INPAS 2019 Review
Bouncy Castle Hire Bexleyheath
The highly anticipated sleep inducing review from one man’s point of view is here! This will be a long one, so fingers crossed you’ll be able to spread it out over several nights to get the kids off to sleep!
I will try to focus on the exhibits rather than the show itself or drawing any premature conclusions about what it means for the show or how the landscape of our industry is changing; Although it’s a little hard to ignore the attendance this year from both the exhibitors and attendees perspective and has to be acknowledged.
P & J entertainments
P & J Entertainments
These guys come with decades worth of experience. The product they sell is long-lasting and every purchase comes with some wisdom. They know the market very well and while you can be forgiven for over-looking a buzz wire, they provide you some interesting numbers and also present a very convincing case for why it can help you get better quality work. The ROI is huge, it’s very hard wearing, parts when they do need replacing (which is rare) are cheap and it is rechargeable! It costs less than an inflatable yet hires for the same money and is essentially a life-time purchase with incredibly low maintenance, while taking up less space and no where near as heavy.
Bouncy Castle Network
BCN
I was very pleased to be treated to a tour of the system. I must admit that despite being a six year customer there where some existing features I had never used that would actually save me some time, including the calendar view and the map view.
There was one forth-coming feature that I am not allowed to disclose, although I have strong hopes that it will actually improve the industry and specifically help the spiraling saturation of the second hand market (I’ve said too much, but I can’t help myself, it’s too cool).
I was also lucky enough to see one of two new major features that they’re releasing:
E-commerce; Whether you want it integrated into a booking site or a stand-alone site it’s coming, the holy shopping basket allowing you to sell finite assets through your site (sweet cones, balloons, invites, cup-cakes, cakes, decorations, plates, hats or whatever it is you’d like to sell). This is a totally separate workflow with it’s own email templates, texts and queues so not confused with bookings. This is pretty incredible and opens up a revenue stream, side-line or main business through your existing site.
The second feature? Well, it’s a big ticket item for some people (myself included). Yes, you guessed it, the ability to sell tickets through your site.
Not the first to market in our industry, it has to be said we’ve been asking for this for a long time. However, it’s been very well though-through and is a legitimate entirely new module to the system, with it’s own workflow. Little things here are appreciated, for example ticket availability when multiple users are checking out or have the ticket in their basket, additional questions, printing tickets, seamless payment integration, low fees per booking not per ticket and much more that I really shouldn’t say as I do not want to steal their thunder. It’s coming though and I can’t wait. It will allow you to sell tickets for your stay and plays so you know who’s coming, inflatable days, cinema events and much more when it would have been cost prohibitive previously. These are two major upgrades to the system that will have real benefit beyond just a gimmick, enabling their customers to be even more diverse.
Anyone looking to start an inflatable hire company or looking to do better this year with their existing company should really be looking at the Bouncy Castle Network to help them succeed.
Better Bounce
Better Bounce
These came to the show to exhibit. They previously attended with more stock and aim to make sales on the day. Anticipating other exhibitors doing this, they went big and they did it well. Better-Bounce had (in my opinion) the best value pound for pound inflatable at the show. It was a slide, but also had a play area with bish bash at the top of the platform. The theme was woodland animals and the entire inflatable was made to look like a tree, making the play are at the top a genuine tree-house!
It was covered in intricate detail and at £1495 it was incredible. My pick for the best buy.
Sadly, Lee (Better-Bounce owner) had an issue with floppiness and struggled to maintain a firm erection of his equipment. He had to put signs up explaining this, but it wasn’t due to poor design, but rather running kinked blower tubes and only one blower despite it requiring two in some cases.
I hope the “go big or go home” motto they adopted worked for them and they continue that trend. It was really nice to see them exhibiting rather than flogging stuff car boot sale style. Big congratulations to them for putting on an impressive display and showing equipment that legitimately had life-time veterans of the industry “ooohing and ahing” over it.
The climbing wall they had was hard to judge, I’ve never seen anything like it as an inflatable outside of an inflatable centre. Never a free-standing one. It was a steep incline and needs manning, but would be an incredible draw. You’ll face the same problem as a bungee run as-in slow turn-over in players and big queues, but this isn’t something you’ll likely have out on it’s own very often.
The base jump was a very strong design. Instead of it being a platform climb and front facing, it was essentially the same as an “up and over slide”, this works well when you consider that this is modular and can be added to a multi-part assault course, or hired on it’s own free-standing (just don’t do a pencil drop when it’s running on half the amount of blowers required and the remaining ones are kinked). The wrecking ball was tough as boots. I tried ripping off a podium one handed and genuinely couldn’t, extremely hard wearing and exactly what you want from that type of game.
The fun-run they had was almost the best one there. I find that hard to write, because I have two of them myself,but in truth they could do with a couple more bish-bash inside. It’s a very small point to argue over and almost negligible, but it’s still a consideration.
They exhibited using new material that they was very proud of. Only time will tell how good it is, but to the trained eye you could see this was another improvement they’ve made since the last show!
A1
Every show these guys turn up and every time they include more equipment. They had a slush machine on display which I believe was a first at INPAS. It was a re-badged GBG machine and genuine quality. They seemed to understand the hire market as the machine was 5 litres each side (perfect for party hire) and not as heavy as the large ten litre versions.
With the extra space they had they was able to show-off a lovely candy cart on wheels. It was also good to see the hot dog machine. It’s clear that these exhibitors are Jewish and may not appreciate being asked to demonstrate the machine with real pork hotdogs, but outside of cheap ebay machines it’s hard to find places to buy these machines and you could clearly see the difference in size and quality; They’re a totally different design to the cheap machines and look the part!
Premier Inflate
Premier Inflate
First time exhibitors at INPAS (or any show I’m aware of). They’ve been active on social media and industry groups for 2-3 years now and while being known for a budget manufacturer, it was extremely nice to see that the units they was selling had PIPA tags on them!
Some of their equipment didn’t have the design or sewing quite what you would expect to see at a show or regular unit; Twists in the pillars, walls and unnecessary stress points that would sadly over time require repairs. However, the price did reflect this… A printed Unicorn castle with PIPA tag could be taken away for £400 and a h-frame side slide combi with PIPA tag for just £549.
The hop-scotch mats where extremely thin, in fact I have never seen thinner. However, the price again reflected this.
For a first time show these guys did very well, they showed they could make big items and came with a large slide that was only £1000 and showed a range of equipment that displayed they could build most things. I do hope we see them again!
Airquee
Every show this company looks to make a big statement. They exhibited some of the best equipment and the most expensive, while also offering some sales and very good value equipment too from last years stock and designs!
It pains me to provide any criticism to this company, but I was not impressed with the spinning disc assault course. It was large, but for a two person game it did not seem impressive enough to warrant the £12,350 price tag. That said… It’s a show and it demonstrated that they are on the ball with the ninja warrior high energy games that are in demand. One thing they did get very right was the warrior wall. This is simply brilliant. The toxic theme isn’t one that I personally love, but it appealed to many and they can do this in any colour theme you like. It caters for several skill levels and ages, is a very easy concept to understand and is just incredible.
It was strange not seeing any of their licensed products on display. Unsure if this is due to cost, interest, direction or simply stock levels. Secretly I was hoping to see them finally release a Peppa Pig deal!
It was a bold move showing a sealed unit, but it was very impressive. I have no idea how you would test it, as different parts come under different inspection rules, but Airquee are very trustworthy when it comes to compliant units.
The slide was inflatable, but they have a platform you climb to get to the top. This platform typically would normally be scaffolding or a wooded stand that you see at a fun-fair. Instead, Airquee have made that part a seal unit and included spider webbing so children climb vertically upwards in tiers. Very hard for them to fall through, but in an edge case where this does happen the impact area is extremely well padded.
There Unicorn fun-run was very impressive looks wise and had some nice obstacles at the front instead of plain vertical bish-bash, was a sight to behold!
It’s hard to chose the best thing on the Airquee stand, but I think it has to go to the new globe. It was something I really loved previously, but it used to be solely for Christmas and be a snow-globe. They’ve now changed that model entirely so it has modular and changeable bish-bash props, background artwork and artwork round the skirt, transforming it in a very elegant way to a pumpkin, Easter scene, wedding scene or anything else. It changes it from a 1-2 month product to something you can hire all year and all occasions. It’s still really more for photo opportunities, but technically it can be used a moonwalker and hired for bouncing, too.
Pineapple Leisure
The owner (Andy) was on-hand to readily talk to customers and made sure he spoke with as many people as he could. The stand packed a punch, showing whack-a-moles, wrecking ball, adult castles, wedding castles, soft play, connect four, disco castles, nerf shoot outs, sumo suits and more. The best part was a life time warranty on all products purchased at the show! I have never seen such a claim made, but it’s extremely bold!
With legitimate webbed bedding (instead of just sewn over), confidence in this company is the highest I have ever seen and it’s clear to see why, with low prices and a warrantee for a life-time! I have made recent purchases for games like twisters and grottos and think that is value to be had here.
Andy’s attitude is simple, no one can out-work him. It’s something he clearly believes in himself and has ingrained in his company. Through sheer hardwork he believes that he can do better than the next man; Something that should resonate with any small business owner, too!
Water Walkerz
They came with a single inflatable. Actually, that isn’t technically true, they came with two that merged into one; An inflatable disc shaped base that had a rib round the edge, then a giant sealed unit moonwalker type dome on top. The normal retail price was over £7k but you could walk away with it from the show for £3.5k, which had to be the biggest discount of the entire show!
The owner assured me it was safe, would pass any inspection and totally fine for hire.
I did have my doubts. There was a girl in on of the orbs that legitimately got stuck in one while upside down and couldn’t upright herself (like a turtle on their back). The top base part has no real way to secure to anything easily and is genuinely free standing on-top of the base, which would be fine for inside, but needs consideration for outside hires.
I wasn’t convinced by the metal box regulator or electrical points inside the play area. I am not an inspector, but common sense here says it needs a review (or perhaps just a better set-up at the shows, because the way it was really seemed strange).
Gibbons
Hard to say much about this exhibition. They’re the most highly regarded company in the industry in the UK for fans. They had their extension reels present as well as some stock to take on the day, but it’s hard to keep innovating with a fan.
With so many competitors contending for top spot selling inflatable fans, Gibbons have maintained their reputation for excellence and quality.
RSAIH - Register of Safety Accredited Inflatable Hirers
RSAIH
First time exhibiting but all three here industry veterans with the combined knowledge and willing motivation to support the business not paralleled by anyone else.
Extremely pleased to see everyone that did come to the show spent some time here looking and registering their interest; Proving to me that these are the characters that are needed to make changes and to be effective. They require numbers and our full support, it should be a no brainer. Every hire company should be supporting this, if nothing else then for self preservation from over-regulation from the outside with no measured and balanced voice to speak for us all. It’s nothing less than everyone’s duty to make the industry that provides for them a better one, in my opinion the RSAIH is our best shot at this as they have the very best shot at actually being effective.
We need names and sign-ups, volume, numbers, people beating this drum. We’re lucky enough to have these people willing to do it, lets get behind them. Change is coming and this group is the best opportunity for success.
Midland Leisure Sales
MLS
Manufacturers of high quality stall games. Lovely family run business that understands the industry they supply to, as they are also hirers. New products as always and sometimes over-looked for innovation, but they’re always releasing new items.
Portable skittle alleys looked fantastic from the photos and they have an ever increasing sweetie range.
For a small company every decision counts, so it’s fantastic to see them with their finger on the pulse with great current themes like Unicorns (instead of old and out of date stock).
Often an over-looked add-on, but there’s definitely a market for this equipment and it doesn’t take up too much room, plus lasts a life time!
Misc - PIPA, ITATS and More
Peter Grand from Grand Affairs was sitting beside the PIPA stand. There was mention of PIPA being able to tag other inflatables outside of what it currently offers. Sadly, this was the same conversation as the year previous. Be great when and if they ever do it, but I have stopped holding my breath; Just get it done already!
Was fantastic seeing Peter who was able to offer advice on units, provide industry information and a voice of reason where some people had fears over certain types of products. No matter how many times it is seen, it’s always cool to see his sign-written inflatable inspection van at the shows.
JB Inflatables
Recently they had some issues with service, but was extremely pleased to see service resumed as normal after all attendees reporting satisfaction on any outstanding issues being resolved quickly.
It was even more impressive to see that the interactive system was being used in so many creative and innovative ways. A few years ago it was a few sensors stuck on a bouncy castle; A terrible attempt at shoe-horning in a great product in a weird way. Now we have legitimate innovation outside of gimmicks and games that are fantastic to play. Shooting ranges, zap a mole, drum kits, arenas and so much more. They really are being very smart with this system and doing the gard work for customers by releasing games that people stop and say “Now that’s cool”. It’s appealing and a natural draw, they’ve done so much with this system and we’ve stopped seeing the weird alien inflatables and started seeing this systems true potential. A slow starter, but I think the IPS is garnering respect and longevity many didn’t think it would see.
ILovePhotoBooths
Sadly I wasn’t able to take as many photos as I had wanted to of this stand as my phone died. However, I did manage to take photos of their backdrops. You can see their clear creative streak here. I legitimately believed that the wall was 3D, but it was just clever use of shadows and optical illusions, the absolute perfect way to illustrate how ingenious their products are and what you can do with them if you put your mind to it; You’re only limited by your own imagination.
I wasn’t able to speak to them very much, but please do not take this as them being over-looked. They really are top of their game and worth a second and third look! Things aren’t always as they seem!
MagicAir
It’s hard not to like this company. Sure, it’s another importer but they are doing a lot of things right. Their prices aren’t instantly dropped to 10% margins, they are including a PIPA tag with valid inspection, they are adding extras rather than cut to the bone. In many ways they’re a modern Air Inflatables. It was interesting to see new artwork that was produced domestically and manufactured domestically, meaning that if you buy from them you can readily expect to source your velcro panels from them rather than having to buy from them but use third party or after market services.
Some of the units came in a little heavy. However, the material itself is incredibly supple, meaning that while it is heavy to lift, it’s not hard to roll. This is an important distinction.
Sadly, I wasn’t blown away by their fun-run for several reasons; The artwork looked to me like an attempt at unicorns, but was trying to remain neutral and call it fantasy, knights and medi-evil rather than just take a chance on something girly. I’m not entirely sure that you can successfully keep both on the same canvas and make it appeal to both audiences. Artwork aside (which is no big deal considering their growing offering in artwork), I loved that the slide run-off saved a bit of weight by not having the sides run all the way to the end. These single fun-runs are a one-man job, so saving a little weight is important.
Unfortunately though, the slide isn’t very high or steep and the inside has no bish-bash. It looks very empty and there really isn’t any excuse for this considering that MagicAir’s long modular assault course has always been at the front of creating exciting things to go in it, things that have been admired by others. In fact, it could almost be called an enclosed up and over-slide. This design needs to be improved to make it more fun. It is a fun-run after-all.
Every single unit has the extras. In some cases this could become annoying. There was some castles that some may say have too many anchor points. You can argue that there’s never enough, although it’s important to remember that if they’re present, you have to use them when outside. Personally, I think some had a little too many (one small h-frame castle had an extra 6, twice as many as a comparable unit from most other manufacturers would have), but I am comforted by the fact that MagicAir is committed to quality and safety and in the context of a trade-show, this is exactly what I want to see on an exhibit piece!
MagicAir took the concept of an exhibition seriously. They had some very large units including a huge event slide and a massive base jump. The base jump was in my opinion the best stand-alone one I have seen so far, very impressive, great value, very safe and very attractive. While still huge, it was compelling to even smaller hire companies looking to transition and offer something a little more to secure events.
The slide combi bounce houses looked very nice. Initially concerned about the flat bed and whether it would be bouncy enough, I was pleased to try it myself and conclude that it was perfectly fine and the pressure was excellent. Not only that, but the slide was actually good enough for children to slide down instead of awkwardly bum-shuffle because it’s not high enough, top marks!
AndyJ Leisure
Considering AndyJ has their premises in Liverpool, I was hoping to see them take up more floor space. They had a good size, but previously we’ve seen them take up entire halls and dominate shows. However, it was very nice to see so many UK made inflatables on his stand. While not all made domestically, you have to admire Andy’s commitment to his UK workforce.
Andy had the best fun-run at the show. Only marginally, but it was the best on display. The slide was a great fun-size and the interior had five bish bash units, making it just that bit more interesting than competitors. Not only that, but it also has a built in disco light holder, should you want to use it.
The value on the day was brilliant, taking one away for £1250(+) including a blower. The artwork was incredibly cute and bright, rivaling any one else’s. I would say it was one of the very best value inflatables at the entire show; Assuming it was built and lasted as long as it should do (which I have no reason to believe it wouldn’t, plus back-ed up with a UK warranty).
The value on this stand was incredible, especially when looking at the softplay sets, something which AndyJ has only really started making within the last few years (publically at least). Not only good value, but also in matching themes, meaning you can purchase whole sets in the same artwork for multiple products; Something which is a great selling point for hire companies looking to make packages.
I wasn’t very inspired by the smaller slide, it felt like the show cover needed coming down further over the side barriers; It wasn’t very visually pleasing. However, make the platform a foot higher and you have an extremely light slide that’s suitable for gardens and small school fetes, a great mid-range size slide.
Bouncy Castle Leasing
Once thought of as a passing fad that wouldn’t last, they have now made it beyond three years; More than can be said of some hire companies!
After making a purchase of one of their inflatables they had for sale and take away it was interesting to listen to Ronan explain the market in Ireland and how he’s able to make the leasing work because he’s uniquely positioned to do so.
Despite being a hire company I am not always convinced about the value in hiring/leasing. However, even if you are not interested in leasing it’s worth speaking with Ronan because he sells off used stock after two years, some from his own fleet and some from leasing.
For anyone starting out this may not be the best option for them, but for someone who is 2-3 years in and they finally want to take a holiday or have a break from buying (yet still have demand for more) then it’s an attractive option. Very friendly and no hard sales here.
Summary
Many exhibitors shared that they was sorely dissapointed with the gate. For some, the shows are a branding exercise, they appreciate that it isn’t a jumble sale and more about keeping in the markets eye, pre-sales and after-sales due to brand awareness, customer relationships and exhibiting at a trade-show. For established companies the attendance this year would have frustrating, but not company killing as they are there to exhibit first.
Sadly, you couldn’t help but feel some compassion to smaller, family run businesses that do rely on recouping the cost of exhibiting through sales and orders at the show; Midland Leisure Sales and Premier Inflate come heavily to mind here. Premier Inflate being a first time exhibitor would be excused for losing faith in ever attending another show again.
However, there where also very clear attempts at exhibiting new products, exhibition products and innovation we’ve not been able to see at shows previously. If you missed or over-looked some of these things, then you wasn’t really looking at a broader picture; Sealed units mixed with non-sealed inflatables, Creative uses for interactive games beyond gimmicks, huge high energy inflatables that signal the manufacturers take on where the high-end and events market is headed (or they’ve all been watching too much Ninja Warrior UK).
It seems that short of a huge change in foreign exchange rates, import duty or import laws (none of which look likely or are predictable) that the inflatables imported from China are going to have an ever growing presence. What that means for UK manufacturers or the hire market is unknown; Politics aside, as long as the importer is ensuring that they are 100% safe and compliant, you cannot help but admire the workmanship on display and the time put in. Whether we are all thieves from our own pocket or not remains to be seen.
There’s little point lying about it for the sake of being nice, there’s no hiding that this year attendance figures where very low. If anyone from BCN releases a stat about it being up on previous years and the largest attended show so far, then I will strongly contest that, it just cannot be true.
However, talk about the requirement of shows at all, how many are needed and whether this will “Kill INPAS” is extremely premature; They have their work cut out and need to make some changes for sure, but the future just needs some young enthusiasm and new ideas; Why don’t we have hot-tub exhibitors, van sign-writers, open-cinema, mascot manufacturers, tee-pee makers, slush machine companies, sensory soft play and room conversions, pallet racking and storage solutions, disco equipment, maybe catering trailers, trampolines, arcade games, crazy golf and more. Open the shows up to wider audiences and get the gate, open hirers eyes to other ideas and come to a show where they walk away thinking, rather than already drawn conclusions before walking through the door. Shows aren’t over, they just need to evolve and grow.
Spencer Elliott
Bouncy Castle Hire Sidcup
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