Ann Squared Waitrose arrow

  • A giant arrow for a Waitrose promotion.
  • Installing a giant fibreglass arrow in to position on site at Westfield Shepherds Bush, London.

The brief

We designed the arrow to fit precisely in a particular spot and to match the surrounding area so that it looked as though it had crashed and disrupted the paving slabs. We love making these types of props where they look as though they've crashed into the pavement. See the recent giant darts we made as an example of this, and a crashed UFO and spaceship. Our client wanted a promotional arrow prop for a Waitrose promotion and it had to be safe and grab everybody's attention and had to be installed in the dead of night so that passers by would be surprised when they saw this giant arrow that had seemingly crashed into the ground from a great height.

Project Details

I had the pleasure of working with Phil and the team at Spur last year in creating a giant arrow for Waitrose. Spur were patient and flexible, there were a few changes to the production during the process and the clients requests were always accommodated for. The finish of the prop was brilliant, the clients were over the moon, as were we!

Charlotte Boag - Ann Squared

Prop process images

  1. A 3-D rendered design of a fibreglass arrow that was made to look as though it has crashed into the ground.
  2. Laying up fibreglass into a mould of a giant arrow.
  3. Making artificial paving slabs with polkystyrene and fibreglass.
  4. Painting artificial paving slabs to fit around a giant fibreglass arrow.
  5. Spraying a giant arrow for a Waitrose promotion.
  6. Applying printed vinyl to a giant fibreglass arrow to be installed in London.
  7. Applying vinyl to a giant fibreglass arrow.
  8. Lifting a fibreglass arrow into position with a HIAB lifting arm.

The Process

As with many of our giant props that are exhibited where members of the public are likely to interact with them, safety has to be the priority. We consulted with our structural engineer who advised on the weight required to prevent the 3.5 metre high arrow from blowing over in the wind; we had to make the base 1 tonne to accommodate this, and the base therefore measured 2.5 metres by 1.5 metres and so, to disguise this, and to give the illusion that it had crash landed, we created fake paving slabs to hide the huge base which had to be lifted with a HIAB and positioned in an exact spot to match the surrounding slabs. 

We built a metal frame, which was welded to the 20mm thick metal base, we then moulded and cast the arrow in fibreglass over the metal frame. It was painted with Waitrose green and had printed vinyl applied. We then had to recreate the paving slabs, sculpting them to look as though the arrow had broken through them upon impact in a busy walkway in Shepherd's Bush Westfield Shopping Centre. Because we were working from photographs of the paving slabs, it wasn't easy getting the exact colour and finish of the slabs, so one of our scenic artists had to scenically paint them before the shoppers arrived next morning. Luckily, it was the summer and the sun rose at 4.30am, giving us just enough time. 

Project Image

A giant fibreglass and steel Waitrose arrow.

The Result

Again, there were some obstacles to overcome during the manufacturing process, but as usual, we completed the prop on time and to the delight of our client who loved the finished piece.