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EP 9 From Event Coordinator to Business Owner. Tara Franklins Journey to the top
127 Plays1 month ago
Kyle and Nate sit down with Tar Franklin of Holland Park to discuss her journey from event coordinator to business owner
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction and Special Guest
00:00:03
Speaker
All right, we're back again for another episode of Under the Vinyl. We've got a good guest today, good lineup. We've got a...
00:00:17
Speaker
we're back again for another episode of under the vinyl but got a good guest today good lineup got We've had lot of great guests, but they they just keep coming, so it's great.
00:00:27
Speaker
But Kyle, how's your week been?
Kyle's Tampa Experience with ARA
00:00:29
Speaker
It's been good. I've been down in Tampa, actually, with ARA, learning some stuff about the association and helping them with some ideas to move forward. So I came back feeling energized about the industry, which is always good.
00:00:42
Speaker
Is there anything that you can share, or is it top secret? It's not all top secret. um It's just, you know, from when you're just a member of the association, you always wonder what actually happens and who makes the decisions.
00:00:54
Speaker
So it's kind of cool to see that the membership actually is the ones making the decisions, not the staff that ARA is paying. So that was awesome to see. And they do really care about the tent side. I think they're trying to put tent and event. I'm sorry, people who just do tabletop.
00:01:08
Speaker
I got reprimanded for that in Florida. They are trying to put an emphasis on that side because it's no secret that we are the redheaded stepchild to the equipment side of that association.
00:01:18
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. Well, I think we we see that from going to ARA like we talked about and seeing all the equipment. which is absolutely huge part of the business. But but that's awesome. it's good to It's good to hear things are progressing in that side, just like we've been talking about with the industry and moving forward with the the education and everything.
Guest Introduction: Tara Franklin
00:01:37
Speaker
But Kyle, you want to go ahead and introduce our guest today?
00:01:40
Speaker
So we have one of my longtime friends with us, Tara Franklin, who's with Holland Park Tense. Tara? Hi, guys. Thank you for having me. Absolutely. It's a pleasure.
00:01:52
Speaker
Where are you guys located? We are based out of Maryland and we service the DC, Northern Virginia, Maryland market primarily. And tell us a little bit about yourself and and kind of how you got into this industry.
Tara's Career Journey to Tents
00:02:06
Speaker
Little baby Tara. So when I was in high school, i wanted to go to college for interior design. i feel like I'm more of a creative person. So I was working for an interior design company part time.
00:02:19
Speaker
I learned a lot about fabric and wallpaper, and I really was into that side of things. Then I started college. I went to community college and furniture store opened in our town. And I thought, well, let me go try that part-time while I'm in college.
00:02:32
Speaker
So was a salesperson. So i found out real fast that I could make a lot of money selling. So I finished my college career and I Worked with that company for almost eight years. I was in sales.
00:02:45
Speaker
Then I worked in their merchandising department and then I was a junior buyer. So I loved that. And then um I met my husband at the time and i grew up in New Jersey. He was from Maryland. So I moved to Maryland We got married I just really wasn't, I'm not an office type of person. So we, my mom and I opened a wedding business and we made custom wedding invitations. So we did that, started having kids, owning a business was not in my cards at the time.
00:03:15
Speaker
So we sold that. I went to work for a venue briefly and I met a gentleman. We were going to buy a tent from Nate Davis Richardson, Kyle's uncle. You might know. So I met him and the venue was very short.
00:03:30
Speaker
I kept in touch with Davis. He's like, let me know if you ever need anything. I'm like, hey, if you ever hear of a venue hiring locally, you know, can you drop my name? He called me three days later and he said, i got a position open.
00:03:41
Speaker
You're the number two person in the office. I was like, all right, I'm not really into tents, zero interest in selling tents. It's not creative. But I went in and met with him. And, you know, anyone that has met Davis can attest. He just,
00:03:55
Speaker
he was so passionate about this industry. So took the job and I guess the rest is history. That's how I got into
Roles and Growth at Sugar Plum Tent Company
00:04:03
Speaker
tenting. Is there really anybody looking to be in tenting, honestly?
00:04:08
Speaker
it It kind of finds you. it doesn't You don't go to it it's Yeah, it chooses you for sure. i would not do another thing in life. I am so passionate about it now. And I feel very fortunate that Through everything that's happened in the last 10 years, um we have now started Holland Park Tents, our own tent company.
00:04:27
Speaker
How long ago did you start with ah Davis? I started with Davis in 2015. So it's been a little over 10 years now. That's crazy. I feel like it's been so much longer. I know, Kyle. I've known you since you were a little little guy.
00:04:42
Speaker
When you got started there, he said you were going the number two. Did you eventually work your way up to the number one? And what were kind of your roles in that? So it's really funny. ah definitely Sugar Plum was set up where Davis did the site visits. He met with the clients. I mean, he was the face of the company.
00:04:56
Speaker
And, you know, I would talk to people on the phone, I would sell on the phone, but I really wanted to get out there. I just thought like, well, there's another side, Davis. So it took me a many, many years before he agreed to let me come out.
00:05:08
Speaker
He bought me a ah wheel. You know, he's like, this is how girls measure tents. And I had my wheel, So I feel like we did a lot together. And then I'll never forget the first one. First site visit he let me do by myself. I was so proud. it's in D.C.
00:05:23
Speaker
Site visits in D.C. are not always fun. It's not, you know, a flat backyard that you just can roll into with your equipment. So anyway, I measured it. I took my pictures. I was really proud. I came back. We sat down. showed him all my notes, showed him the pictures.
00:05:35
Speaker
And he's like, what the F is the this, this pole Tara? And there was some kind of light pole there that I guess I didn't notice. And Davis is very honest. So I guess I and messed that one up. That tent wasn't going to work.
00:05:49
Speaker
This is where you started on your own there and kind of doing this. And then what did that work into? Yeah. So I think after I built trust with him over the years, he finally started giving me some of his planners. So slowly he
Building Trust and Client Relationships
00:06:01
Speaker
was letting me take on some of his clients.
00:06:04
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, I loved it. I love going out on site visits. I mean, obviously having the creative side, I love lighting. I love fabric. So, and that was a big thing too. When I was working in the office, I was like, what you know why are we chasing like these little you know you know, $2,000 20 by 20s when we've got this sale, let's let's sell them fabric draping and let's do some custom lighting and let's upsell everything.
00:06:27
Speaker
From what I'm hearing, you were kind of the indoor-outdoor sales, basically, yeah and and putting jobs together. Was there any other aspects of the company that you really dove into or that you were a part of at that point? Or was that kind of, that that's it?
00:06:39
Speaker
Well, it's funny, working for a small business and Sugar Plum was very much, even, you know, when we grew so big sales-wise. at We were always very small. so How many people did you all have?
00:06:50
Speaker
Our biggest year, we had three project managers, 20 installers, maybe? Around 23 plus sales and other things. Okay. 25 people max. Kyle, that sounds about right, right?
00:07:03
Speaker
Yeah. And the office staff, Nate, was only, from what I remember, two people max. Two. Well, it started as two, just me and another gal. But we had obviously a relationship with L&A. So we had certain jobs where Kyle and the guys would come down and help us on installs, which was always fun. and that's how I met Kyle.
00:07:21
Speaker
So if you were the number two, is who was the number one? So we had another girl in the office who worked there. She was with Sugar Plum for 11 years, I think, before she left. But you know, just different. I mean, she was great. She was great on the phone. created everything, but I really just wanted to get out there and be client facing and go to events. And Davis is like, why do you want to work on Saturdays? And, you know, I'm like, well, i worked so hard in this event. I want to see it through. Well, we talk about this all the time. we were just talking about this the other day in sales. And especially with our industry, you got to be quick about it because there's always another guy or another woman that'll come through and could take that.
00:07:56
Speaker
Or You got to show face. You got to be out there in the field to show face. The customer loves to see face. You can send 100 emails, texts, phone calls. But as soon as you step on site and show face, that's what means the most to them.
00:08:09
Speaker
Particularly in our industry. I mean, I work with mostly planners. 100% of our business is referrals. very grateful for that. But the planners who mostly brings us on the project and in our industry, a tenting is not something a lot of people know, but are comfortable with or have a lot of experience with. So it's like a planner can trust their florist to show up and deliver flowers. But I think it says a lot when, you know, your tent expert is actually out there on your job site day of.
00:08:36
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. I would, I would agree with that, whether it be the salesperson or somebody on your crew, somebody, Depending on size a job, I always think it's great to have somebody out there on site and a man on duty.
00:08:47
Speaker
Working your way through that, you came in Where did you move through in that company while you were there? Did you kind of stay in that area? No, I mean, I definitely, my role definitely grew. And Davis, you know, he always questioned these huge jobs we'd get. And, um you know, back then, I feel like we maybe would have two or three a year where it was like a 10-day install, 20 guys on the install. We didn't didn have a lot, but, you know, those were always my favorite events to be a part of.
00:09:13
Speaker
Davis wasn't interested in the lighting and the fabric and all the other things that I loved. yeah. I think as my role grew and my relationship grew with a lot of the planners in the area, you know, where people would call and ask for me to come out to the site, he definitely, you know, my book of business increased and he definitely gave me a lot more control over that control over the clients and,
00:09:33
Speaker
You know, he worked hard. He built a great business. So I think he he really wanted to step back a little bit. In 2019, he hired Drew as our director of operations. And Kyle, I feel like you know this, but Drew and I did not like each other in the beginning. We butted heads on everything. I'm like, oh, who is this guy? He's coming to steal your thunder.
00:09:52
Speaker
Well, was really funny because i don't remember the reason, but for Davis asked me to make an organization organizational chart of the company. He needed it for something. So you better believe I put me and Drew equal with the salespeople under me and all the installers under Drew. so Should we give them the spoiler alert, Tara? No, we shouldn't. But we should say Davis's advice to Drew was, I'm just going to tell you one thing.
00:10:15
Speaker
You have to get along with Tara. Love that. Love that. So you basically then... he started to trust you more. So you started to progress the business a little bit and take it into something that maybe it wasn't before and bring on new things, new clients, different things.
00:10:30
Speaker
I saw new potential, new areas we grow in into. Yeah. New energy. Love that. And so how long were you there? I was there almost nine years. Okay. And then what took you to your next step?
Pandemic Challenges and Growth
00:10:43
Speaker
Well, sadly, Davis got sick and it was during COVID. It was a hard time for everybody. Yeah. But Drew and i we were determined. It was an unknown time for everyone, but we were determined. Like we have to we have to get keep this company going. I mean, we have 25 mouths to feed. We have people depending on us. We have events booked. We we have to get through this.
00:11:03
Speaker
And i definitely sat with our whole team, even the installers. And I said, guys, everyone's going to be looking at us. Like, can we do this without Davis? And, you know, in particular, like we we need to be in our A game this year.
00:11:15
Speaker
We grew, I think i think we grew 40%. By 2022, compared to where we were pre-COVID, it was just working. we We started to book with bigger planners.
00:11:26
Speaker
We started to travel a little bit, which I love. Yeah, so we were we were rolling. And then, as everyone knows, Sugar Plum sold. And Drew and I just weren't sure. At the time, we didn't know who was interested in buying. And we really, there was just a lot of unknowns and a lot of uncertainty. So we we did both leave.
00:11:43
Speaker
It was probably the hardest thing I ever had to do, leaving my staff, so leaving the people I loved so much. But you know we tried a new thing. I talked to a lot of planners who I trust, and you know they encouraged me, you know pursue this, see what happens. So we went to another company real fast.
00:11:56
Speaker
We were there about a year before Drew came to me. And I will say, Drew came to me after we were we knew we were leaving Sugar Plum. He's like, let's start our own thing. And I was like, you're crazy. Zero interest. We're not doing that.
00:12:07
Speaker
So we were at this other company for about a year. And he was like, we ah we were at one of our biggest events we've ever been and involved in. Multi-million dollar wedding, huge build, huge tent. you know We're exhausted. we' we're We're the restroom attendants that night. So we're sitting out by the restroom trailer.
00:12:22
Speaker
And he was like, i'm you know I'm done. He's like, let's just do this on our own. And I said, okay, I'm ready. So literally the next morning, Ryan LaCasse was the first person I called. And I was like, love Ryan, i need I need to figure out how much tents are.
00:12:35
Speaker
I don't know you know if we can get an investor. I don't know what's going to happen, but let's see it's rolling. So that was in June. I would say by July or August, we started to look into a small business loan route.
00:12:46
Speaker
We had a lot of no's. So you know it's not as easy opening a business as people think. You are going head first. That's what I do, Kyle. That's what you have to do. i mean, it yes if this industry, if you don't go in head first and you you take your time getting into it, you're going to get passed by.
00:13:00
Speaker
And particularly Drew, if I let Drew stop and think about it he would been like, this is crazy. We're not doing this. So as soon as he gave me the green light, i was off running. So we actually had an investor that flew in that met with us, like friend of a friend.
00:13:13
Speaker
And we had a great meeting with him. he was interested. you know we kind of went back and forth with paperwork. And now we're into like September. He pulled out. We're back at square one. And I actually, I had
Founding Holland Park Tents
00:13:23
Speaker
potential clients for 2025. And I was like, we've got to make this work. And if you don't mind, I'm going stop you there for a minute.
00:13:30
Speaker
I don't know how much you can disclose without being too personal. What made him pull out? And I'm just curious because there's a lot of companies out there that are looking to sell. and people that are looking to buy to other companies and a lot of people are looking at investors and this um industry is scary you can't really explain it so if it's not somebody that knows the industry trying to get them to invest in it is is kind of it's rough is it that kind of a situation there well i will tell you it was an industry person but i think We're in a very unique market in DC. And because I've, you know, when I left Sureplum and I went to the new company, all my planners followed me, all my clients followed me. So I was confident at that point, a year into the other company, like, oh, okay. Like, I know this book of business I have. And I think the investor wasn't from this area. And I just don't think he understood.
00:14:17
Speaker
thought with this investment, it will take too long for me to recoup my investment. Got it. Okay. That makes more sense. So... You know, I called my buddy, my buddies at LNA.
00:14:27
Speaker
i will say after Davis passed, I mean, I talked to Brian, if not several times a week, at least once a week. And he just helped our team, anything I needed. He was there. he'd send Kyle to help me.
00:14:39
Speaker
So, um, you know, they've always been like family. So I called Brian. He's like, ah, what do you need? Yeah. And I was like, you know what? We thought we needed this big investment because it would have been easy.
00:14:50
Speaker
Let's face It would' have been comfortable. I could buy all my inventory I knew I needed. I could bring on a full staff. But we knew that it probably wasn't going to be that easy. So we had to get really scrappy. So we, you know, we kind of went bare bones with Brian.
00:15:02
Speaker
This is what we need. The biggest thing, we need help. We need support. and need some inventory. So we got our inventory in. And yeah, I feel like a great collaboration was born. So I thank my lucky stars every day for that relationship. I feel like Davis is looking down. and He's really happy and proud of all of us.
00:15:18
Speaker
And then, so that was October, I think. And then my regular client started calling me for holiday parties. And I was like, like October of what year? This was 2024. 2024. Okay. So last year. This was a few months ago, Nate. Yep. Yep.
00:15:32
Speaker
So there was holiday parties and they need, you know, they're like, we need a tent. So I was like, we don't have inventory. And I was like, oh we can do this. So I sub rented all the equipment. I subbed the labor. I, you know, I did whatever I had to do to take care of these clients, you know, just to get me through 2024. Then um we went to Matra and I thought it would be easy. I would know what inventory we were going to purchase, but that was hard because you work in this industry so long, you meet people, even if you don't carry their lines, you now you're opening a business so everybody everybody wants to get in yeah but the good news is if you partner with brian in lna they have so much inventory from every vendor in this whole entire world you can find anything that you need every vendor never say no
00:16:15
Speaker
Yeah. So Matra was fun. i mean, we we definitely talked to a lot of companies, but in the end, we kind of just went with what we knew. And um i talked to another business owner and he's like, oh, you know, for price, you can get a container out of China. You could do this. And I'm like, who am I going to call in China 10 o'clock on a Friday night if i'm if I need help?
00:16:33
Speaker
In the end, we went with Anchor for our frame. We went with Fred's for sailcloth and... We're very happy. Inventory's in now and um we're rocking and rolling. Was there something specific that made you choose Anchor for the the frame and Fred's for the, and we i'm I'm asking because ever we just had this conversation with Blake the other day and it was just,
00:16:56
Speaker
how you approach how the new people in this industry approach what inventory they're going to buy it is it friendships and relationships that you're basing it off of is it the actual product itself are you trying to spread a little bit of the love everywhere how does that yeah well that's a great question so for us having this book of business and knowing our clientele i knew you know it wasn't about price i know that anchor might be more expensive than other manufacturers but i to me anchors get the top of the line. I know the quality I'm getting and you can't beat the service. I mean, I've known these guys at Anchor for almost 10 years now. So I felt very strongly about that. And also some people may have said like, I never track. It's too clumsy, too hard to put up. My guys don't know the difference. That's all they know. So that's what we did at FirstSailcloth. I feel very strongly about this spread.
00:17:47
Speaker
I love his brain. i just think he's such a creative It's one of a kind. He made a 30-foot mid in the sailcloth. And I think everyone talks about this now. I was on this train six years ago when he first made it.
00:18:00
Speaker
When you're in the 57-wide, 66-wide profile, typically your guest counts are 200-plus. You can't have 20 feet between your circles. I've lost a lot of jobs because of that. Yeah, I've lost lot of jobs like that.
00:18:13
Speaker
You need 30 foot mitts. Yeah. And then the garden tent, I'll talk a little bit about that because that's something that is very big now in our industry. 2019, believe, then. it was a then Or IFAI then, um Fred had the green garden tent and Davis was still alive. And I remember calling Davis. He wasn't at that show, but I called Davis and I was like, Davis, we need to buy this tent.
00:18:35
Speaker
You know, I don't know what we can rent it for. We we have to have this tent. I was so
Customization and Industry Innovation
00:18:39
Speaker
hell bent on this. That was like the beer garden look that looked like it should maybe be more of a permanent type structure, wasn't it?
00:18:46
Speaker
Maybe people said that. yeah Maybe Kyle. Only buy it if you're going to sell it to a venue. but i my point is My point is, as you're going on to tell us where this goes, that structure, it wasn't really revolutionized yet. It was it was something that came in that everybody was like, yeah, no, this is an end user. this is not its There's too many parts, too many pieces. It's not a thing.
00:19:08
Speaker
And then you can go on with you know telling us about it. but I was such a hater. Oh, I was too. i i was I was too. And I, you're not wrong. It had to be tweaked putting that.
00:19:19
Speaker
It was horrible. Yeah. But I will say what I'm now calling the next generation of garden tent. Exactly. That's my point. We bought the green and COVID hit. We didn't rent this thing. I mean, it was, everyone was like, Tara, what did you do?
00:19:33
Speaker
And it took one wedding. We sold it for one wedding. Pictures were beautiful. And then we started getting calls from every, you know, calls from all over for this garden tent. So then I started saying, like, then i heard someone, in that somebody was buying it in black. So, you know, me, I'm like, oh, they have it in black. I have to have it in black. So bought the black.
00:19:51
Speaker
But yeah, the garden tents took off. And it's, it's kind of revolutionized our industry. I feel like people that Nobody wants to have a Navitrack anymore. Everybody wants the garden tent look. No matter what the budget is, they want to figure out how they can make that work.
00:20:04
Speaker
I remember one point, Terry, you were like, oh Kyle, I'm going to get a bronze one. No one has bronze. I want bronze. still want bronze. Obviously, we have one of the first generations of the black one. And it takes, I will say, it does take that special client.
00:20:17
Speaker
It is something I love to push. I think it's great. I don't know that our guys love it because it's so intricate and it takes so long to set up, but it looks freaking amazing when you're done. So they love to look at it. But it is, I don't know about you guys, but for me, it takes a planner to sell it.
00:20:33
Speaker
If I'm trying to sell it through an individual, it doesn't necessarily work out. No, I think you need the planner to prepare them for the budget. Yeah. Before, yeah i agree. Like if someone just called you off the street and said, I want this, I feel like it.
00:20:48
Speaker
I had that happen the other day. I had a job in Aspen that I was just quoting and the the girl loved it and thought it was great, but it was in the heart of summer. And trying to heat and AC that, which is a whole nother conversation.
00:20:58
Speaker
Nobody knows how to heat it and, or AC it for that matter. And what I'm getting is i had one rep tell me from a company I won't name. When I called on them for AC, they said, i mean, do you want me to play God? And I was like, no, I want you to do your job.
Vendor Selection and Client Needs
00:21:13
Speaker
I want you to tell me, I'll tell you the leg heights. I'll tell you the clear vinyl. I'll tell you everything about it.
00:21:17
Speaker
Just figure out how much AC I need. But we had to put so much AC in it because it was going be so hot out there that it wasn't went way over budget. And so we lost that. And so that is the only downfall of that thing.
00:21:28
Speaker
If you want to heat it or cool it, the expenses just go astronomical. But everybody loves it. Everybody loves it. I think it's great. I always say, i mean, anything's possible, but there's a ah price, a cost behind it. right So right you can heat and cool it.
00:21:42
Speaker
So the first generation one, you still have that? Not with our new company. Okay. The company I worked at before that owned it still has it. Got it. We um bought the new generation in white.
00:21:57
Speaker
So we will have a white garden tent that I sold for an event in the spring. I promised the planner she would be the first to use it. So can't wait for those pictures. um But I'm hoping that it's the next thing. So when you were at the company before the one you're at now, before you started your own company is when you went down, saw that garden tent, you guys bought that at that show.
00:22:16
Speaker
Then you moved on, start your own company, and then you bought a the black garden tent. Nope. the same It was same company same kind that I worked at originally. Okay. Okay. Yes. That owns the garden tents.
00:22:27
Speaker
But when I knew when we were starting this company, I mean, we're going to have to get into the garden tent business. So we started with white. It's obviously a huge investment. LNA has it in black, which, you know, I've been renting.
00:22:40
Speaker
but Yeah, absolutely. I think the garden tents are here to stay. I'm very excited about that. Oh, I hope they don't stay too long. don't got to buy into it. I don't want to buy any more. That's my thing. I hope people only want 82 by 82 with a 10 in a flat field with no floor, no nothing. Yeah. You sound like the old generation and I hate it.
00:22:59
Speaker
Hey, you start signing the checks, Nate. and You'll be talking a different tune. Hey, and scare money. Don't make money. As Tara would know. I had to teach Kyle that. You picked Fred because of his sailcloth and his ability to be able to do the 30-foot mid like you wanted.
00:23:14
Speaker
And, of course, quality. yeah mean, quality is top-notch. It is Tensor Beautiful. The service is amazing. I love everyone on their staff. And, um you know, he's an innovator. And, you know, i definitely want to be on his on his side when he's releasing these new products. Right. And then
Management Style and Strategic Growth
00:23:30
Speaker
so Anchor, you basically chose because that was a product that you knew really well and the relationships that you had.
00:23:35
Speaker
Yeah. And I mean, to me, it's it's top of the line, brain tempting. Okay. Love the product, love the relationships. And yeah. And I felt like they were very supportive too. You know, I'm kind of embarking on this scary journey and, you know, just to know you've known these people for so long and they have your back feels really good.
00:23:52
Speaker
You bought some of that Vixen, right? We did. so we, TBD, if that was the right decision, but we decided i hate Marquis. And in DC, you have so many small backyards and I just,
00:24:05
Speaker
I don't want to put up a 10 by 10 Fiesta. I don't hate it. So we bought the Vixen in the small profiles that we could use instead of those small marquees. You're like yeah six meter wide and three meter and six meter. We had the pass come down and help us install our first one and he um installed it wrong. So that was fun. Shout out Ryan LaCasse. You just got thrown under the bus. He loves me. He knows I love him. We were all learning new product. I think it's a great product too.
00:24:34
Speaker
Yeah. So we know eventually, it's funny, I tell Kyla's all the time, I keep selling structure jobs and we don't, we didn't, i didn't we didn't buy structure. but So, um you know, eventually we'll get into structure, but so what do your work Your structure is probably going to have to be in line with what I have sitting up here, just because the investment in the structure for anyone at this point, it's just so high that you got to make sure you have a good place.
00:25:00
Speaker
yeah You need to have friends. Yeah. yes It's all about the relationships. We were just saying that it's um especially for somebody new. I mean, eventually I'm sure you'll have an abundance of it. It sounds like, but yeah, you got to find the people that had something that's close to you that you can sub rent.
00:25:15
Speaker
So what does your current inventory now consist of? We Navi, like the Vixen we use for the smaller frames. We have sailcloth, the white garden tent, and everything sitting up in New Jersey. yeah Now that you've started your own thing here, what are you finding that is your go-to?
00:25:34
Speaker
What are your people looking for? Is it the higher end? Is it the mid? what do What are you guys shooting for? Are you shooting for, you know, hey, we got to pay the bills, so we'll take anything from here to here, or we really want to be here and this is what we're aiming for and this is what our business is set upon?
00:25:49
Speaker
Yeah, so I will tell you that you know after that coming out of COVID time, i know everyone in our industry felt it when there was just a backlog of events You know, we might we may have had 12 events in one week. I never want to feel that way again.
00:26:01
Speaker
um Quality and service are so important to us. i Really, the reason why we wanted to start this, we would have control over it. So we focus on trying to do one large event per week, every other week. So we do have to pay the bills, but I just have to be confident, you know, in kind of what we're building here that and we have to say no to some of these smaller jobs that eat up a lot of your time. So you're not going for the small ticket.
00:26:26
Speaker
No, and that's not our clientele. And that's fine. there There are so many great companies in our area that service that client. It's just not what we are into. We're into larger weddings, large corporate events, multi-day installs.
00:26:41
Speaker
What have you found the hardest the hardest challenge now, I guess, or the roadblock that's been coming from being with somebody who owns a company to your own company? What does challenge you the most?
00:26:52
Speaker
That's good question, Nate. It's been really, i my stress level is way down. I mean, just being able to go on a site visit and say, hey, you know, if if you need a 30 by 40 for a yeah ceremony tent a week of, yeah, we can bring that out and add a rain tent. And, you know, I don't have to enter a ticket and get a deposit and do jump through all the corporate hoops. I just, you know, we have control over it.
00:27:13
Speaker
Are you guys using a current system to put in tickets or anything like that? are you have you picked the had Have you picked the product yet um from that standpoint? So it's cute. When we went to the tent shows this year, you know, everyone wanted to talk about, you know, i'm familiar with POR. Everybody wanted talk to us. And I was like, listen, I own like 12 tents. Like i can I can keep track on in my brain what we own and where it's going. So I think next year we'll look into inventory software, but This year, we're going with Excel, baby.
00:27:40
Speaker
i mean, that's where you got start. yet I mean, we did it at Sugar Plum for 25 years, and you know it worked for us. Okay, Tara, okay. hi We know there were some inventory issues back in the day. I'm sure you're going to have that, but that's my point. is Just starting out here, um you're like a wild...
00:28:00
Speaker
unicorn that somebody in this industry wants to catch right now and say, hey, come in with us and come now so we can get you started. And and so I think that's smart to kind of sit back and play the Excel game right now. So that way you can decide what fits you best. because I mean, POR isn't for everybody. Alert's not for everybody.
00:28:16
Speaker
4C is great, but is it is it for you at your size of business? ah So I think you're doing great with that. And that's why I was asking that. I feel like having, and I do understand it's not a normal situation where someone opens a business. Like we are are lucky because we're coming from the other side, but I have learned that like we, there's no need to jump into, we have to rush some of these things. Like obviously we needed to buy tents. We needed to have inventory, but you know, some of the, some of the other things like the software, we could sit back and see what's going to work for us whatnot. And we don't do tabletop. We don't do linen. We don't do rentals. We're just tents, floors, lighting. Yeah.
00:28:51
Speaker
Yeah. And anywhere you can save money in the first year and still be successful is the name of the game. And want to stay in business. Yeah. You know, you got it. You got to have the one willpower. And so with that, what what are you doing as far as labor goes? Are you finding some that labor struggle hard to find? Are you since you were already involved and you kind of know the
Addressing Labor Challenges
00:29:12
Speaker
ins and outs?
00:29:12
Speaker
Are you finding that labor is a little bit easier? Where are you at with that? people grass is a screener syndrome. You know, of course, everyone called us when we we started this and wanted to work with us. But, you know, we're kind of smart. We started with, we have one project manager, four installers.
00:29:27
Speaker
We have a great labor company in the area. That's what they do. They're local to us. So we've been pulling him on jobs. but Don't tell Nate who it is. I don't. Oh, Nate knows. Nate, don't announce because I don't need everybody stealing our labor. well I love them. was using them for a while and then Kyle dropped his name the other day and I was like, Kyle, how did you find out?
00:29:47
Speaker
um but That's a thing now. i mean that's it's just we you know you Some of your guys in your crew, the only thing you trust them to do is like carry the lights from the car to the the tent site. But his guys, every single one is like a skilled laborer and it's it's just amazing. and I feel like he makes our guys work better and work harder and more efficient. That's where the industry is going though. It's you know all these labor companies that have come in. It's almost like, it's once again, it's a trade.
00:30:10
Speaker
We are a trade. We are hiring in laborers of a specific trade now. And it's almost, it sucks because it's hard to find people to bring on your business to work for you directly. But it's almost a benefit if you really look at it and run the numbers and everything else.
00:30:24
Speaker
And yeah, you're paying the higher prices for them. Well, you're probably not. No, when you I don't think you're paying a higher price. That's what I'm saying, though. So you're paying a higher price, it looks like, on labor. But if you ran the numbers across the whole entire business, as far as your insurance and everything else, I can guarantee you by not keeping those people on you are probably benefiting a whole lot more.
00:30:43
Speaker
yeah Correct. Through the year, at least. but Yeah, and you're getting a skilled laborer, like you said. You're getting someone really good for those hours you're using them. Yeah, we just did a huge job last week, which L&A did come send two people down to help us, which I appreciated so much. But you know we used this labor company. And after that, Drew was like, we're not hiring anyone else.
00:30:59
Speaker
were We're only using them. Yeah, I mean, it's great. I mean, it's revolutionized the industry in a way that people like you who are starting out, you don't need to go say, hey, i need to hire on 10 guys right now. And I mean, could you really afford to keep 10 guys on payroll right now at this moment?
00:31:13
Speaker
In March? No. Right. Probably, but i do not through the whole year. Yeah. Through the whole year. What got me is, so you know, you intrigued me by the Instagram stuff. Your Instagram is great with the Holland Park Instagram.
00:31:26
Speaker
Well, it popped up and I didn't know that it was you who was running it. And I actually reached out to Kyle probably a couple months back. And I was like, who is running this? Because, I mean, honestly, it looks great. The page looks great. All your tents and structures look great, which, I mean, that's a huge thing when you're starting out put something out like that, which,
00:31:44
Speaker
Brings me to my point on that white structure, that the white garden tent that you got. looks like you guys did a little bit of customization to that. You want to talk about that? We did. So what do they say? i don't know. Copying is the best form of flattery, whatever that imitation.
00:31:59
Speaker
That's what it is. I love a particular manufacturer, tent company, that has doors that go from the peak to the ceiling or the peak to the ground. So I really wanted the doors to be able to open that 24-foot ceiling.
00:32:13
Speaker
peak height. Yeah. So Fred's doing that. We're doing the grid design, which you see on the Instagram, which is just a little bit different. Just make it a little bit different. I was worried at first when, you know, we decided to do the white, I don't want it to look like a regular, regular white tent, but I think we made some modifications. So what drove the customization and the making it white? Was this client-based?
00:32:33
Speaker
They really wanted this? It was client based. The planner wanted to do it in white and, you know, we haven't seen it before. So I knew if I called Fred, I knew he could do it. I tried to convince her do navy or another color, but she really wanted white. But the white has grown on me. I feel like it will work good in many different locations. Now, in a scenario
Branding and Market Positioning
00:32:52
Speaker
like that, sure, people are wondering, you know, so you're adding this tent to your inventory now that one specific client is asking for.
00:32:58
Speaker
Are you eating that or are you passing this along to the client ideally? Oh, Kyle, am allowed to talk about that? I don't know I'm allowed to talk about that. Yeah. I think with that, you got to pay to play. You got to make the initial investment, but you're going have the confidence that you're going sell this damn thing.
00:33:15
Speaker
Well, and I will say every client's different and we sign and NDAs for many of our jobs, but I will just say in general, not this event specific, but yes, if a client wanted something, we would try to you know recoup most of the cost, not the labor, obviously, but you know you you need to be confident. like Like you said, Nate, you need to be confident you'll sell it.
00:33:34
Speaker
Exactly. And with a product like that, I think you will, especially with how this this thing has taken off. I think that... you always have to be a step ahead and figuring out what's next. And, you know, the garden tent is next. So now you do different variations of it. Just like, you know, in the structure, we took a P3 and we had it Fred wrap it in the wood grain look. And it's something that's pushed us to the next level. So then after the wood grain, we said, all right, let's do white.
00:33:59
Speaker
So now we have a white P3 frame. You know, it's, there's so many different variations you can do with different things. It's just taking to the next level and finding that thing. And it sounds like you have. Well, thanks, Nate. Yep. I do have a question of the hard hitting questions here.
00:34:13
Speaker
What's it been like being a woman in this industry? Well, I will say it's been very different over the years. I always consider myself a tent guy. you don't have to make any special accommodations for me. i will be on the job site using the porta potty, just like every single other person on our team.
00:34:30
Speaker
But it's interesting. I noticed it a lot when I would go to Matra and go to ARA and go to the tent shows. And it definitely was mostly men. which I think is changing a little bit, which is great.
00:34:42
Speaker
That's how the, you know, I've been, we talked about it the other day and the the women in rental. I think the women in rental has really helped that as well. You know, i sent some stuff out to the ladies here in our office the other day just to keep the women in rental going and keep it involved and get people to really buy into it.
00:35:00
Speaker
If you can give them a suggestion, I wish the women rental breakfast wasn't at 7.30 at the trade show Because I'd love to be involved. Yeah, Tara, why were you awake at 7.30 a.m.?
00:35:12
Speaker
Kyle, you know, we work very hard in this industry. And I think you were talking about your last podcast about burning out and ah ways that I don't burn out. You know, when I get to a trade show, you know, you've got to let loose a little bit. you're You're with your friends. You're with your peers.
00:35:25
Speaker
I'm not waking up at 730 to go to a breakfast. Hey, I'm i'm i'm right there with you. I love mornings. But if I don't, I love my kids to death. Let me preference that. But if I'm not around my three kids, I'm going to try and find an extra 30 minutes. don't Don't get me wrong.
00:35:39
Speaker
So I get it. I totally understand. so I love women in rental. I do love what they're doing. yeah Is there anything that you think you would have done differently as being a woman in this industry, coming into this industry? is it you know What would you say for for other women that are coming into this industry to help them move along and move up like you did? I mean, you essentially came into what everybody was saying, the tent man's world, and jumped right in and said, hey, this is what I'm going to do, and I'm going to do it just like the rest of the guys. and Oh, and hey, by the way, now i'm to start my own damn business, and I'm going to my way.
00:36:10
Speaker
What have you done there and is it what has helped you through that? I feel like I'm a little nerdy in the tent industry. industry like I just am a sponge. I want to learn everything. I want to know what a Perlin is. I want to know what the EFAR is. I've learned everything I could possibly learn, but I think something to my advantage, Nate,
00:36:29
Speaker
You know, we, we, we bid against some big jobs together. I feel like I do have kind of an advantage, particularly with the planners, because I feel like, you know, I kind of speak their language. I understand. And and definitely being able to say, like, not only can we provide the tent and the floor, we can make custom drapes for your tent legs.
00:36:46
Speaker
And, you know, we'll, we'll bring in a custom chandelier, you know, a particular chandelier that you're looking for. I've been saying this for like a year and a half now that women love dealing with women.
00:36:58
Speaker
and Because they've dealt with men for so long that have either looked down on him or have told him this is how it's going to be and this is how they have to do it and haven't given them a voice on the situation that now they're like, screw you. I don't want to deal with you.
00:37:10
Speaker
Well, the other thing is like, Tara, I'm just guessing you'll go to a site visit and with a planner and you'll play the game. Like, I'm not going to say, oh, I think you should use a paisley linen. I don't know anything about that.
00:37:23
Speaker
I can barely stay color coded when I dress myself. So you can just speak to a whole nother level and get to a deeper connection with these people, which I think really helps. I don't like, I don't like to think of this playing the game. I think of it. I'm genuinely interested in what they're saying. passionate Yeah. And when I go to a site visit, I don't just go and measure a box. I don't measure a rectangle. Like I want to know,
00:37:47
Speaker
Where are guests getting dropped off? How will people be walking in? What surface are they walking on? If it rains, what are we doing for the ceremony? i mean, I like to think, you know, I'm trying to think of everything like the event planner would do and not just someone coming to measure spot in your backyard.
00:38:03
Speaker
The basics. You don't want to do the basics. You want to go a little above and beyond. I mean, not just because you're a new company, but because of you're passionate for your customers. Well, and Nate,
Vision for Holland Park Tents
00:38:12
Speaker
and also my, my, the number of jobs I've been on, I feel like if you're there on event day and you're like, shit, I should have, i should offer to walk away here. you know well how many how many years are you in now?
00:38:22
Speaker
10, a little over 10. Okay. So you're to that point now where it's like, this isn't just a job. It's a career. This is what I'm doing. i have to you know i have to look at it this way where a lot of people in this industry that, I mean, we've talked about it before, where they come in, they don't understand that this is a career. this is it goes further than that. So you now you start to think of these things. I've taken my operations guy from Nashville with me on a lot of site visits. And so he's starting to even ask the questions that sometimes I don't think about.
00:38:48
Speaker
on Hey, what would they do with this over here? Do they need a canopy here if it rains? And I'm like, yeah, absolutely. This is the stuff we need. And you got to ask those questions. And it also makes them so think outside the box and you're not surprising them in case they do have to add that stuff at the end.
00:39:04
Speaker
And now their bill's gone up $5,000. I want to price everything just in case. Correct. I feel like, yes, maybe it's not in your budget, but if you call that week and think you might need it, I want you to have seen that price for the last eight months. You're setting the expectation up front.
00:39:18
Speaker
I will say I've been on some jobs that Tara's done. Like you think of everything. And like, if I have to send you guys, I know which guys I have that can handle you and which ones can't because you're looking for a level of detail that is 10 times higher than the average customer.
00:39:38
Speaker
It kills me when people in this industry say it's just a rental. and like, not just a rental. You cannot have that mentality. So are you what's your what's your leadership style out in the field then? Are you more of a, hey, do it this way? Or are walking them through it kind of level-headed, calm?
00:39:54
Speaker
because So Nate, I like to consider myself a cheerleader. a guy buy the snacks. I take care of the guys. But when I want something done, feel i expect them to...
00:40:07
Speaker
and You're a little a bit more passionate than the rest. Yeah, I get that. I try to come in as the nice guy. ah then but i don't know if you've ever met her business partner, Drew, but he is, so he is so even keeled.
00:40:20
Speaker
a three hundred percent of Oh, it's unbelievable. And like the worst thing in the world could be happening. And Drew's just like, Hey, we should probably go fix that. And like, it calms you down. Like I'll be freaking out.
00:40:31
Speaker
And I'm like, all right, if he's not freaked out, then I probably shouldn't be freaked out either. like It makes us a good team, Kyle. I feel like he definitely balances me out. He likes to tell people I'm the dreamer. He's the doer. I need him sometimes because I will. We'll walk away from a site visit and I'll be like, we're going to do this and this and this and this and build this 50 feet in the air. And, you know, he'll definitely bring me down to reality.
00:40:51
Speaker
So how does Drew feel now where you guys are at with this company and in how he's so happy he's happy? I've never seen it. He doesn't smile a lot. neighbor He's been smiling a lot. I think we're both really excited being able to service our customers in a way that they expect and we know you know what they want. i I just feel very proud, very happy.
00:41:10
Speaker
Sounds like you've you said a little bit, but you're trying to find your why and you're finding it. And what what do you think that why is? Why do you do what you do and why you did what you did? Every time I get a call,
00:41:22
Speaker
for a tent, for a new site visit, I just get excited. It literally is my why. I love doing this. I i can't picture doing anything else. I love people. i love helping people. So I do. I feel like when I get out to a job site, I'm not saying I'm an expert. I just feel like I'm a dinosaur. I've been doing it for so long that I know what they need. I know what... It's funny because some planners, you get out there and you're like, okay, we're going to do this, this, is this, and this. And you just, you know what it takes to make that event perfect.
00:41:49
Speaker
And they trust you. They do trust me. Thank you, Kyle. I mean, just listening you, I trust you.
00:41:57
Speaker
Going forward, what is kind of you your guys' goals through this year and then moving forward? what What kind of have you guys set some goals on where you want to be, not just maybe in this year, but the next five years? Where's Holland Park
Conclusion and Advice for Newcomers
00:42:07
Speaker
going to go and how are they going get there?
00:42:09
Speaker
We both feel very strongly about this. We're not trying to grow fast. i mean i I mean, obviously you want growth. We're business owners. We want to make money. But I think we want to grow just enough so we can stay in that small company mentality. so we can So I'm always the one who answers the phone still. We're still coming to your site because we're still coming to your events. And I just feel like, don't know, my age, I'm not trying to be billionaire. I know that this industry can build you a happy life and a comfortable life. And I think that's what we want to a lifestyle
00:42:45
Speaker
really is And I think our hope has always been two eventually 10, 15 years down the road to kind of bring on the next generation. I feel like we have a responsibility to kind of keep this industry going. And, you know, I highly doubt any of our kids would be interested in this business. So i would always be, i would like to be the type of business owner who would sell to employees.
00:43:05
Speaker
So you, you're going to work in it for as long as possible until you feel like you need to work on it before you hire somebody in. hundred percent. Okay. Which is a little bit different mentality than like what we talked about the other day with like Darren Randall, who's he's trying to get company to hit himself out so he can you know not work in it so much and it worked without him.
00:43:27
Speaker
But it sounds like you want to keep it just small enough to where you're in touch with your clients. but you're just big enough that everybody knows who you are and you still enjoy what you do. Exactly. It's no secret to anyone who's listening in the DC market. If they haven't heard a Holland park, they're going to hear about them soon. I'm sure you're disrupting a little bit.
00:43:46
Speaker
I mean, we're not doing that, Kyle. I mean, I got to go. We're going to throw it out there. I got a call from Nate going, who the fuck is Holland Park? Well, you know, when I see this, and like i said, you did a beautiful job of your social media.
00:44:00
Speaker
And that is huge in this, in this industry. It's you're not attracting people. companies like me to come to your social media and try and buy something from you. But you are attracting me and pulling me in by looking and seeing the garden tent right off the bat on on your page. you know That's the first thing that you see.
00:44:15
Speaker
you're like wow. And to me, I was like, okay, so this is like a boutique tent service is what I look at this as. and it's like And then you start to dig in more and more. And like you're telling us today, like it's totally different. This is something that you... you know So you guys have done for what you're doing.
00:44:30
Speaker
You guys have done really well in the marketing aspect. Yeah. I, again, we're, we're in the DC market. We certainly don't need any other tech companies, Nate, anyone else listening.
00:44:41
Speaker
Everyone eats, as I say, like there's just, there's so much business in this area. And I think I'm lucky that I've been doing it so long that I just, I have planners, i have caterers, and i just you know they'll call me say, hey, I need a tent for this date. And they just trust me. they know They know that I know what they need and what they expect.
00:44:58
Speaker
There's enough for everybody and there always will be enough for you as long as you treat people the right way and you do them right and you know you do what you're going to say. You'll always have work. Everybody will always have work. There's enough work for everybody. In the Nashville market, there's so many competitors, but i two my competitors, one One called me earlier this week and I rented them some sidewalls. The other one called me this week and needed some legs. So it's like, we play ball with everybody and everybody should be able to play ball because there's enough to there's enough to get by with everybody. It's just the only bad thing about that that I hate is you have these bigger companies that buy out all these small companies and now they're this corporate size company rental company.
00:45:34
Speaker
The people at the top look at it as it's so cutthroat. We got to make our money. We're going to stomp on everybody all the way through. But the truth of the matter is the people that are actually managing those companies aren't really buying into that and they're not really managing it that way. I mean, if it was, if that was the case, the two that called me this week who work at the bigger companies like that would have never called me.
00:45:55
Speaker
But instead had a conversation about family. We had a conversation, you know, about what jobs they're doing, what jobs I'm doing. Now my, recording that conversation and say, Hey, I'm going to go steal your work. Hell no, there's enough for me. And there's enough for you. Our calendar is full just like yours, but let's, that's mean we can't talk to each other about the business and everything. And that's kind of what we're doing now with this podcast.
00:46:13
Speaker
And I think it's so important. I mean, you need, you need friends, you need to be able to, you need help and you need to be able to help people. I think it's so important. And again, I feel like we're not trying to do like huge corporate events. Like I feel like we know our lane, we're going to always stay in our lane.
00:46:29
Speaker
I'm not interested in you know, matching prices and dropping prices. Like, i feel like we know what it takes to make the level of event successful that we do. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you've, you've now been in it just like you said long enough to know what, what it takes and that's you,
00:46:44
Speaker
You didn't get to where you are by just sitting back and watching. You got in it and you learned it. And that's why you're here. You have the relationships like you keep talking about. And I don't think people always value that.
00:46:56
Speaker
Some of these planners, they don't care if you're where you fall on the pricing spectrum. Sometimes they want to work with you. Absolutely. And that is what I think some people don't understand is like the cheapest bid always doesn't win.
00:47:09
Speaker
Why you think we travel the country the way that we do? Yeah. I mean, yeah it's, it's, We're not a huge, large company. i mean, we're big, but we're not like the real big guys out there. But you latch on with a couple players and they're taking you everywhere.
00:47:23
Speaker
And I'm sure that's what you're going to do. Yeah, that's the plan. I think with what you're doing, you'll be fine. Well, Kyle, you want to go ahead and ask our last question here? So Tara, for someone coming in the industry or that's already in, what's the biggest piece of advice you could give them?
00:47:38
Speaker
relationships. That's it. We were just talking about it and I will die on that hill. I just, even if you're small, knock on the doors, meet venues, charitable organizations, see how you can help. You're going to have to donate some stuff in the beginning, but it's just relationships. You, it's the biggest and most important thing. And,
00:47:57
Speaker
I just think um that will help you be successful. And that also goes with other rental companies around you. I think a lot of people want to be mad at their competition, but like I had lunch with my biggest competitor the other day. We went out to lunch together just to catch up. Did we talk about business? Not really.
00:48:15
Speaker
We talked about life, you know, but it's nice to be friends because if we ever need something, we can just call each other and there's no hard feelings. It's so important. I had an interaction recently.
00:48:26
Speaker
i was bidding on a job and they got a bid from another company. it was a planner that's, you know, she's worked with me with all all the companies I've worked at. But she came back. She's like, Tara, you were so much more expensive. And I was like, obviously the first question, what size 10 did they quote? So she told me the size. And I was like, listen,
00:48:41
Speaker
No, and and I believe this. I said, you do not have to rent this from me, but I beg you, i think I even went into PartyCat and did a diagram real quick. I said, if they sell you this size tent, your table's going be outside of the tent.
00:48:54
Speaker
So again, I think it's important, right? So I'm not going to get every job. I'm not going to knock my prices down, but I feel, yes, you might be a competitor, but yes, I'm going to help you and say, you need to go back to them and say, this is the size you want.
00:49:08
Speaker
Well, I think a lot of us in this industry have helped mentor people in that way. And just how I was mentored or anybody else has been mentored. You know, you always tell the truth and help everybody out. And and that's how it goes. And you don't always get the job, but you made a little bit of a difference in somebody's life that day.
00:49:23
Speaker
Exactly. And this, I mean, this industry is built on relationships and friends. And then i honestly, how we've talked about, I don't think I'd be here otherwise. Well, Tara, it was great talking with you today. i appreciate you coming on.
00:49:35
Speaker
Great story. And we look forward to watching you and your success going forward. So keep posting and let's keep ah let's see keep killing it. Thanks, guys. Have a good day.