There are so many things to consider when shopping around for temporary structures, or for the better word marquees.

Today we are going to share with you tips for ensuring you get bang for your buck when hiring a marquee and the things you need to be aware of.

Required Event Information:

First and foremost, it is imperative that the right information specific to your event requirements is acquired and that includes the following:

1. What type of event is the marquee required for?
2. How many people will the marquee house?
3. Will people be seated at banquet tables, theater style seating or stand up cocktail?
4. What other additional requirements could affect the size of the marquee required – for instance, will a dancefloor or stage be installed inside the structure; will caterers be using a section of the marquee; will there be a buffet and/or bar service area; if it is a seated function are separate cocktail/lounge areas going to be required?
5. What is the event location?
6. Is the location a public or private venue?
7. If the location is public, what are the security arrangements?
8. What is the proposed date of the event?
9. What time frame does the supplier have for bump in and out?
10. Can the marquee be pegged into the ground or does it need to be weighted? A lot of public venues require marquees to be weighted, however if the location is one where you are able to peg, it is necessary for the supplier to know where power and water services are located under the ground if applicable
11. Is there full vehicle access to the site location?
12. Do they provide an obligation free site meeting service?
13. Can they produce event layouts if required?

It would be very disappointing and costly if you paid a company according to a specific budget and they showed up on site with a marquee that was half the size of what was actually required to fulfil your event requirements. Or better still the wrong type of temporary structure supplied for the event brief provided.

Cheapest is not always the best

Make sure you are dealing with a reputable company. Time and time again we see clients choosing a company purely based on price and not on expertise or quality of the product or service they provide. Though it is important to shop around for a competitive price, it can sometimes prove to be event suicide if this is your primary reason for making your decision.

When selecting a hire company do your research, you need to know things like:

• what is the calibre of their work
• what do their clients have to say about their customer experience
• how long have they been operating
• what experience do they have in relation to the type of event you are planning
• what can they offer you that their competitors do not
• for example maybe they have an out of hours contact in case of those last minute unexpected hiccups
• do they site meetings to ensure you get the right product for the desired outcome you are wishing to achieve
• do they have adequate insurance

Quality of Product:

Thirdly, what is the quality of their product like? This may require you to actually go into their warehouse and view their product in person, it is unlikely that any hire company would have a structure erected at their warehouse, but you can still view the quality of the fabric and frame work and also find out what options there are in regards to the types of walls available.

The last thing you want is to invest your money on a company that supplies an inferior product and that could be anything from the state of the fabric to the quality of manufacture.