May 9, 2025 - Daily Recap

Plan A vs. Reality
The plan was to run a 3-man crew starting at 10 a.m. — a later start to accommodate my main guy’s overnight shift. I showed up at the warehouse a few hours early to start staging. New guy showed up right on time. My regular guy? Overslept. So we rolled out as a 2-man crew and got moving.

Stop 1: Chairs and Tables at the Wedding Site
We returned to the site from Thursday’s clear tent install to drop off tables and chairs.
The driveway was too narrow for the truck, but once again, the electric dolly came through clutch. Quick drop, then on to the next.

Stop 2: A Pricey Setup with a Steep Surprise
Another tables and chairs drop-off, but this one had layers.

• It included rush fees and crew delivery — nearly $700

• Found out later it was a graduation + memorial gathering

• After payment, the client updated the address… and the new location had the steepest driveway I’ve ever seen

• No truck access, but the dolly made it possible to get 50 chairs up without issue

• If the order had been any more complex, this would’ve been a “charge on-site or walk away” type of job — something I’ve never done, but definitely thought about here

Warehouse Reset & Linen Scramble
Headed back to the warehouse to reload and try to tame the inbox. My main guy finally showed up. Before our next job, I had to swing by my house — the warehouse was missing linens I needed for upcoming deliveries.

Definitely need a better grip on linen tracking.

Stop 3: Return Customer, Fresh Tent
Back to a returning customer — last time was a pop-up, this time it was a 15x15 with blocks for a graduation.

• Used a brand-new tent top, recently purchased to cover an overbooked weekend

• Great training opportunity: this was the new guy’s first tent install

• With 3 of us, it was a breeze — we were out in 30 minutes

Stop 4: Expectations Matter
Supposed to be a simple baby shower drop-off, but I dropped the ball.

• The customer expected us to carry everything through the house and set up

• Turns out, I never clarified or included our usual “setup declined” note in the invoice

• My fault — probably sent it while on the run

• Still, with three of us, we were done in 30 minutes

• Could’ve been worse, but definitely a reminder to tighten up the paperwork

Final Stop: Uphill Battle (Literally)
Last delivery of the day — more tables and chairs, and a long drive across town in Friday Atlanta traffic. Took an hour just to get there.

• Originally meant to be the third stop, but plans shifted

• This customer had already declined basement setup for a fee

• When they saw how big the 60” tables were, they tried to change their minds

• I politely declined — we were on a tight schedule, and I still needed to make it to my kid’s school picnic (already late, as expected)

• Ride back was smoother — 42 minutes

Until next time
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