Badger High School Interior Facility Branding Makeover

Introduction

Badger High School in Wisconsin faced a challenge common to many established schools: one portion of the building looked noticeably older than the rest of the campus.

The original section, built in 1958, no longer matched two newer additions constructed decades later. Rather than wait for a complete building renovation, school leaders identified an opportunity to modernize key athletic and interior spaces through strategic facility branding.

After discovering BIGSIGNS at an athletic directors convention, Athletic Director Jim Kluge partnered with the team to enhance outdated lockers, doors, windows, and the sports center entrance. LockerSkin™ Locker Wraps, DoorSkin™ Door Wraps, MicroDot™ Window Graphics, and a WonderWall™ Fabric Graphic System helped visually connect the aging section with the newer areas of the school.

The project did not involve constructing or structurally renovating the building. Instead, BIGSIGNS helped Badger High School maximize its existing surfaces with coordinated custom graphics that created a more modern, welcoming, and unified school environment.

The Challenge

Badger High School’s administrative and athletic leadership had already discussed improving the portion of the school constructed in 1958.

Two other sections of the building were significantly newer—one approximately 10 years old and another approximately 20 years old. The contrast made the original area feel disconnected from the rest of the campus.

Outdated brown lockers occupied a large amount of visual space, while standard doors, windows, and entrance areas offered little connection to the school’s identity. These surfaces were functional, but they did not reflect the appearance or energy school leaders wanted for students, athletes, staff, families, and visitors.

A complete renovation would have required a much larger capital investment. Instead, Badger High School wanted to determine whether targeted interior facility branding could create a meaningful visual improvement.

The school’s objectives included:

  • Refreshing highly visible areas in the older section

  • Covering outdated locker finishes

  • Introducing school branding across doors and windows

  • Creating a more welcoming sports center entrance

  • Evaluating community response before expanding the project

  • Establishing a foundation for future facility graphics

The challenge was to select the right graphic solution for each surface while ensuring every product contributed to one consistent school identity.

The BIGSIGNS Solution

Athletic Director Jim Kluge first encountered BIGSIGNS at an athletic directors convention in 2019.

After seeing the company’s custom graphics and facility branding capabilities, Kluge recognized that BIGSIGNS offered several products that could address the school’s different surfaces without requiring structural changes.

The collaboration began with a focused first phase. Rather than attempting to transform the entire facility at once, Badger High School prioritized lockers, doors, windows, and the sports center entrance.

LockerSkin™ Locker Wraps addressed the outdated brown lockers. Instead of removing or replacing the existing locker banks, the school converted them into prominent branding opportunities with custom graphics designed around its identity.

DoorSkin™ Door Wraps extended the visual transformation across five doors, helping standard architectural elements feel more connected to the surrounding environment.

MicroDot™ Window Graphics introduced branding to glass surfaces, allowing the design to continue across areas that may otherwise have remained visually disconnected.

At the sports center entrance, the WonderWall™ Fabric Graphic System created a larger welcome display and a clear visual focal point. This feature helped establish a stronger first impression while connecting the athletic area to the broader school brand.

Each product served a different purpose, but consistent colors, logos, imagery, and design elements brought the entire project together.

Products Used

The first phase of the Badger High School interior facility branding project included:

  • LockerSkin™ Locker Wraps

  • DoorSkin™ Door Wraps

  • MicroDot™ Window Graphics

  • WonderWall™ Fabric Graphic System

Together, these products created a coordinated interior graphics program across lockers, doors, glass, and entrance walls.

Project Highlights

  • Interior branding for a school section built in 1958

  • Custom graphics covering outdated brown lockers

  • DoorSkin™ Door Wraps installed on five doors

  • MicroDot™ Window Graphics applied to glass surfaces

  • WonderWall™ welcome display installed at the sports center

  • Design process that began in November 2019

  • Professional installation completed on January 2

  • Focused first phase designed to build support for future expansion

  • Consistent visual identity across several different surfaces

The Results

The first phase helped bring Badger High School’s original facility section closer to the appearance of its newer additions.

LockerSkin™ Locker Wraps converted unattractive brown locker banks into custom-branded surfaces. Door and window graphics extended the same identity throughout the surrounding area, while the WonderWall™ Fabric Graphic System created a more intentional and welcoming sports center entrance.

Instead of making isolated improvements, the project established a connected visual experience. Students, athletes, staff, and visitors encountered the same colors, branding, and design language across multiple surfaces.

The project also gave Badger High School a practical way to test the impact of facility graphics before committing to a larger program. The focused first phase allowed school leaders to evaluate the design process, installation, visual results, and community response.

According to Kluge, the reaction was highly encouraging:

Jim Kluge, Athletic Director
“We’ve had lots of positive feedback. The community is pretty excited.”

That response created momentum for additional facility improvements and demonstrated how strategic graphics could modernize existing spaces without a complete building renovation.

Lessons Learned

Start With a Focused First Phase

A school does not need to update every hallway, locker room, entrance, and athletic space at once.

Badger High School began with a manageable group of highly visible surfaces. This allowed school leaders to understand the process, evaluate the finished environment, and build confidence before planning future phases.

For schools with budget or scheduling limitations, a focused first phase can provide immediate value while supporting a longer-term vision.

Look for Branding Potential in Existing Surfaces

Outdated architectural features do not always need to be replaced to achieve a meaningful visual improvement.

Lockers, doors, windows, and entrance walls can all become valuable branding surfaces when paired with the appropriate graphic product. Evaluating what already exists can reveal opportunities to improve a facility without major demolition or construction.

Use the Correct Product for Each Surface

Different materials and architectural features require different graphics solutions.

Locker wraps, door graphics, window graphics, and fabric display systems each serve a specific purpose. Selecting products based on the surface, environment, viewing distance, and branding objective helps create a more professional result.

Create One Consistent Visual System

Using several products does not mean the finished project should look fragmented.

Consistent school colors, approved logos, typography, photography, and visual themes help locker wraps, door graphics, window graphics, and fabric displays function as one coordinated environment.

This approach creates a stronger transformation than treating each installation as a separate design project.

Focus on High-Traffic Areas

The first surfaces selected should typically be the ones students, staff, athletes, families, and visitors see most often.

Entrances, locker banks, main corridors, athletic hallways, doors, windows, and welcome areas can strongly influence how people perceive the entire facility. Improving these spaces first helps maximize the impact of the initial investment.

Plan Installation Around School Operations

Installation timing is an important part of any interior graphics project.

Badger High School’s graphics were professionally installed on January 2, helping reduce interference with normal school activity. Future customers should consider academic calendars, athletic schedules, building access, surface preparation, and installation requirements when developing a timeline.

Use Early Success to Build Momentum

A completed first phase gives stakeholders a tangible example of what facility branding can accomplish.

Positive feedback from students, staff, administrators, and community members can help build support for future projects. It also allows the school to refine priorities and continue expanding the program with greater confidence.

Why LockerSkin™ Locker Wraps?

Locker banks often occupy a substantial amount of visual space in schools, athletic facilities, and team areas.

When their finish is outdated or visually disconnected from the rest of the building, they can make an entire corridor or room feel older. Replacing every locker may not be practical, but leaving a large unattractive surface unchanged can limit the impact of other facility improvements.

LockerSkin™ Locker Wraps help transform suitable locker surfaces into custom-branded displays without allowing the original locker color to define the space.

They can help schools:

  • Cover outdated or unattractive locker finishes

  • Introduce school colors, logos, and visual themes

  • Improve high-traffic hallways and athletic spaces

  • Create a more unified interior environment

  • Coordinate with doors, windows, walls, and welcome displays

  • Extend branding across large banks of existing lockers

  • Support phased facility improvement programs

  • Maximize existing assets before considering replacement

At Badger High School, LockerSkin™ Locker Wraps turned the brown lockers from a visual challenge into one of the project’s most prominent branding opportunities.

Why DoorSkin™ Door Wraps?

Doors are found throughout every school, yet they are often overlooked during facility branding projects.

DoorSkin™ Door Wraps transform standard doors into coordinated design elements featuring school colors, approved imagery, logos, or messaging. When several doors appear in the same hallway or athletic area, wrapping them can improve continuity and make the entire space feel more intentional.

At Badger High School, graphics installed on five doors helped extend the transformation beyond the locker banks and connect multiple areas of the original facility section.

Why MicroDot™ Window Graphics?

Glass surfaces can play an important role in a complete interior branding program.

MicroDot™ Window Graphics allow schools to introduce logos, decorative graphics, school identity, or directional communication to suitable window areas. They can help reduce visual gaps between surrounding walls, doors, lockers, and other branded surfaces.

For Badger High School, MicroDot™ Window Graphics helped carry the visual theme across another surface type and contributed to a more complete interior environment.

Why WonderWall™ Fabric Graphic System?

Entrances and welcome areas often shape a visitor’s first impression of a facility.

The WonderWall™ Fabric Graphic System gave Badger High School a prominent branded display at the sports center entrance. Rather than relying only on smaller graphics, the school created a larger visual focal point that helped the area feel more modern, intentional, and connected to the school’s identity.

Fabric graphic systems can be especially effective for entrances, athletic corridors, recognition displays, recruiting spaces, and other high-visibility interior locations.

Why Combine Multiple Interior Graphics Products?

One product can improve a single surface, but coordinated graphics can transform the experience of an entire area.

Locker wraps address large banks of outdated lockers. Door wraps extend the design through connecting spaces. Window graphics incorporate glass into the visual system, while a fabric graphic display creates a strong focal point.

When these products share one visual identity, the result feels like a planned facility improvement rather than a collection of unrelated graphics.

Schools considering a similar project may benefit from exploring interior school graphics, locker room branding, entrance displays, window graphics, installation resources, and phased facility branding guides.

Why BIGSIGNS?

BIGSIGNS helps schools, athletic departments, colleges, parks, recreation centers, and sports venues enhance existing spaces through custom facility graphics.

The team combines award-winning design, collaborative planning, premium materials, custom manufacturing, nationwide experience, and responsive customer service.

From LockerSkin™ Locker Wraps and DoorSkin™ Door Wraps to MicroDot™ Window Graphics, WonderWall™ Fabric Graphic Systems, wall graphics, gym branding, and campus-wide programs, every project is developed around the customer’s facility, identity, and goals.

Whether the project involves one entrance or a multi-phase interior branding strategy, BIGSIGNS helps customers identify opportunities, select the right products, and create a consistent visual environment.

Ready to Transform Your Facility?

An older section of your school does not have to feel disconnected from the rest of the campus.

Custom locker wraps, door graphics, window graphics, and fabric displays can transform overlooked surfaces into a coordinated environment that strengthens school identity and creates a more welcoming first impression.

Request a FREE Mock-Up from BIGSIGNS and see how your existing lockers, doors, windows, entrances, and interior spaces could be enhanced with graphics designed around your school’s colors, logos, and goals.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can locker wraps cover outdated locker colors?

LockerSkin™ Locker Wraps can visually transform suitable locker surfaces with custom school colors, logos, imagery, and approved branding elements.

Can a facility branding project be completed in phases?

Yes. Schools can begin with priority areas and add graphics over time. A phased strategy can support budgeting, scheduling, stakeholder approval, and long-term facility planning.

Can door, window, locker, and wall graphics share one design theme?

Yes. Coordinating colors, logos, typography, imagery, and messaging across multiple products helps create one consistent identity throughout the facility.

Which school areas should be branded first?

High-traffic and highly visible spaces are often the best starting points. These may include entrances, locker banks, athletic corridors, doors, windows, team areas, and welcome displays.

Does BIGSIGNS renovate school buildings?

No. BIGSIGNS enhances existing facilities through custom graphics and branding solutions. Structural renovation, construction, and other capital improvements are separate from the services provided by BIGSIGNS.