Tips on starting a marquee hire business Part1

Like any new business starting your own marquee hire company can be tricky. It’s easier if you’ve already run your own business or worked in the industry but it’s not essential and anyone can learn what to do.

Visit the Showman’s Show

The Showman’s Show is a two day show in the middle of October for all things marquees and outdoor events related. This is where you will meet all your contacts to buy or hire marquees or pretty much anything to do with marquees.

Essential visiting:

  • Custom Covers – to see the latest lining technology and ideas. Also good for nibbles.
  • Covers & Linings – as Custom Covers
  • Essential Supplies – Suppliers of all marquee accessories, lighting, power leads etc. Their catalogue will become your bible for ‘bits you didn’t realise you needed when you started up’
  • Techtonics UK – the latest marquee ideas and technology
  • DIY Marquees – that’s us, (don’t worry, I won’t go into a big sales pitch) we supply economic commercial marquees and linings for start up hire companies.
  • Portable floormakers – for dance floors, furniture and budget carpet
  • Grumpy Joes – the original owner or portable floormakers. Normally good for a burger.

You’ll also have to evade various jugglers and acrobats as it’s for anyone organising an outdoor event.

Ask several local companies round for a site visit

This sounds a little dishonest (and well, it is) but rest assured in a few years time when you’re successful you will be called out to do a site visit to someone thinking of setting up in competition to you. You probably won’t find out until a long time afterwards if at all, but take it as a compliment.

At the site visit:

  • Make it convincing, otherwise they’ll think it’s a waste of their time and you won’t get enough out of it.
  • Choose an event of similar size to your target market. So if you’re planning on providing informal marquees for 50-100 guests, don’t ask them round to quote for a 300 guest formal wedding!
  • Ask them what makes them stand out from their (and your future) competition, if you can stretch this into what they think of their competitors then so much the better
  • Take note of all the small details they mention and how they come across. If they’ve been successful for a long time then they’re doing something right. Try to take the best bits from their pitch/approach and improve it.
  • Ask for recommendations: local caterers are essential information but also local DJ's, bands and florists. More on this another time.
  • See how each company operates and how you can improve on it– how long does the quote take to send? How long did the initial brochure take to send? What’s their presentation like? Yours has to be better than this. Future customers are going to have their quotes next to your one, your quotation must stand out either through reliability, promptness of service, knowledge of their needs, presentation, price, or preferably all five.
  • Make it convincing

In Part 2 I’ll be writing about choosing your target market and what to look for when buying marquees

Spencer
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Having had to retire after 10 years of running a marquee hire company due to a serious back injury I now supply commercial marquees and linings for marquee hire companies at Marquees for Sale from DIY Marquees.
In the future I will be writing on what to expect from your marquee hire company which will be expanding on the articles I wrote for confetti.