Signarama Louisville East Review — My Experience: 119 Days, No Sign (Documented)

Read this first

Four shops, one sign on the door

Here's what I didn't know when I signed: Signarama locations are independently owned and operated franchises. The Louisville area has had several — I count four — and they are separate businesses run by separate owners. One location's problems say nothing about the others. In fact, after my experience below, I chose to stay with the brand and moved my project to Signarama Downtown on Mellwood Avenue, and the franchisor's corporate office has been responsive throughout.

My point is not "avoid Signarama." My point is: research the specific franchise owner you're about to hand a deposit to, the same way you'd research any contractor.

Louisville-area Signarama locations

Locations that have operated in the metro area (check signarama.com/locations for the current list):

Signarama Louisville East — 9824 Bluegrass Pkwy (operated by L & W Holdings, Inc)This account is about this location
Signarama Downtown — 1430 Mellwood Ave (separate ownership)I'm now working with this location
Signarama Louisville Northeast (separate ownership)
Signarama Dixie (separate ownership; verify current status)

The record

What happened, dated

Everything below comes from timestamped emails and text messages, or from calls and visits I noted at the time. The vendor's own quoted schedule — a permit in 7–10 business days, then 3–4 weeks of fabrication — put installation at roughly late April 2026.

Nov 2025 – Feb 2026EmailDesign phase with the shop; the owner takes over the project directly near the end.
Mar 11, 2026ACHI pay the 50% deposit. Quoted schedule implies installation by roughly late April.
Apr 15, 2026EmailThe owner's last email reply. The message contained no text — only an attachment. I have not received another email from him since.Last written reply
~Late Apr 2026—The quoted completion window passes. No sign, no notice, no revised date.Deadline missed
May 5, 2026EmailI email to check on production and the permit.No reply
May 11, 2026EmailI follow up.No reply
May 13, 2026EmailI offer to stop by within 30 minutes to see an issue he had mentioned.No reply
May 17, 2026In personI visit the shop. I'm told the sign will be ready "the following week." It was not.Promise not kept
Late May 2026PhoneThe owner calls me and says his fabricator is not communicating with him. No completion date is offered, and there is no follow-up afterward.
Jun 17, 2026EmailI email twice — checking in, and letting him know I'm in town and will come see the sign.No reply
Mid-Jun 2026TextI text that the project keeps getting pushed back and ask when I can now expect completion.No reply
Jun 20, 2026EmailI email asking for any update.No reply
Jun 23, 2026PhoneI call several times and speak with a staff member who assures me I'll have an update before end of day. I don't.Promise not kept
Jun 23, 2026Email + TextI send a written request for an honest status, and text that not replying to emails or calls after several missed deadlines is bad business.No reply
Jun 29, 2026Text2:57 PM — I text asking for photos of my sign in progress: proof of life today, or I'll go a different direction.
Jun 29, 2026Text4:04 PM — The owner responds with two photos — his first substantive contact in 75 days. The photos show my sign's letters cut but unassembled on a workbench. No installation date, permit status, or timeline is provided.Only contact since Apr 15
Jun 29, 2026EmailThe franchisor steps in. A United Franchise Group business advisor emails the owner in writing requesting a project status update, copying me.No reply to franchisor
Jul 6, 2026Email + TextI follow up on the franchisor's thread and text asking for more photos and a timeline, saying I need an acceptable update that day.No reply · no photos
Jul 7, 2026EmailThe franchisor's advisor writes the owner a second time asking for a status update.No reply to franchisor
Jul 7, 2026PhoneThe franchisor's representative calls me and tells me the owner is not answering their calls either.Confirmed by franchisor
Jul 7, 2026Text9:53 PM — I send written final notice: a stop-work letter and refund demand will follow, with a pending lawsuit, unless I get an update by midday. The message shows as read at 7:48 the next morning.Read 7:48 AM · no reply until the demand letter
Jul 8, 2026Email11:15 AM — I email a formal stop-work notice and refund demand, copied to my attorney and the franchisor.
Jul 8, 2026Text11:16 AM — One minute after the demand letter, the owner replies by group text, adding the franchisor's brand president. He states the signs will be installed "within 2 weeks," or he will refund the deposit minus permit fees and two signs he says are ready for install. It is his first written commitment of any kind since April 15 — 84 days.First reply — one minute after the demand letter
Jul 8, 2026TextI reply that "two weeks" has been the answer for several months, and refer him to the documented record of events.
Jul 9, 2026Text3:51 PM — I ask him to confirm he will issue the refund, stating I will otherwise proceed with a lawsuit. His full reply: "Mike you do what you need to do I told you what I was going to refund, so proceed as you wish." No refund amount, no timeline, and no refund received.No amount · no date · no refund
Jul 8–9, 2026—I move the project to Signarama Downtown to get the sign completed.Engagement ended

Public records

What the records show

After months of silence, I searched the public record to understand what I was dealing with. Everything below is from free, public government databases, cited with the date I checked. I'm reporting what the filings say — the documents are available to anyone, and you can draw your own conclusions.

Active UCC lien filings against the company

Filed in the 6 months before my deposit

State tax liens recorded since 2016

Dec 2023 tax lien with no release on file

BAD

Standing with the KY Secretary of State

The company behind the sign on the door

Source: Kentucky Secretary of State, Business Entity Search, Org. No. 0859188 · checked Jul 8, 2026

"Signarama Louisville East" is a registered assumed name of L & W Holdings, Inc, a Kentucky corporation formed June 5, 2013, with Lloyd Graves listed as President and registered agent at 9824 Bluegrass Pkwy. As of July 8, 2026, the Secretary of State lists the company's standing as "B – Bad."

UCC financing statements (liens on business assets)

Source: Kentucky Secretary of State, UCC Index Search, debtor "L & W Holdings" · checked Jul 8, 2026

A UCC-1 financing statement is a public notice that a lender claims collateral in a debtor's assets. The state index shows 11 active filings against L & W Holdings, Inc. The four most recent were filed in the months immediately before I paid my deposit on March 11, 2026:

Filed	Filing no.	Secured party	What the filing says
Sep 16, 2025	2025-3383134-84	Corporation Service Company, as representative (lender not named)	States the secured party purchased the company's "Future Receipts" — its incoming payments by cash, check, ACH, and card.
Oct 28, 2025	2025-3388137-12	Corporation Service Company, as representative (lender not named)	Blanket lien on all business assets, including IP. Names the owner personally as a co-debtor alongside the company.
Nov 18, 2025	2025-3390860-28	Corporation Service Company, as representative (lender not named)	Blanket lien on inventory, receivables, and equipment; states the debtor agreed not to sell or further encumber the collateral.
Dec 2, 2025	2025-3392747-84	U.S. Small Business Administration	Blanket lien on all tangible and intangible personal property, including deposit accounts and proceeds.
2015–2025	7 earlier filings	First Harrison Bank, First Neighbor Bank, Beverly Bank/Beacon Funding, Altec Capital, and others	Bank and equipment-financing liens, most still active.

UCC filings do not state dollar amounts. Filing images are viewable free at the Kentucky SOS UCC Index Search by entering the filing numbers above. Highlighted rows are the four filings made in the ~6 months before my deposit.

Recorded tax liens

Source: Jefferson County Clerk, land records index, party "L&W Holdings Inc" · checked Jul 8, 2026

The county index shows Kentucky state tax liens recorded against L & W Holdings, Inc in 2016 (two), 2017, 2018, and December 2023. The 2016–2018 liens show corresponding releases. The December 28, 2023 lien (Book L 2625, Pg 477) shows no release on file as of the date I checked.

Litigation status

Current as of July 9, 2026 · this section will be updated as the status changes

On July 8, 2026, I delivered a written stop-work notice and refund demand by email, copied to my attorney and to the franchisor, United Franchise Group. As of July 9, 2026, no refund has been received and no lawsuit has been filed. If a suit is filed — by me or, per the public docket, by anyone else against the company — the case number and court will be posted here.

I'm not a lawyer or an accountant, and I don't know this company's full financial picture — only what these public filings state. What I do know is my own experience: I paid a 50% deposit in March 2026, the quoted schedule came and went, and for months I could not get a status update from the company by email, text, phone, in person, or through its own franchisor.

What I'd do differently

Before you hand any sign shop a deposit

Ten minutes of free searches would have changed my decision — or at least my payment terms. This applies to any contractor, any brand.

Find the legal entity. Search the trade name in the Kentucky Secretary of State's Business Entity Search. Note the real company name, how long it's existed, and whether its standing is good.
Run the free UCC search. Search the legal entity as debtor in the SOS UCC Index. A recent cluster of filings by unnamed lenders "as representative" — especially ones purchasing future receipts — is worth understanding before you prepay.
Check the county records. Search the entity in the county clerk's land-records index for tax liens, judgment liens, and mechanic's liens.
Ask which franchise location you're hiring. Franchises share a sign, not an owner. Get references from that specific location, from jobs completed in the last six months.
Pay on milestones, not halves. Tie payments to verifiable events: permit issued, fabrication photos, delivery, installation. Put dates and a refund term in writing.

119 Days.
No Sign.