Ever wondered why a 5ft banner costs £60 and not £20? Here's what actually goes into the price of a banner, no sales spin, just the real costs.
A 5x5ft PVC banner at £60 is roughly 25% material and ink, 25% labour and finishing, 20% overheads and machine cost, and about 25 to 30% margin. Very cheap banners usually skip hemming, use lighter PVC, or drop brass eyelets.
1. The Material (~15–25% of cost)
Heavy-duty 510 GSM PVC vinyl costs around £3.50 per square metre wholesale. A 5×5ft banner is roughly 2.3 sqm, so material alone = about £8.
Why GSM matters
440 GSM saves pennies but tears in strong wind. 510 GSM is the industry standard for outdoor, and what we use by default.
2. The Ink (~10–15%)
Solvent or latex inks for outdoor banner printing cost around £1.90 per sqm. For our 5×5ft example that's another ~£4.40.
Cheap banners are not cheaper because someone is kinder, they are cheaper because something got left out. Usually hemming.
3. Labour (~20–25%)
Someone has to set up the file, check colour and resolution, load the roll, print it, cut it, hem the edges, eyelet the corners, inspect for defects, roll it, package it. Budget £3.50–£5 per banner.
4. Machine Running Costs (~10%)
Large-format printers cost £30,000–£80,000. They need maintenance, parts, electricity and depreciation. About £1.50 per banner.
5. Overheads (~15–20%)
Rent on a London workshop, business rates, insurance, admin. Realistically £2 per banner for a small shop.
6. Packaging & Finishing (~5%)
Brass eyelets, heat-welded hem tape, cardboard tubes, boxes. About 50p–£1 per banner.
7. Profit Margin (~15–25%)
Retail banner shops typically mark up about 2–3× cost. That's where the business actually makes money.
Price a banner by what it is built from, not by what a website claims. The numbers do not lie.
Why "Cheap" Online Banners Are Cheap
Banners under £10 exist because someone is cutting corners: thinner material, water-based inks, no hemming, plastic eyelets. They fade, tear, and you re-order in three months.
Spot the shortcuts before you buy
Ask three questions: What GSM is the PVC? Are the edges hemmed? Are the eyelets brass? If the answer is vague, the banner is cheap for a reason.
Our Prices
A 5×5ft PVC banner from BPSD is £60 retail, hemmed, brass-eyeletted, weatherproof. See our full price list.
