If you will be offering your own equipment for rent, the party and special-event rental service can involve a large investment. You will also have to clean and maintain the furniture and equipment. The peak periods for special events and parties include summertime and holidays. At other times of the year there may be much less business, and competition with other suppliers may reduce prices and profits.
In the way to know and understand the field of this job, you have to learn as much as you can about the party and special-event calendar in your area; read the social pages of the newspaper as though they were a scouting report. Check the prices for rentals from competitors to help you draw up your business plan. Check wholesale supply companies for chairs and tables and other items you will be buying in quantity. Be on the lookout for restaurants or hotels going out of business or disposing of surplus equipment. Contact major rental companies and seek an arrangement as a broker. In doing so, you will be similar to party planners who offer their services in return for a percentage of the rental fee or the markup. Bill yourself as a specialist who can provide just about any piece of furniture and equipment—or an entire lawful of them—from your various sources. You’ll want insurance on your equipment; don’t expect to collect if a single umbrella is stolen or if a table breaks, but you should be covered in case the tent burns down or the beach floods, resulting in the tragic loss of hundreds of folding chairs.