We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Devin & Whitney Laird a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Devin & Whitney , appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about a time you helped a customer really get an amazing result through their work with you.

Most of our client’s book about 3 weeks to a month out. We do have some that plan a little closer to their event date by booking the week of. That is okay with us, if we have the inventory. That’s the risk they run by waiting. I knew on this particular week that the weekend ahead was completely booked. Which means a lot of nos for potential clients that want to book the week of. We get a call from a woman looking to rent tables and chairs for a funeral and repass on Saturday. I must let her know that at this time we are fully booked, we are so sorry we can’t help her but hope she keeps us in mind for future events and wishes her well on her search. This is on a Tuesday if I’m not mistaken. On Wednesday, a client that previously booked us for a graduation party on Saturday calls about concerns of the weather and changes her event date. After we took care of her, I thought of the lady that called about the repass. Originally, I thought to myself, she called somewhere else and got it taken care of. But something wouldn’t let me leave it alone. I thought, I should call her and offer her the rentals that just became available and even if she has already booked with another company, it will still show our sincerity and follow up. Devin said, “call her, the worst she can say is no.”

I called this potential client and explained that we had some rentals just become available because of a date change and inquired if she was still in need. She was ecstatic! She shared that she was going to spend over $1000 purchasing the items herself as she had no other choice. She was still in need of rentals and at a fraction of the cost and in a pinch so grateful we called her back. Her events went smoothly, and she thanked us many times. We were pleased to be able to help as well, especially since we almost didn’t call her back. This was an important and rewarding lesson for our team.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Good Times Party Rental is a growing family owned and operated business. We offer the essentials for any event and some extras. We rent a variety of tents, tables, chairs, linen, speakers, heaters and more. We are courteous, timely, professional and we cater to our clients needs as most businesses do. What sets us apart is our personal commitment to your event and our community involvement. While we are a for profit company, it offers us the platform and financial backing to do what we love, building relationships with and giving back to the community. We have partnered with the local Chamber of Commerce, made donations to support fundraisers and co-sponsored community events. We have initiatives in the works for backpack giveaways, coat drives, prom drives (where people donate new or gently used formal wear and we would give it to those in need for senior prom), jobs for local teens/young adults in our family and community and even a scholarship fund. The larger we grow, the greater positive impact we hope to have.

This business idea came from an interesting personal experience. We have always loved to host parties and entertain. To do that you need tables and chairs. It went from our events to us providing our chairs/tables for family functions. We built up quite a personal collection to do that. One day we were helping a friend set up for a party. She mentioned that she rented tables and chairs from a neighbor and asked us to help move them from the neighbors’ house to her parents’ home. We went to the neighbors house where she had the tables stacked up. We passed the tables one by one over the fence, then we set up everything. We never saw the owner’s face or heard her voice. I asked my friend how much she paid to rent these items and I was shocked at what my friend paid and we did everything: pickup, setup, breakdown and return. I said to Devin, “we can do this… and do it better!” That was in May 2022. In June we researched and developed a plan, in July we ordered the first of our inventory and launched in August.

We are thrilled to see our ideas and efforts come to fruition. Support from family and friends helps immensely. We are even more proud of the relationships we are building in the community and the way we’ve been able to contribute.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

The biggest lesson we had to unlearn was that we had to book every client that came our way. Our business is completely self funded. In the beginning, after the startup we kept putting more and more money into the business. Our ideas were grand, ambitions were high and initially we wanted everything all at once. It was convenient when we needed/wanted something to just purchase it because we had the disposable income and we would have it instantly. If someone called about a dancefloor or a bounce house (items we didn’t offer) I would think “oh we need to get a dancefloor! We need to get a bounce house.” While very excited, we had to establish some limits and better understand the goals and growth of the company. We had to make the tough decision to stop pouring our funds into the company and let it grow organically with our clientele.

This meant we had to say no more often in the early stages until we were able to take on bigger jobs. Don’t be afraid to say no, know your scope and your means. This changes daily. When you understand where you are you can better serve the clients you have. We began to reinvest our business profits and grow our business at a natural pace. It is working out well for us. We learned strategy. Work smart, not hard.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

The most effective strategies for growing clientele at Good Times are knowing our business, our clients’ needs, exceeding expectations and word of mouth. This means always being professional. Take the time or spend the money to establish your business/brand online with an appropriate website and social media. Maintaining a professional attitude and appearance. Treat people and their concerns with care. Potential clients may not always remember what you said to them but they will remember how you make them feel. As an owner, delivery driver or even the associate answering the phone, you should be knowledgeable about your products, services, and policies. Finally, be PROMPT and COMMUNICATE. Early is on time.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.goodtimespartyrental.net
• Instagram: @goodtimespartyrentalllc
• Other: Tiktok: @goodtimespartyrentalllc