VENUE PRICING GUIDE

Let's Open the Robe (or Jacket) Shall We?

I

f you're new to planning an event, well welcome to the party. Most of our clients don't know where to start when it comes to understanding a venue's pricing and how to compare venue. Let's clear things up.

The Problem With Venue Pricing

Venue pricing is notoriously unfriendly. But you've likely discovered that by now. And it gets unfriendlier still when you have to hunt for what is left out of their price proposals. This has a way of taking the excitement out of an event.

Our Pricing, the Easiest Ever

We changed this pricing model. We like things simple and transparent, and funny thing is, so do most clients. To start, we publish our rates here online. If you have to ask for them, well that sounds like work to us.

Nest, we charge only ONE fee. We call it a venue rental fee, and it includes EVERYTHING we offer.

And even then we're asked: Does the rental fee include cleanup? A manager? Taxes? Audio, Video, Lighting, Stage? Credit card fees? Insurance? The answer is yes. If we do it, it's included. We don't have a shopping cart on our website since there's nothing to add. It doesn't get any simpler.

Determining the Real Cost at Other Venues

This is where things get messy, and some people resort to impressive spreadsheets.

In order to compare our rental fee to that of another venue, you'll almost always have to add these items to the other venue's rental rate:
  • Food & Bar minimums
  • Audio, Video, Lighting & Stages and A/V technicians
  • Security
  • Parking / Valet
  • Insurance
  • Cleanup
  • Venue Manager
  • Taxes, Credit Card fees
  • Ice and many other not so other little things
The result can be complicated math, but the result is almost always that a venue's cost just got as much as two to three times higher.

All Inclusive Venues? There's No Such Thing.

All-inclusive is a term used to describe hotels, county clubs, and other venues that include food, bar and often tables. It sounds great! Who wouldn't want all-inclusive? It implies simplicity, value, and choice.

The truth is that all-inclusive usually this provide food, beverage and seating at high cost and always with limited selection. Start with their alcohol fees.

Worse is that audio, video, lighting and staging. things that we provide at our venues, are rarely provided by all-inclusive. And these items are expensive, complicated to design, and time-consuming to set-up/ take-down.

What Should I do?

Since adding the cost of a managed bar (not BYO), audio, video, lighting, stages, parking, insurance, venue manager, security, taxes, credit card fees, etc. often doubles or triples a venue's published rental fee, just do that - double or triple a venue's rental fee and then compare it. Skip the spreadsheet.

We don't want anyone to book with us based upon price, but we think its fair to know what it is.