Over the past 130 years, the Hudson Awning and Sign Co., now based in Bayonne, has come a long way from the days when its primary business was making sails for ships.

The company’s awnings have adorned the Macy’s, Lord & Taylor, and Cartier stores in Manhattan. And its movie set creations have been seen in “War of the Worlds,” “Ali,” and HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire.”

Owner and president Ed Burak, 71, who grew up in the business, says the company has transformed itself from a mom and pop operation into an “empire.”

Awnings were originally a side business for the company, he explained. It wasn’t until the invention of the steam engine and the rise of city living that awnings became the mainstay of the small company and its skilled craftsmen, Burak said.

Originally located on Ocean Avenue in Jersey City, the company moved to Cottage Street in Bayonne in 1989.

“We used to work out of a 800 square foot space,” Burak said. “Now, we work out of a 10,000 square footage space ... It’s an enormous jump.”

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