead of standing still and pointing, he started doing tricks with his signs.
Max Durovic: “We would spin it around or flip it, right? Maybe even kick it up in the air.”
It didn’t take long for his tricks to spin into performance art, pointing the way to a new kind of interactive advertising.
Max Durovic: “Making eye contact, smiling and waving, moving towards you, right? And doing the trick specifically for you, direct them to a website. These days, you can get them to scan a QR code.”
The company creates its own graphic designs like this one, which looks familiar.
It now has 25 U.S. locations and spins in 10 other countries.
Believe me, it is a lot harder than it looks.
Bryan Sanchez, General Manager. AArrow Sign Spinners: “I got into it because I didn’t want to work indoors as a normal job. It just seemed fun.”
From Denver, to Dallas, to right here in South Florida…
Sign Spinner: “Hi!”
The busier the street, the better.
Sign Spinner: “The energy’s nice, you know.”
The spinners have fun, doing tricks and competing for potential customers’ attention.
There is even a World Sign Spinning Championship in Las Vegas where spinners compete against each other.
Bryan Sanchez recently represented South Florida.
Bryan Sanchez: “So I’ve been top 10 in the past. I’ve gone to Vegas maybe five times to compete in the World Sign Spinning Championship. Each year just keeps getting bigger.”
Bryan has been with AArrow since 2006. He says sign spinning is like nothing else.
Bryan Sanchez: “It is the ultimate smoothie of action sports. We’re talking about skateboarding, martial arts, and you kind of apply it to sign spinning as a job.”
It’s a job that’s all about creativity, style, technique and execution.
Sign Spinner: “Get it, buddy! Oh, oh, nice.”
Max Durovic: “No spinner is exactly like the others, and each combination of tricks can turn into routine.”
But while working outdoors has its challenges…
Max Durovic: “We usually go through a couple of gallons of water a day, lots of sunscreen.”
It also has benefits. After a hard day of sign spinning in the South Florida sun, no gym membership is ever needed.
Max Durovic: Yeah, baby!”
Karen Hensel, 7News.
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