The summer just gone of 2021 has been like no other….just as the summer of 2020 was like no other! We really are living in unusual times, but at least it was nice to see the return of some semblance of normality to our lives. And, after being decimated by the COVID pandemic, the events and hospitality industry saw the return of both indoor and outdoor events, including conferences, trade shows, exhibitions, meetings, concerts and festivals, to name just a few.
International travel restrictions were still in operation, many of us decided to take a staycation in the UK or, alternatively, spend the money that we would normally have spent on a holiday on some home or garden improvements.
For those of you who wanted to buy some outdoor rattan garden furniture, a summer house or shed, for instance, you’ll have noticed that prices spiralled. As demand peaked in the Spring, so did the prices, making lots of garden items, including outdoor furniture, extremely expensive. The perfect storm was complete when you factor in Brexit, supply chair issues and a global shortage of materials. In many ways, it has been a summer to forget!
Many people, both members of the public and professional event planners, therefore, turned to outdoor furniture hire. Speaking to easyEventhireUK outdoor furniture hire in London was at an all-time high in early summer, with people organising garden parties at home, and with the return of large outdoor events such as festivals and country fayres. Even the return of weddings saw brides and grooms wanting outdoor wedding furniture hire to furnish out their outdoor spaces.
Take one look at the prices of outdoor patio furniture hire online, however, and you’d be forgiven for thinking that it’s relatively expensive. And it often is, compared to individual banqueting chairs for events, for instance. So, why are you paying a premium for outdoor furniture hire London, for example?
Outdoor furniture is usually bulky
If you think about the type of furniture hire for patios and gardens that you might need for an event, it may well be along the lines of outside rattan furniture, patio heaters, picnic benches and so on. These are classed as bulky items and so will take up more room than normal during transport. As a result, for larger events, it might be that multiple trucks need to be deployed to get the garden furniture to site. BST in Hyde Park in London, for instance, is a classic example of this, hiring hundreds of sets of outdoor wicker rattan furniture which needs several truck loads in and out. Outdoor festival furniture hire, therefore, can be costly.
Supply and demand
As well as it being bulky, there’s no doubt that outdoor patio furniture is highly subject to demand and supply. Demand during the winter is, naturally, low. Come the Spring into the summer, however, demand is huge, and there’s only a certain amount of garden picnic benches, for instance, that event hire companies in the UK can supply. And however many there are, they could be hired ten times over! Such demand, along with limited supply, inevitably means that there will be no discounts available to the end user!
Quality costs money
Like anything else, quality costs money. The chances are that you’ll want to be accessorising and furnishing your outdoor event space with the same attention to detail as your indoor space – at least you should be! Make sure that you create a positive impression by hiring quality outdoor furniture – after all, it’s the very least that your clients will expect!
Large quantities are usually required
We’ve already spoken about how members of the public hire garden furniture for events at home, and this is certainly an important sector of the market. However, large event organisers also come into play who are hiring hundreds of outdoor tables and chairs at a time, whether this is plastic chairs and tables, hardwood patio sets, aluminium and wicker sets, and so on. Put simply, therefore, the more you hire, the more expensive it is! Always make sure that you’ve set aside a sufficient budget for your outside patio furniture rentals.
Outdoor furniture has to be weather resistant!
And finally, don’t forget, that whatever furniture hire you need for your outdoor event, it has to be weather resistant! Whether you need to hire picnic tables for your festival catering zones, rows of affordable patio chairs for the viewing area at your air show or hardwood chairs and tables for the outside areas of your hospitality chalets at a major sporting occasion, this is undoubtedly a factor when it comes to price.
When you come to hire outdoor patio furniture, the message is to ensure that you have a suitable budget. The chances are that if you are hiring furniture in the summer, then there will be very few discounts available from outdoor furniture rental companies in the UK – but hire in the winter, and you can be sure there will be! Is it expensive? Well, compared to a lot of indoor furniture, it can be. However, compared to buying outdoor furniture, it’s certainly not! Why buy when you can hire
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