How to Get Out of Rental Mindset

Imagine walking into a restaurant without a menu. The waiter approaches and asks, “What would you like to have this evening?”

“Well, what do you have?” you ask.

“You need to tell us what you want, and I’ll tell you what I have,” the waiter replies.

You request a steak with baked potatoes and asparagus. The waiter disappears into the kitchen, only to return with an alternative: “I can give you hamburger (but it’s good hamburger), mashed potatoes because we’re out of baked, and broccoli instead of asparagus.”

Sound absurd? I think so, too. But this is exactly how many live events businesses operate.

The Real Cost of Rental Thinking

If you’re like most live event companies, when a client approaches you and says, “I want everyone in my audience to hear clearly, show these images, record the event, and have some people watch virtually from another location,” you immediately consider your inventory constraints instead of their needs.

You see infinite ways to fulfill their request, but your finite inventory becomes a roadblock to success. You attempt to adapt your available equipment to their needs in highly specific ways, even though the client hasn’t asked for anything specific.

Breaking Free From Inventory Constraints

A carpenter doesn’t begin a job by asking, “Which tools will I need today?” They ask, “What am I building for my customer?” The tools are simply resources to achieve the end goal.

Similarly, if you plan to eat at a restaurant next week and call ahead to order a prime filet, baked potato, and asparagus with hollandaise sauce, the chef doesn’t need to check the refrigerator before confirming your order. They know they can source what’s needed.

You’re paying for their expertise in preparation and service, not their current inventory . Once you operate in the same way, success will be easier to achieve.

The Power of Unlimited Thinking

At the most recent Jumpstart conference , I posed a thought experiment to attendees: Imagine having unlimited standard inventory — a bottomless pit of normal rental items . How would this change your business?

The attendees practically salivated as they answered. Salespeople could quote without checking availability. Pricing would remain consistent, and orders would always be correct without substitutions. The operations team’s workload would decrease, and sub-rental concerns would vanish.

While we can’t actually create unlimited inventory, we can adopt this mindset. The key is not worrying about fulfillment until after winning the job. Your rental inventory becomes a resource for fulfillment rather than a constraint that dictates what you propose.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Quote Labor First

Begin with the service aspect rather than equipment lists. This prevents you from shortchanging the quality of service by trying to hit magic numbers or hoping one person can do the work of three.

2. Define Equipment Purpose Before Sourcing

Instead of starting with what’s on your shelves, start with what needs to be accomplished. This leads to more strategic inventory management and better solutions for clients.

3. Standardize Your Solutions

Design your rental inventory in kits and systems that fulfill standardized requests. This reduces the need for constant customization and improves operational efficiency.

The Impact on Service Delivery

The difference between a rental company and a show company is stark: A rental company sends the minimum necessary equipment and hopes for the best. A show company sends everything that could be needed and hopes it isn’t all required.

This shift in approach reduces on-site “no” responses to client requests. It builds in logical solutions for common additional needs. Most importantly, it captures value through overall job profit rather than individual rental items.

Looking Ahead: The Evolution of Project Management

Consider how this shift affects project management roles.

In many cases, project managers evolved as a bridge between rental-plus-labor orders and actual show services. When you start selling shows instead of rental orders, project managers can focus more on show execution rather than order processing — a much better use of their expertise and talents.

The Bottom Line

Breaking free from the rental mindset isn’t about ignoring your inventory. It’s about using your inventory as a tool rather than your business’s driving force. When you focus on solutions and service first, you’ll find that inventory matters less and customer satisfaction matters more.

For the right price point, inventory shouldn’t matter. When I was a teenager, I dated a girl whose mother’s boyfriend treated us to fancy dinners. Once, he had the waiter go to another establishment to buy a cheeseburger for my girlfriend’s younger brother. That’s service focused on solutions rather than limitations.

The future belongs to companies that make this shift. Are you ready to stop being a rental company and start being a show company?