It's assembling the signs. Signs are printed, then mounted on lightweight plastic and tacked to handles that allow them to be posted in a yard or waved on a street. Au said that a team of 15 volunteers can assemble 1,000 signs in three hours. More than 5,000 Harris signs have already been made. So far, nearly 2,000 signs have been manufactured at Hannemann headquarters on Kapiolani Boulevard, said Hannemann campaign coordinator Trudi Saito.
Some campaigns go even further to save money.
Smaller, local races typically involve the manufacture of 25 to a few hundred signs per candidate. Several local sign companies reported that in any given election year, sales of political signs and related products like buttons and banners represent up to 10 percent of their annual sales. Many sign makers said that jobs for small campaigns often involve haggling and last-minute orders. Brian Schatz, the Democratic incumbent seeking re-election to state House District 24, also has signs that deal with political issues. Schatz said his signs will focus on his accomplishments in office.