Tents, Tornadoes & Tired Legs: A Wild Weekend in Rentals - April 6, 2025

Hey Future Owner,

💍 One Wedding, Two Setups, and a Storm

This weekend was a two-for-one special in the worst way—long hours, last-minute pivots, and some classic tent rental chaos. But hey, at least some of it paid.

1. The 20x20 Wedding Setup (a.k.a. The Momentum Killer)

We dropped this one Friday, picked it up Saturday, and if you’ve been following along, you know the drop-off was a logistical nightmare. Pickup wasn’t as brutal, but still no walk in the park. Two steps and a rocky path made getting the concrete ballast out a mini CrossFit session. Oh, and did I mention the white padded chairs? I loathe white padded chairs.

The Numbers:

• Revenue: $2,081.12

• Costs: $331.00

• Margin: $1,750.00 (84%)

Margins were solid. But mentally? This job drained us. Total momentum killer.

2. Church Wedding Setup — High Peaks and High Stakes

Three high peak tents in an L-shape for a wedding ceremony. It was supposed to be a Monday pickup, but storms were rolling in. So we pivoted, played it safe, and pulled them down early.

This job was much smoother—no tables, no chairs, no lights. Just pure tent work. The kind of job we dream about.

The Numbers:

• Revenue: $1,739

• Costs: $345

• Margin: $1,394 (80%)

Clean, efficient, and worth every minute.

3. Sunday Storm Scramble — The 30x45 Pole Tent Rescue

This one had me sweating. Our brand-new 30x45 pole tent was still up, and we had tornado-level winds on the forecast. I scrambled to get help. Ended up roping in my brother and my 70+ year old dad—because that’s what we had to do.

It took us 2.5 hours to tear it all down—tent, chairs, tables, lights. Oh, and 42 stakes... all removed manually. Not bad, if I do say so myself. Countless trips to the truck reminded me: we need a better bundling system.

The Numbers (Adjusted for Reality):

• Revenue: $2,738

• Costs: $437

• Margin: $2,157 (84% reported, closer to 75% when accounting for multiple trips)

The only silver linings? The site was close to home, and we beat the storm. That alone felt like a win.

Closing Thoughts

Margins are holding strong, but we’re trading time and energy at a cost that isn’t always visible on paper. These jobs are starting to show us where we can optimize—fewer trips, better packing, less dependence on extra hands (especially the retired ones).

Onward and upward—storm or shine.

Talk soon…