Event Hire Show March 2025
Introduction
This is an unusually large introduction for a show, but it warrants it - We’re on the precipice of change when it comes to the shows.
Huge photo dump at the end - But I honestly couldn't be arsed to break them up into each exhibitor - I may do later if I have time.
First of all, was it a good show? Yes it was. In fact, for me personally it was one of the very best shows, ever.
I’m kinda bias because for me the shows aren’t just about seeing the products, I look forward to bringing my family, seeing friends, catching up with people and generally just talking non-sense - At this show I got to see those people and a few new faces, which is always good to see!
Was it worth going to if you’re not a bouncy castle nerd with no other friends outside of the industry? Still, yes. Actually, massively YES!
The show stood on it’s own legs and was worth going to, even if you went to the show in October, it was worth going to this one. There was new products, new models, new designs, bargains, show-deals, new exhibitors, deposit now pay later for season time, new faces and rather comfortingly, some returning exhibitors that made recent debuts.
The show was put together very quickly and exhibitors had very little time to put their best together, but despite this, every single one of them had something interesting to see. I’ve put a section for each of them below, but usually it’s very easy for me to pick one or two “best picks” from the entire show - This was different, nearly everyone had something present that was fiercly attractive, competative or gave you a reason to stop and re-evaluate things. I’m honestly too hard pressed to pick-out a “show-stealer”, I think everyone was top of their game and no one was just phoning it in.
Don’t care about the politics of it all? Skip the rest of the introduction and you’ll find a write up of most exhibitors below! The rest is probably of very little interest to most, other than the nerdiest of bouncy castle nerds.
There’s no point saying it wasn’t an Airquee show - It was. In every sense, it was an Airquee show. Last time at the LSS people would be forgiven for saying it was an “Airquee Show”, but they meant it more as a jib or figuratively, but this time it was an Airquee show, unironicaly.
Airquee at least had the good sense to create a little bit of separation and have it run, set-up and organised by a much loved, well respected and and industry veteran - Mel Stevens; Who deserves a lot more credit and praise than she is being recognised for. Incidently, she's also the sales rep for Airquee and the one to go to for your orders!
Calling it the “Event Hire Show” was a good thing… What exhibitor in their right mind is going to want and bring their customers and their products to a show literally named after a competitor of theirs? At least this way you’re saving them some dignity and showing that they’re trying to create a platform for everyone to share.
There’s no denying it though, the show was backed by Airquee and it changes things… Even a casual observer can sense it, but for nosy little oiks like myself that want to know the ins and out of every single industry fart and where they fly off to, it feels very much like the thin end of the wedge when it comes to the shows - But is that a bad thing?
I’m not so sure it is - I think that over-all it’s a good thing, I would say that I am cautiously optimistic for what it means for the future and Airquee are being more than reasonable, there’s a lot of reasons to get behind them. -
- They’re stable. Lets get this right, they’re not a man in his shed knocking out sand-bags at a fiver a go - They’re massive. They’ve got the money and the resources to put into the show and if they did this in one month, then expectations are high for the next one.
- They’re being inclusive - Since when did KBS and BCN both exhibit together? At what point did Airquee think it would be a good idea to bring all of their customers (and lets face it, there’s a lot of them) to a show and also welcome Inflatable World Leisure who have a reputation for the very best quality inflatables world-wide to show their equipment?
- Not only that, but they made it the most affordable it’s ever been for any exhibitor. They didn’t shout about this or try to embarrass anyone, but they basically gave alway the show stand space at cost price. Please tell me where Little Big Shapes, a small soft play manufacturer could get a stand with exposure to all those customers for the price they paid? Where is Chris Little going to get that opportunity to launch his incredible new products? Airquee literally make the entrance to the show go through everyone else first before you get to them.
A cynic might point out that Airquee also benefitted from bringing in all the customers from those manufacturers. It’s certainly true that some manufacturers have a cult following - “I’m strictly an IWL man” or “My entire fleet is all Vivid - I wouldn’t go anywhere else”. By virtually giving away exhibit space they are capitalising on that companies presence and drawing in their customers.
Their may be an element of truth to that, but largely I call bullshit - It’s a ridiculously long length to go to just to plant that seed - And it works both ways! Mr “I’m Airquee only” is going to get exposed to a huge amount of other suppliers and surely at least one of those suppliers is going to have something to tempt them?
Some people might be worried that once Airquee have captured the market, got the mailing address list and “enough” people to come to the show, establishing themselves, that they might create a monopoly in the market. - With the low exhibit price will that make exhibitors think twice about paying more for the LSS?
Again, I think that’s bullshit. They do their own “Airquee Show” already. If they wanted to do that, they could and would have already. Maybe I am being gullible, maybe it’s too trusting collectively as an industry, but I’m reassured by their actions and ultimately - If they tried to push others out I think no one would show up anyway; It’s a moot point.
But I actually want to spin it the other way round - The rest of the industry is complicit in this by their absence. There’s a phrase often used “Go big or go home!” - Well, some need to take their own advice and get their skinny butts to the show, because we need that - We need these shows and we need everyone to do their bit. - The question isn’t “Is Airquee a dark evil overlord and is this a dangerous thing?”, the question is “Can the industry shows survive without Airquee and when is everyone else going to step-up and join in?”. Imagine the shows without them? It’s basically a big Church jumble sale. - Sorry.
I’ve put a little write up for as many exhibitors as I can. Sadly, I didn’t get a chance to see all of them and some aren’t hugely relevant to me personally (gala tents for example - Really nice people, but I couldn’t claim to have much interest or it be a part of my business - Deffinately can’t even pretend to be an expert). This isn’t a knock at any one and I’m deffinately not trying to choose favourites - If you feel like you’d like more included about you then grab me for 10 minutes at the next one and I promise I wont bite - I’m a friendly giant.
Vivid Inflatables
This is one of those manufactures on the list that at another show may have been picked as the MVP or best value. It’s only because it was such a strong show that you can’t award a single exhibitor that mantle.
At the last show they had two castles, they increased their show space this time round and took more. They had 3 castles, mats, inflatable ball pool, peg bags and more. Growth!
The build on the castles was above the budget end - With central support beam (even on the small castles), walls sewn into the turrets, high walls, floating walls, sewn in rain cover and other features that you would expect on a higher cost inflateables they’re punching well above their weight.
For many, this was going to be a steal - £795 for a standard kids bouncy castle with printed artwork, on gloss, good build made by an industry vet. What more do you want? The artwork design is great and markedly different from the generic designs you see on the market For the price of a budget castle you’re getting bang for your buck than you should be.
The only question I have is about the material - I genuinely can’t see how these are being made at that price without it being at the slightly lower end of the grade scale - But even if that is the case (and I am not saying it is, I honestly don’t know), you’re still getting incredible value for money here and I am pleased to see them succeeding.
Craigs Inflatables
This was really interesting for me. I can’t help myself, I’m a nosey twat and like to know the history of everything in our industry. - Craig used to work at Gaz inflatables, he then went off to America and made inflateables over there, then came back to the UK when the market went to poop.
Since then, he was helping Liam with designs and I believe Liam was trying to help Craig and either sub-out work to him - This was all while Liam was running Vortex Inflatables, before it closed.
Craig appears to have a CV as long as a phonebook when it comes to experience and also has some influence from the US.
I have to say, it was good seeing Liam - I’ll eat my hat if he stays out of the industry forever, he’s deffinately going to come back in some capacity, you can tell it’s in his blood now. You heard it here first.
You may have seen Craig post on facebook groups like the Bouncy castle exchange with the best educational advice (sorry Richard, I know you will now have a tonne of moderator requests to join), or you may have unknowlingly even purchased one of Craigs but it’s been re-badged as someone else’s - But it looks like Craig is now taking his own brand more seriously and seeking to take a foot-hold.
But does the history lesson mean shit? Like are the castles actually any good and are they going to cost a fortune?
Well yes… Again, Craig would have won best new-comer or best value or some type of award in any other year, but it was too close to call on any of that.
Craig only had a few days to put together his stand. While others took their show pieces, the ones they knew was being exhibited and put in the extra effort to make them the best, Craig literally had to bring customers castles with him and it was clear that he could back-up the claim of experience and knowing what he was talking about.
Craig showed me the webbing on the step. For a long time I have been a fan of nylon seat-belt webbing.
With gloss PVC especially the webbing tends to delaminate with little tiny nicks in it where you roll it up in the same spot. I pointed this out and Craig explained that he actually does the webbing differently. He acknowledged that issue and it was something he had experienced in the 90’s, so the way that he engineers the webbing, seats it, sews it in and they way it sits is actually visibly different to anyone else.
He doesn’t do this just so he can use PVC webbing, this way the wet stays out more, the pressure is better, it doesn’t delaminate and it’s a better product that helps tie in with the bed ties better.
It’s clear that he actually enjoys this. I don’t know Craig and he may well think I’m a patronising asshole for saying this, but I can well imagine him actually enjoying sitting down and writing his ideas, little sketches and concepts for improving how bouncy castles are made. Kind of like figuring out a cross-word or a sudoko. You can see Craigs fingerprints on some of the Vortex models, looking back at them now.
This approach is clear in the models he had. Sure he needs to create them on a budget, but he’s making that budget go as far as he can - Floating wall on the back, sitting on the bed at the sides, sewn in rain cover in a very clear way (similar to Airquee).
Having said all this, the turret on the h-frame was pinched - The left side turret more so, but there was about 2” of material needed to recitfy it. I can’t say all the good without the unbias truth of the bad. However, Craig openly acknowledged this and was already taking measurements and looking to correct - In fairness, it wasn’t a show-piece.
The combi castle was £900 - I mean, realistically it’s hard to measure “value” and people are looking for different things, some are looking for wow factor to set them apart and it’s hard to say that a standard side slide combi castle is going to do that - But it does represent great value and a castle that I think will stand up against the test of time - At least more so than other castles that cost the same money.
UK Inflatables
I think they had a slightly smaller exhibit space than previously - But again, with little time to prepare this is very understandable.
There wasn’t much new to see from them in terms of models, but they did come with new artwork designs. Personaly, I wasn’t a fan of the princess version - I think there was too much “writing” on the turrets and one of the letters looked clipped off. - This is a silly point to make though really because they’ll do any artwork and will alter it to the customers request.
I think they tried with the design, making it look like a Disney castle without it being a Disney castle. I like that, I think it’s a good way forward - Just probably needed to execute the idea a little bit better.
I wasn’t a huge fan of the white castle on display - The turrets looked cool with the ends of them having the bulbous part, but the wall height looked off for the size of the turret. Like it’s a low-height castle, but not really because of the girrafe neck turrets on it - They need to be lowered to be more in line with the wall heigh, or the wall height changed to match the turrets.
That said, the build quality looked very good. It was straight, well made, great design model that is built to last.
I was a fan of the a-frames. I think they represented a good way to get into the industry for newbies. Sure, the artwork on the pricess wasn’t for me, but the model itself was good. The raincover wasn’t sewn in, but in terms of the price you’re paying you’re getting a really bouncy castle and you could legitmately start a bouncy castle business by visiting them and spending a few thousand pound - Getting yourself a bunch of nicely made starter castles that are glossy, nice vibrant coloured artwork that are going to last a few years.
Even if you’re well established, they’re probably worth getting a few just to try and test them out. They’re inexpensive enough to take a gamble on - Maybe you’re thinking of offering a few castles to hire out all year round or just need to try a new theme, beef up your stock or whatever - I think they’re worth giving a try, they’re ultra competative.
I can imagine getting one from them as a test and actually being pleasantly surprised, like you’re not sure if you want to commit to a particular theme, but you don’t fancy panels - You’re in that in-between grey area and not sure if the theme will last for years and years anyway, I would deffinately ask these guys.
Midland Leisure Sales
MLS have been established since 2008 and yet still come to the show with new games, coming in a choice of different sizes.
The side stall games have a fairly distinctive feel to them, they aren’t the rustic look with bare varnished wood, but instead focus on a traditional game with a modern look.
Being around for so long, they have a great range to offer, their catalogue is impressive and their traditional hook a duck game has stood the test of time - As a show offer of £495 to take away it was probably the pick of their stall for me.
These types of games are a growing thing - Many others have sprung up, yet MLS have kept their ground and continue to grow.
What’s interesting to me as a hirer though, is that with so many other manufactures noticing this market, perhaps this is something that we should be considering. - A cheeky little add-on to the school fete.
Rodeo Sales
Rodeo Sales is the stepping stone to the big boy leagues. A league I am not a part of, but wish I was.
They cater to hirers looking to break into the corporate market - I am not their (yet) and probably never will be unless I stop acting like 90% of the industry and letting a few grand burn a hole in my pocket and immediately go buy another bouncy castle - I need to put aside some big boy money and then have a real spend up.
The thing is, you don’t actually need to go in with mega money and buy it all in one go - There’s a slow burn progressive approach and if you never start, you’ll never get there.
I should take my own advice.
The trouble for me, is that while it’s possible to get their slowly and do a piece at a time, I am so conditioned to the bouncy castle mind-set of buy one cool new thing, see an instant return and the safety of the immediate gratifying results. If I purchased a single game from Rodeo Sales and didn’t see it quickly going out (which I don’t think it would by itself right away), I would start to panic. I shouldn’t panic, there’s so many big-time hirers doing extremely well with this stuff, but it’s not the instant ROI of getting a known thing like a castle that we all know inside and out and feel reassured that it’ll be a quick turn-around.
This is probably why so few hirers make the sort of money that we all really strive for. We see the potential and want the white shirt, black-tie staffed event earning a fortune, but all too bloody scared to go for it - Which is a shame as Rodeo Sales really are a safe pair of hands and are extremely free with their advice.
They’re in the industry themselves and very happy to share tips, advice and lean on their experience. We actually couldn’t be luckier to have a supplier that provides this sort of stuff, but is actually in the industry and willing to help you succeed in it as well!
Rodeo Sales also offer a lot of the side stall games - Flight case games, the sort of traditional fair ground stuff. It deffinately isn’t all they offer and they have a very large range of products, this is just a section of what they provide.
The style, structure, build and presentation of the Rodeo Sales versions is a totally different market to anyone else - This stuff isn’t really aimed at your school PTA job, it’s for the corporate event market and you’d look like a bit of an idiot turning up with anything else other than the Rodeo Sales equipment to a job like that. Likewise though, it’s probably over-kill going to a school PTA with “Danger Light” or “Grab It”. There’s some over-lap here, but also clear differences.
Again, RS come well prepared and bring their A-game! They took their new protype/beta version of “SOLO”, which I was really pleased to be able to try myself - It’s so cool that they do this - They get to trial the game and get feedback and we get to see the new thing that’s coming; Which for a lot of people is the point fo the shows, to get a peak ahead of time and see what’s on the horizon; Rodeo Sales pretty much embodies this.
I still feel that any show needs Brian Auty present. That isn’t to say that his daughter Kym isn’t a capable pair of safe hands - But I just miss him and will always be grateful for what he did for me and my family alongside Jay from https://www.sensoryideas.co.uk/
Daizys / Hot Tub and Spa Solihull
I’m a big fan of Daizy’s - I love that fact that Stacey is an industry member - Even if she has “quit” the castles - She will always be one of us and I think it’s important to support inside your “own”.
If my mate does chocolate bombs I’m buying from them and not Tesco, if my friend does house alarms I’m going to https://www.myalarmsecurity.co.uk/ and not ADT.
Anyway… I was always planning on saying hello to Stacey and I needed to put an order in; It’s become a bit of a standard thing now, like filling the van up with Diesel the night before or doing drop sheets - Every show I have to remember to order more workwear, it’s literally just part of the business now and staff onboarding.
There’s no question that if you ever want to venture outside of garden hires you need to consider uniforms - It’s a must, but in truth even if you are “only” doing garden hires you should still really be getting branded uniforms - It looks smarter and it provides reassurance as to why the customer is paying that extra £5.
You’re instantly recognisable when you walk into a hall or ring the doorbell - It cuts out that awkward initial part when you have to explain who you are. I had to go and do a single castle recently and completely forgot to put my branded workwear on - I forgot how it “protected” me, not protected as in PPE, but as in - That guy knows what he’s doing.
Somehow a police officer in uniform is going to reassure the public more than an off-duty police office that identifies themselves. I don’t know how that works, but it just does - People trust a uniform. No one questions a guy walking into almost any area when they’re wearing a hi-vis; It’s some sort of weird pyscho-babble science. Basically - You need a uniform and Daisy’s is the place you should be buying it from. They’re the best, end of story. - https://www.daizys.co.uk/
My daughter is starting her own business - The business is very much about aestethics, so before we’ve even got a website we need content and to look professional - Immediately went to Daisys for a corporate looking tunic and all nicely company branded. Wouldn’t hesitate to reocmmend them to anyone.
But wait.. What? They actually came along with their other company, hot-tubs https://www.hottubandspa.co.uk/ Usually I wouldn’t have anything to say about this. I know nothing about them other than during Covid they made a lot of money for some people. I know that Stacey sells the decent ones, not the crap ones that give all the grief. I wouldn’t normally be able to say much else, but true to form for this years show, they actually came along with something new!
I didn’t think there would be much innovation in this area - At least not anything too special, maybe a hot-tub that heats quicker or a filter that lasts 3 times longer or something like that, but I was actually surprised to see that they are selling a portable sauna.
A portable sauna!
I can’t believe this hasn’t been spken about more. A portable sauna with a hot-tub is like peas and carrots. It’s not just an “add-on” it’s a massive increase in the value of the job if you can upsell. Bouncy castle men should be able to see the value in upselling and making each job pay more, but even more so with the tubs - If you hire out hot-tubs then this pretty much sells itself.
Soft Play Planet
Scott is now a show regular, has been for a while now. He isn’t the new guy on the block and he is showing growth in all areas, with new products constantly, rather than scrambling for a big “show idea”, he’s just doing it all the time, anyway.
I felt bad for him and he knew he was going to get the castles mentioned. If I didn’t say anything about the castles then I would lose credibility as being un-bias - The castles where pissed.
I can see exactly how it’s happened - He wanted to take them to the show (Scott’s background was castles) and I’m assuming he has made all the calculations, done the diagrams and then made a pattern. He’s cut all the castles using the same pattern to save time, then sewn them all up once he’s made his piles.
The trouble is, the front turrets where pinched in at the top, the arch wasn’t wide enough and it pulled the turrets over. In fact, I think it pulled them over greater than 5%, but you’d need to get the protractor out and really start prodding to be sure.
Worth noting that the wall height on this was actually greater than most others at the same price point - So the user height would be greater with no extra cost.
It’s such a shame, because he is better than this and the mistake was a small one but unfortunately had a big visual impact. I am 100% positive that he will have that resolved and the pattern is probably already changed on paper. He will be kicking himself because it doesn’t show what he is capable of - But the grotto does!
The grotto was incredible. Again, I would have picked this as a show-pick if it wasn’t so competative. There’s cheap grottos for £400 (which are fine and serve a purpose, xmas is only once a year after-all and you store it 12 months), then there are the high-end grottos.
Soft Play Planet’s grotto is punching for the high-end - It’s not at the very top of the list, but it isn’t far off it, yet the price is silly low. Including VAT it was coming out to £950. I’ve seen grottos that aren’t as good as this one coming in at £1,500 and I’ve seen grottos that are probably 10% better coming in even higher than that.
Pound for pound, I do not believe that there is any greater value grotto that sits comfortably in the high end market. Weird seeing one in march, but with an October show date for the LSS I can see why it was exhibited - With the money you’re saving on the grotto you’d be silly not to pick-up the x-mas themed softplay presents, too - Making it a package rather than just throwing up a grotto only hire jumping straight back in the van; You need to make each job really count.
Scott had show deals and stock to take away - The print quality, skill level, and attention to detail has all been discussed on previous reviews, but it Is worth mentioning again that he’s at the very top end in this area and setting the bar for a lot of it.
Chris Little Events
Chris is another person like Stacey from Daizy’s - “One of us”. Chris is selling electrical equipment - Leads, extension reals, distros, fly-leads and more.
He doesn’t have the buying power of some companies. But our industry is niche and he is creating working, viable solutions that are safe specifically for us!
Our industry has improved a lot over the years. Some of that is directly due to Bouncy castle exchange with the best educational advice
As an industry we’ve come a long way. You don’t see as much dangerous stuff going on. It still exists and some people just hide it better these days, but in large we have collectively improved and elevated ourselves; People know more about high winds, they know more about anchoring and hard standing, they know more about inspections and matting - We’re just more safe and a lot more aware of risks in almost all areas - That is, apart from electrics.
We see pictures of stunning £3k castles set-up, nicely matted, all staked in, tagged, all set-up to standard - Then they have a bloody indoor use 4-gagmg extention lead used outdoors with a B&Q extension reel.
I don’t believe people are doing this on purpose - They’re not trying to hide it, in most cases it’s because they literally do not know that they are doing anything wrong.
I think Chris Little is helping to shine a light on this area and I wish him all the best. If I can help him in any way then I will because I believe that was he’s doing is good for the industry and helping to raise standards in an area of our industry that often has a woefully poor understanding at time.
Chris isn’t just making up leads either - He’s actually launching his own extension reel with 2.5mm core h0rn7-f cable, 16a connections and thermal cut-off switch with hand winder. It’s literally built for our industry.
You couldn’t really just come into our industry as an electrician and start selling stuff - Market knowledge is crtitical to success and Chris has that. He was literally rattling off the power draw of fans, the start up amp, voltage drops and had the recorded data to back it up - It’s this sort of thing that makes a difference.
There’s always those thata will go to B&Q and believe it’s fine as nothing has ever happened before, there’s also those that make up their own leads and are confident enough to do that with enough knowledge - But for those in the middle of all that, he’s selling quality products, peace of mind and helping raise safety standard, so I hope he gets the support he deserves rather than people dismissing him.
Inflatable Word Leisure
IWL is an institution in our industry and commonly accepted as the very best there is.
Matt doesn’t mind saying this outloud - But I don’t blame him and would do the same in his shoes. That’s IWL’s selling point - They make the very best.
I actually feel guilty for not buying anything from Matt. I feel like I should be buying from IWL because if no one did, then it’s a quality that will be lost and never come back. - The saying “They don’t mak’em like they used to” - doesn’t quite hold true in this industry, for us “They do”, but it’s hard getting people to pay.
Matt had a smaller stand this year, two incredible inflatables that stood out. No one else at the show touched them. They didn’t even come close. I know that we’re seeing these intricate 3D castles and balloons inside turrets and there’s no way I could make that stuff - But it’s CAD designs for mass production and IWL is making hand made, made to measure precision.
The closest comparison I can make is like between an Apple Watch and a Rolex. IWL are the rolex - but the sad truth is, most of us (including myself) never buy the Rolex and fall into the trap of buying the next generation Apple Watch every year - But for a lot of us, that’s the market we have created for ourselves.
I should be buying these inflatables, but again it’s the trap of the quick ROI and fast turn-around of your investment. IWL units are made to last and they stand the test of time - You’re probably not going to see a return as quickly as a budget inflatable, but over time you see a greater value as you do not need to replace it and the resell value doesn’t drop as dramatically as others, either - They hold their value.
They’re heavy units made of strong material. I honestly don’t think I would build an entire company from IWL only - But just as yo umight buy some budget castles to test a new theme or try outside over winter hires, something you’re not too worried about, IWL would for me be more the type of castle when I know it’s a tried and tested “forever green” theme that goes out constantly and I nee dto it to hold up - A classic.
With so many foreign imports, low-cost methods, cheaper materials, computer aided, cutting machines and other technologies pushing out jobs - IWL stands very tall and very proud as the king of the castles.
Premier Inflate
Another late entry to the show - They don’t always exhibit at every single show, but I was lpeased to see them making it.
I think their layout was well thought through, they made the most of their space and instead of just having a row or a line-up, they sort of made themselves a little nook. It worked well in my opinion and felt like they probably did the best job of making you feel like you was “in” their exhibit space rather than just walking past.
They had a noughts and crosses game on display - I do love a game and don’t need much of a reason to buy one to add to the package - But I was a little bit worried about kids losing a velcro piece and ruining the entire thing. I don’t care too much about a velcro ball, an axe or a dart, but if you lose too many of those stick on pieces you’d make the game pointless until you got a replacement. Still though, I probably should have picked it up as it’s different and wasn’t expensive.
They had a big adults castle on display. I’ve seen it before - It loooks like it’s made out of hi-vis jacket colours. It’s proper day-glo and rave themed, so I’m guessing the design is aimed at a young adult crowd.
They had UK made 3D castles. They was actually pretty impressive - I wasn’t that keen on the front steps either side of the poking out slide bit in the middle, but they was actually pretty impressive.
I have to be honest, I was really confused - On one hand some of the castles had a model design that makes it quicker for production - Not cutting corners, but not built like armoured trucks designed to last forever, then on the other hand they must have spent hours and hours making intricate 3D work like the gaming joy-pad.
They had some pretty incredible show deals and offers. - I was talking to a couple of industry friends who said that they was going to buy a package from them. My first reaction was surprise, but then they explained that they was getting a bouncy castles, ball pools, balls and softplay set for £1,100 and the package price they will be charging is £250. 5 hires and they’re in profit.
I could see the instant attraction and couldn’t really dissagree with them, they made a fair point - Especially when considering it was their first foray into pastels and they wanted to reduce the impact if it didn’t do well. - It was a point well made.
Bouncy Castle Sales
Each show I end up saying something about these guys having a place in the market and not over-looking them.
I tend to point out that Andy has the ability and is quite capable of making very good inflatables, but is focused on hours - calculating what he feels will make a fair product, but at the minimum amount of hours on the machines.
Then I focus on the games and say something along the lines about even if you’re a bouncy castle elitist, you should still give them a look - Because honestly - Who cares about reinforced quad stitching, with bullet proof anchor points and double strength turbo go-fast stripes when you’re buying an inflatable dartboard, rodeo cover or bowling alley? They’re hardly taking a battering every hire and you’d be a fool not to at least weigh things up.
I say all of this because it’s true, but I have said all of this before. I don’t usually get to say anything incredible about the slides, but BCS had what was in my opinion one of the best slides they have ever produced on display, with a price that was ridiculously low.
In truth I don’t normally like the look of any model slide they produce, but this looked new and different - I had certainly never seen it before. The model was decent and I legitmately couldn’t find a fault worth moaning about - Plus it only cost £899 for an 8 foot platform.
8 foot platforms are a great size. They’re small enough to be a garden slide, but just about big enough for it to pretend to be a fete size and get away with it. - Fine for schools at least.
I’ve seen slides cost far more than this and wouldn’t pass an inspection, or be built in a way that the user height is made for dwarves. I’ve seen “superiour” brands make them weirdly with external seams running up the inside of walls where the steps are. I’ve seen slides made with stress points and poorly conceived models that will end up tearing themselves apart.
This slide had none of those issues and it was steep enough with a good run-off that meant kids won’t “bum shuffle” down it, but instead go down it with a whoosh and still stay safe!
I think it’s a very versatile slide, competatively priced, great model and if I needed to replace mine I would buy one.
Kool Booking Systems
I managed to speak with Jimi briefly - It had to wait till the second day as the first day he was busy most of the time with customers!
It was funny seeing the mascot in person - I think I have been conditioned too much by facebook videos, I was half expecting it to try and do a jump-scare prank!
It was nice seeing KBS at the show - It’s been a long time since I’ve seen them exhibit and I wont lie, it was pretty bizzare seeing Stefan Burke on the very next stand. Who would have thought you’d see that?!
It’s a good representation too, because there’s a lot of customers at the show that have KBS sites and also a lot of manufacturers/exhibitors.
Jimi provides a very personalised service. It’s the type of company you can drop a PM to instead of logging a ticket. You can phone them up and ask them to help and the service levels are pretty well regarded amongst their customers.
For certain things and help there is no charge, but for some other things (understandably) their needs to be a fee - Generally speaking though, I believe the approach is to get you up and running and in a position where you don’t need all that much help and can keep it ticking over yourself.
It’s a close-knit community of customers that help eachother - Share data and information, guide eachother when they need to login and Jimi will even help with advice outside of the site - Things like Google reviews/places. - It’s things like this that do not go un-noticed by people.
Chobble
What a bloody name? I had to google it to see if there was a hidden meaning - Turns out there is!
In the Midlands and Yorkshire, "chobble" is a verb that means to chew into small pieces - So I can only infer that the meaning is to help take a big scary task and break it down into bite size pieces - Quite fitting!
Maybe it’s not that deep and it was purely random, but I like to think I got the metaphor.
So what is Chobble? Well, it’s Stefan Burke - The very talented developer that that once said, unironically “I am the most famous person in the bouncy castle industry”.
He’s probably right - At one point he was super well known. He wasn’t the only BCN developer, but he was by far and away the mosy client facing developer and would help directly support customers on their facebook page.
In an industry where not everyone is that into technology and some actively avoid it, he was like Bouncy Castle Website Jesus, just casually going round fixing issues and handing out miracles.
That was around 6 years ago now - He left the company to pursue a career with some weird indie band music streaming platform - Something like spotify, but a fair-trade version for bands you’ve never heard of and never going to make it. I’m deliberately over-simplifying it to frustrate him, but it’s not too far off.
It’s actually making me chuckle that I am writing this review of him on a website and platform that he set-up and provided me access to. It was once his unfortunate task of helping me sort a bunch of photos for a review and I believe it was his frustration that led to way the gallery system now works in BCN platforms.
Anyway - What does he do?
So basically he does pretty much anything technical if you pay him enough. The thing is, he is worth a lot of money per hour and not everyone has deep enough pockets to pay his rates. He knows his worth and isn’t really willing to compromise (nor should he).
You can hire him for website work and SEO, but that’s a bit like hiring Bill Gates to come and help you with an excel formula. The sort of projects where you are going to see really great value will involve coding, actual real develop work: Help making a script to pull in google reviews, a sandbox enviroment that consumes the PIPA API end points so you can do cool stuff with a third party website you wan tto build, helping the RPII build a system of record, maybe creating a platform where you can design and protype games for rodeo sales devices, creating a library for the Wibble Jelly Games, creating a ticket platform with licensable API, creating a CMS for the photo booth media systems - These kinds of things.
The trouble is, most of what he is really capable of isn’t going to be usefuil for 99% of hirers - He will be targetted for website work and ranking better, because honestly - All the cool technologuy stuff is great and all, but high website rank means more money.
To that end, rather than charge one person a fortune of the knowledge - He has quite cleverly set-up a patreon account - which is basically like an onlyfans where you subscribe to his content (yes, I did just make that analogy and yes, it did actually kinda work - Sorry Stef).
His onlyfans patreon page has detailed tips, insider info and help on a number of topics that help you rank your website better, make it easier for customers and convert! This way, you get to access to the content as a collective group, each paying a smaller amount!
Anyway - You should make him your first point of call if you’re a serious hirer and don’t want to mess around with idiots. There’s so many chancers, blaggers, “experts”, “gurus” and actual legit scammers in this industry trying to nick a few quid or scare people into paying them every month that aren’t worth shit - Stefan is a reare genuine expert.
https://www.patreon.com/Chobble
BCN
BCN have gone through a facelift - No longer are they calling themselves “Bouncy Castle Network” it’s now just BCN; Kinda like the WWE!
It was cool to see the new branding - The backlit signs where very cool, but I’m not sure Eddy could reach the top without step ladders!
It’s important for people to remember that BCN are just much a family run business as anyone else - Yes, they are market leaders and yes they have the greatest market share, but they aren’t Tesco, Google or Amazon - Eddy did the show with his wife, Fiona (who you would truly struggle to find a nicer person) and his daughter Daisi - Who didn’t really start becoming customer facing until a short while ago in real terms, but has quickly become an integral member of the team and whom, I know that Eddie is immensly proud of.
We only got to speak to them for a short while, but my daughter is really coming along with her nail technician work and Fiona used to do this too - Fiona actually hasn’t seen he real nails for 38 years! My wife and daughter was speaking with Daisi and Fiona at length - I don’t think bouncy castles or websites came up once! - It’s easy to think of BCN as this big machine, but they’re a family run business just like 95% of hire companies - He came in his little van, stuffed with show stands and his family helped him set it all up - The exact same position we’ve all been in when we need help and need to rely on our partners.
That being said, they are number 1 for a reason. I was fortune enough to get a beta version of the New advanced basket feature (sworn to secrecy) - Which sounds pretty underwhelming, but it’s actually a complete over-haul of the check-out feature, including address picker and location search capability so customers can actually pinpoint their address - Which is super useful for these weird houses with private addresses as house names and other odd cases.
There’s a whole bunch of stuff in the update, including validation checks, advanced product searches, groupings and multi packages and better up-selling options.
The whole user interface and customer journey has just been improved dramatically - The customer experience is now better than ever and the delivery maps is such a good idea for operators.
It’s a huge update and this is literally just one of several major updates they deliver every single year. There’s no reasting on their laurels or letting the grass grow under their feet, they are constantly pulling away from any competition and the system has matured over many, many years built on the back of experience and feedback, leveraging the most modern technologies.
Gibbons
Gibbons provide a world class product. They are easily the most used blower fan in the UK for inflatables and replied upon by thousands of hirers across the UK.
As a bouncy castle hire company you eventually get to a size where you have more castles than you do blowers, because you can’t possibly have every single piece of equipment out every weekend.
Somewhere along the line you stop ordering castles with a blower because you’ve got enough and it saves £150(ish).
Hirers often find themselves with a few grand in their pocket and are in a massive rush to go buy a new bouncy castle. - But hardly anyone stops to think - I should spend that money on a pallet of new fans.
At best, most people pick up a new fan here or there, they may sell a castle and let their oldest most shittest fan go with it and slowly over time you have a natural slow turn-over, but there’s always a few of them that are pretty old and knackerd (like me really).
Someof the most successful hirers know that reliability is key and will just clean house - getting rod of all their old ones and replace them with a pallet of new ones.
It’s not as exciting as a brand new 3D castle or ne to market product, but realibility on the job and not having to go back to a customer for a broken blower is probably the more sensible idea and Gibbons is realistically the safest pair of hands to do just that.
Magic Air
Sadly, I never really got the chance to speak with Adam George. I respect him and would have liked the opportunity, but time tends to get away from everyone at the show.
I remember the last time he exhibited and he had a giant slide, nice fun-run, different model combis and a very cool multi-part assault course that I believe a local guy to me purchased. - This show there wasn’t any inflatables to see, but from what I can gather after a long time away (or at least what most have perceived to be a break) it looks like Magic Air is getting ready to drop some updates shortly, which I am interested is seeing!
Wibble Jelly Games
I feel like I owe more to this company - I wrote at length about them for the last couple of shows; You can see October’s review here: https://www.startaninflatablebusiness.com/news/2024-10-13/leisure-supplies-show-2024
Sadly though, I didn’t get to visit the stand this year. I made the mistake of putting off so I could “have a proper look” and then time slipped through my fingers and it never happened.
Here’s a link to their company: https://wibblejellygames.com/wordpress/ as they really do deserve better than a copy/paste and you should deffinately find out more about them.
It’s an absolute cop-out, but I do not want them to go un-noticed - So I am copying last years review below:
I love this stand - I have never made a purchase, but it’s one of my favourites and I am always drawn to it. I had the pleasure of Nick’s time for a short while and he was very patient with me.
The games are largely self contained flight cases with simple to learn, but difficult to master principals. Some of the games are more diverse and not just table-top flight cases, but they are all very portable and easy to set-up.
For the average hirer you’re not going to have to worry about tech support, they’re literally plug the power lead in and watch it turn on! For those that “don’t do computers”, this isn’t anything to be scared of - You just plug it in like a blower, but with much less effort of rolling it away.
The games are addictive and attractive - They can be played repeatedly, but it’s not like it takes forever to get through a game, so it’s not as if you need to worry about needing to set-up a room filled with 15 of them to accommodate a large guest amount (although obviously we all want as many out on hire as possible).
The build quality is good - There’s not much chance of it getting mashed up in the back of a van and even if the outside does get a it battered the inside is what is on show to customers and will remain perfect looking - One of the benefits of flight cases.
They’re also very affordable - When you have some of the electronic games being offered by others for thousands each, this is an affordable way to enter that market and see if it takes off.
Wibble Jelly Games for me is what I see as truly doing something you enjoy - Like a person that works at a fast-food restaurant always making the same thing, never having the chance to make something different or show their creativity finally opening their own restaurant.
I love the techy stuff, it resonates with me very deeply - I am drawn to it. I almost look for a reason to buy those games and get involved at a deeper level with the product itself - Maybe I can capture some of the hire market it is aimed at or maybe I can’t, but I think I would enjoy being part of the creation of the games themselves and call it a “win” just by seeing my product come to life - An achievement.
I don’t know who TF I think I am saying this to him, but I suggested that he opens up some community engagement in products. Sadly, I can’t see these games ever becoming a huge commercial success with massive global demand, the dragons are deffo going to be “out”, but despite that I think a lot of success (and enjoyment) could be had by launching a community/forums/portal where customers have access to build their own; Either hard-ware or software (or both).
If he opened up a library for the functions he already has, then it wouldn’t be a big jump for users to write their own software and have different games on the same device, or different options.
For example, one game was really cool, but you had to win by completing it within the time allocated - Which was a static 90 seconds. If you had access to program or could write a plug-in for it, then you could conceivably write different modes for the game - Press and hold a particular button and it switches it from count down mode to high-score, or records the quickest time as the time to beat, making it more competitive. That’s just one application, but if you opened up things I truly believe that not only would Wibble Jelly grow, but Nick would be pleasantly surprised with what people innovated.
Clearly Nick would need to protect himself and make sure he was monetising it - The core game, the components or whatever is purchased through Wibble Jelly Games rather than assisting his own demise by giving everything away - But if done sensibly I would sign-up and I am sure there are a few others that would find it interesting, too.
Games Works Creative
This is another exhibitor I don’t have very much to talk about. I love the products, but for now they seem a little out of my league. - This is the top end of electronic games, the real high end stuff for big companies that want you to pack their foyer out because they have a key note speaker coming!
Some of the equipment might be seen at a school tombola, but most of this is at least at the wedding market and higher - Going right up to the very top. Even the wooden retro games like plinko have LED’s and feel special - It’s really not “toss the ball in the bucket” level stuff, it’s more the type of thing you see in static arcade, only made mobile for the hire market.
Yet again they released new games and versions - They always innovate and have something new to show. I never really looked too closely at it as I am worried they are going to start thinking I’m in a position to actually buy something from them - When really I am the equivilent of a tyre kicker just wasting their time - But one day it’s going to happen, I will be ready and I will come with an open wallet ready to up my game and elevate to the next level.
Big Little Shapes
I was very pleased to see Lord Farquaad AKA Kieran back at a show again - Sorry mate, we need to get you to the barbers - Stat!
His first show under his belt just a few short months before felt scary to him - He had little time to prepare and openly admitted that he probably wouldn’t have had the spare budget to exhibit, so Iam pleased that it’s opened the door for him and he came back! - A bit of a success story for this event hire show platform to be honest.
Last show I was well impressed with the soft play, the print and the designs. It was all very good - Not perfect in every single case, but it was more than good enough and some ambitious shapes and techniques where being used effectively, quite impressive for a “new” manufacturer.
This show he came back and perfected whatever was slightly off last time - Tighter on the shapes, more precise and nice new artwork designs tied exclusively to themselves (which is a promise they made last show and delivered on).
Are they worth purchasing from? Deffinately. I have no idea if it was ashow exclusive deal or not, but I decided to buy a dinosaur softplay set to replace my old one that has seen better days. It wasn’t a hard decision - I looked at the set for all of 2 minutes and decided it was what I was looking for - Great quality, nice sized shapes, good print, well stitched, nice design - Sweet.
When I asked how much it was (please bare in mind this was an 18 piece set and a huge amount of foam, more foam) he asked me if £300 was alright? Before I could shove the money in his hand he then added two jelly beans as well - So literally a 20 piece soft play set for £300, including a bag.
I was on a bit of budget, otherwise I may well have gone a bit nuts at this stand. You could literally spend justa few grand here and have walked away with a softplay division to your company. Brilliant for a new start-up, replacing old sets or just exppanding on your packages.
Probably needs to make somematching inflatable ball pools for the next show - Everyone likes sets and not all people like the foam ball pools. Justa suggestion, but I think it’s a good idea.
Airquee
Well - Ridiculously they actually had more exhibit space than last year. I didn’t think that was possible, but they actually took up more room and had even more equipment to see.
Given that the last show was only a few months ago I wasn’t expecting to see much different. There was speculation that we was going to see a new license launch with Disney, but alas tha wasn’t the case.
We did get to see a whole bunch of new models and designs though. Not just one or two, but it felt like at least 30% of what they had there had changed from the last one - I have no idea how they are doing it, but by no means is it “the same ole’shit as last time, no point in going” - They legit had a bunch of cool new stuff - They’re setting themselves a fast pace to keep up with.
For real though, that fast pace is an actual thing. A few years ago I could tell you the age of a partcular Airquee unit by the artwork, these days it changes so often and across all of their units that there is zero point in trying to keep up with what is the latest.
That’s a good thing because it means hirers have a different option and can go with different versions of the artwork so they have something different to their competitor who has the same model, but it also feels like if you try to catch your breath for a few months then you quickly become the local guy with the “old” artwork - Even though it’s only 6 months new! You deffinately cannot “keep up with the Jones” as a hirer. You’d go bankrupt trying to always have the newest latest and greatest.
My only fear is that you need to make double sure that you’re buying a good one. If you happen to buy one that isn’t so great for you, then the seocnd hand market is in tatters and the re-sale value means depreciation will hit that unit hard. You have to be really sure that you’re choosing a desireable product that will go out reasonably well.
You can’t say that they don’t know how to exhibit. Absolutely huge space, tonnes of staff, catering area and several new product launches.
They had tonnes of staff present and you could place an order with any of them on the day, but really you should be going to Mel Stevens to place orders.
There was two new 3D front slide combis (actually there was tonnes of new ones, but specifically there was two very interesting ones).
One was a gum-ball machine with balloons in the top of it to make it look like the gum-balls inside - Very effective and did really look like a gum-ball; It was talk of the show and everyone stopped to take a look.
The other was a football castle with a 3D trophy at the front. It wasn’t as spectacular as the gumball machine and not as many people stopped to gawp at it, but it was actually in my opinion the the better pick by far.
The gumball machine would get right on my nerves having to do those balloons on every hire - But that aside, I am not sure it’s going to get the hires - The major attraction of it is the novelty of the balloons going round, but how well does that translate to pictures on a website? I know you can take a video, but getting customers to watch a video is sometimes more difficult.
While the effect is cool -Who is going to be searching for a gum-ball themed bouncy castle? Maybe it might have some niche audiences, but I can’t see it being a huge hire item.
The football castle on the other hand - Althoughit doesn’t have the “wow” of the balloons, it’s still very, very cool being 3D but has the big advantage of the theme being sought after by football clubs, football holiday camps, football themed parties and is a “forever green” theme.
The attention to detail is awesome- The trophy on top obviously takes the attention, but the tunnel at the bottom of the slide is just like the players walking through - Pretty immersive.
In my opinion, out of the two of them - The smart money is on the football theme and I think Airquee are going to sell a lot of them - It’s the first time I have seen a football theme that makes you go “wow” - All others have been pretty lacklustre.
One thing I have noticed about Airquee’s units is they basically have several versions of the same thing in a lot of cases. For example, their slides - I genuinely don’t know hwmany different models they have, but it seems to be endless - They have the version that’s just like the Air Inflatables version (which they purchased), there’s a distinctive “Airquee Original version” and then several others - The variety is pretty endless. If you don’t like a particular way it’s done, then I would just ask them and there’s every chance that they already have some other model - They’re an absolute monster.
I wasn’t a fant of one of the new playparks - It had a very small little bouncy castle in it There wa smore than enough room to make it bigger, but they decided not to. Not only was the castle ridiculously too small, but the wall height on it was too low for my liking. I honestly don’t know what was going on with it, but I would be surprised if it was popular, I really think that needs altering.
The new spiralling turrets and spiralling beam on the pastel h-frames looked very nice. At first glance I wasn’t sure but it grew on me the more I looked at it - I think customers will love it. It sort of reminded me if a twister ice lolly or a “flump” sweetie.
The “bouncing balls” unit was an instant attraction for me. As oon as I saw it I knew we’d be walking away with it - It’s a big unit, but not so big that I would dread it - It’s similar(ish) to a helter-skelter, but probably easier to roll.
It was the number one attraction for kids at the show. While Airquee wasn’t looking the kids flocked to it. Literally had a queue for the unit and it was just on display. I knew I wanted it - It’s another “big thing” that’s different. Airquee have had something like this for a while, but the other version is a lot heavier (despite only having one more ball) - This makes the bouncing balls more accessible to a wider market and I am very pleased that I got in on the action early.
Elephant 3D ball pool was marvellous. I should have bought it, then went to get it and it was sold. At over £700 for a ball pool it’s an expensive ball pool - You could get a curved bounce for £300 more, or go to a budget manufacturer and literally get a whole bouncy castle. - It’s also not exactly low-height and in some venues it might be too tall - Who ever heard of a ball pool not fitting in a hall? Lol
However, I have said for a long time that ball pools and soft play are too cheap to hire. I feel like this represents an opportunity to “go big” on these ball pools and start charging properly for them - If you can get castle prices on a ball pool then you’re doing well - I think this could be a good start in that direction - As long as the industry doesn’t self sabotage itself as per usual!
Loved the base jump section. I really think that it would be a good option for a younger audience. I’m not in a positiont o throw money at a “test”, but I would be curious to know which is more popular - The higher platform version that I have already got, or the smaller platform version that Airquee do. Either way, it’s a very safe looking design that they’ve got right on the first try - I do love the netting around the actual platform, forcing the kids to go from the middle.
The gaint foot darts was a massive draw - My son was on it for a least an hour. I’d probably get the next size donw for myself - This version felt more like something a permier legue club would purchase with half a dozen being sold per year, but the next size down is far more accessible and hireable.
Love the look of the 3D mermaid front slide castle -Was beautiful. Not sure if it was new, but they had a 8x10 model bouncy castle, or soemthing really small like that. Probably good for small gardens, but I tend to find that those really small gardens aren’t always very affluent customers.
The balloon dome thing was well made and looked nice, but pretty sure the temu crew have already knackered that market for everyone.
They had wicked deals. They knew people wouldn’t be loaded at this show and strongly pushed the £100 deposit now and pay the rest later on delivery - But for those walking round with money, Airquee had some of the best show offers I have seen them do and you could walk away with a lot of stock.
Airquee basically have a version of everything. Anything you can think of that someone sells, there’s a very good chance that Airquee have a version of that. SOme comoanies mainly do castles only, some specialise in smaller things and games, some do a huge range, but don’t have a base jump or a multi-part assault course or whatever… Airquee have a version of everything, I’d struggle to find something where someone said “xyz” do a nice <insert item here> and there was no Airquee equivilent.
Considering how much equipment Airquee had out, I am really doing them a miss-service but cutting it so short, but in truth - You really do need to go to the show and have a look yourself to see what is important to you - Suffice to say though Airquee had a lot of incredible equipment and 95% of if it for me was a hit rather than a miss. They’re smahing it.
Conclusion
It was very strong show, especially considering the time constraints.
A finger in the air rough guide for attendance figures was the car-park - It wasn’t full! Numbers could have been better, but as it was March, late notice, no one has any money, it was a new show - I think it will grow and I would be amazed if another one wasn’t advertised very soon.
With more notice and low price exhibit space, I think there’s an open playing field for everyone and you will also start to see the door open for people like Chris Little, Stefan Burke and start-ups looking to launch effectively.
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