Everyone loves a love story — and wedding rental companies get to help create them. Your role is to provide the items and knowledge needed to create a couples’ dream wedding, on their budget. It’s no small task, but we know you’re resourceful, creative, and up to the challenge. If you’re wondering how to start a wedding rental business, you’re in the right place.

There are some key steps to start any event rental business off right, such as:

• Making a business plan
• Creating a legal entity for your business
• Getting financing for your business
• Finding a store/office location
• Finding inventory and your perfect inventory management software
• Establishing a web presence
• Hiring
• Creating standard operating procedures
• And much more

Wedding rentals have some special aspects to consider that other event rental companies may not have to think much about. Being familiar with the unique needs of a wedding rental company before you start it will go a long way in helping your company succeed. Let’s dive into how to start a wedding rental business.

Relationships are everything

Wedding rentals are all about relationships — but not in the way you might think. We’re talking about building vendor-venue relationships, which are key to creating a booming business. When you have a good relationship with a venue, they’ll bring business to you. Often couples will visit a venue before even contacting a rental company. Good venues book up fast, and brides know it! So once a bride picks a location, it’s not unusual for them to ask the venue about rental companies, planners, florists, etc. And that, my friends, is where your relationship with the venue comes into play. They know the perfect rental company for the bride, and it just so happens that it’s your company. Win!

Not only will you receive extra business from a good venue relationship, but all of your events will run smoother because you and your team know the layout, optimal set up options, common problems, etc. Setup efficiency will mean you’ll have more time for any finishing touches that need to happen before guests arrive.

Change with the seasons

A commonly perceived downside of being a wedding rental business is the slow season. We disagree. Slow season is the perfect time to focus on other aspects of your business, like honing your marketing game, auditing your inventory, and brainstorming new themes and ideas. The great thing about knowing this about the industry before your business is up and running is that you can plan ahead for it.

During the busy season, set aside a rainy day budget to cover your expenses and projects for the slow season. This will give you a bit more wiggle room to acquire new inventory and create new advertising campaigns. Also use this time to stockpile blog and social media posts for when business picks back up. In other words, you can turn your slow season for events into a busy season for your brand.

Know your region

Every region has different concerns. In the northern midwest of the U.S., you have sudden snow, ice, and windstorms to contend with; you’ll need contingency plans. In the south eastern U.S., sudden afternoon thunderstorms are common; you’ll want contingency plans for those too. Compile a collection of SOPs, or standard operating procedures, to deal with seasonal issues you know you’ll encounter.

Different themes and styles vary by region as well. Farmhouse themed events are common in the Midwest (U.S.), but may be less common in, say, the Northeast. Specialty weddings may be more common in some regions than others due to demographic differences. Understanding the population where your business operates is crucial to determining what type of inventory you should collect and what services you should provide; this is one of the many reasons we recommend creating a business plan before starting your business.

As a wedding rental business, you set the stage for one of the best days in people’s lives. Your role is critical to the success of a wedding, so your business needs to be in tip-top shape. That, combined with the notes here, will help your journey on how to start a wedding rental business towards growth and success.

Streamlining your growing wedding rental business

Once you’re up and running, and juggling inventory and clients gets confusing in spreadsheets, give us a shout. We’re happy to share more of our top tips and give you a tour of Goodshuffle Pro, with its inventory management, billing and payments, and quotes and contracts features — plus much more.

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