Owning & Managing An Event Venue

hello everyone I am Carla Jackson owner of K Jackson events and design k jackson Design Academy and designing with K and welcome to my youtube channel on today I want to discuss with you guys venue ownership for those of you who don't know anything about me let me fill you in I am a venue owner in the Atlanta Georgia area I've been an event design floral design for almost 20 years I have been a venue owner now for the last three years owning two venues and opening up a design Academy I get a lot of questions in regards to what is it like to own a venue and how do you go about owning a venue so today I decided to film a video and come to you guys explaining to you what I learned along the way and hopefully some of what I learned will help you as you plan to open up your venue or if you're interested it'll give you an idea if this is something that you really want to jump into I'm gonna be reference a few of my notes so I'll be looking down a little bit as I go over things that I have learned along the way and hopefully something that I'm disclosing to you will help you again plan or assess whether or not owning a venue is the right fit for you so how do you start and manage an event venue I would say you know the questions I get all the time is what is it like to start an operator venue oh my god it is so fulfilling and it's so rewarding however to start it it required a lot of research and when I say research meaning you can't just jump out there because you find a bit of building and hey you might have the adequate space the square footage is great it's amazing but unfortunately you have to you need to go out to your county you need to find out about zoning you need to find out what are the county codes you know get with the fire marshal find out whether or not you know there are certain things you can and can I do in the area in which you have found rebuilding your dream building but those are things to consider a further things I ran into words owning I want my first location was in a community and I had to actually go through zoning it's been lots of time at townhall meetings with the mayor of the city I'm explaining my business to them and exactly what I was going to bring to their City and their County for that matter in order for them to allow me to have access to that building to be utilized in the capacity in which I wanted to which was for an event facility to do weddings and parties and things of that nature it even in tells me having to go out through the neighborhood and collect signatures on petitions landok letting the residents of the community know what I was bringing to their community you know the noise ordinance and things of that nature so those were important it also included things like liquor you know think about it if you want to open up a venue and that venue in that area you cannot serve alcohol or sell alcohol is it gonna be successful because people let's be honest you know how many of its do you know that people have where there's not adults I'm engaging in adult beverages so those are things that I had to consider and if I wanted to serve alcohol what did that entail you know making sure that my bartenders were certified though people call it licensed certified bartenders and that I had liquor liability insurance in addition to the insurance that was needed for my building for accidents and incidentals making sure that there was liquor liability insurance because whether or not you believe it and even as just an event planner you are considered a host so be mindful when you do parties with clients if they have a bartender there they're gonna serve alcohol that you need to make sure that that bartender or that the event hall or that client has taken out liability insurance for that liquor because not if anything happens once they leave that premises you are accountable for you to Yvette planners can be included in that but as a venue owner you most definitely have to cover yourself in an aspect so when I say legal requirements again research contract or legit legalities you know people share contracts I'm going to tell you all the time just because someone has a contract that contract and it can have been written by an attorney that contract is specific to their County their state their ordinances it doesn't apply to you all the time so the best thing to do is to if you want to purchase a copy from someone that's fine get a copy their contract look at it pull things out that you think you could utilize in your venue or in your event-planning business however the most brilliant thing to do would be to seek the advice of an attorney invest in that attorney-client relationship and allow he or she to design and construct a contract they're specific for your knees for your venue for your design business and I know I get off of the event venue ownership and went to the design part but I just want to share that this part too can apply to Eve to designers you know make sure that that contract covers you for alcohol for liability for anything made sure that that contract is specific for the services that you are rendering in your state and in your county again I'm not gonna ever tell you I have a contract that I believe is just airtight and I know that because I presented it to a judge who told me that all of my teas were crossed and my eyes were dying not it however it might not work for someone who is in Alabama again I'm in Georgia but you can utilize that contract to pool key elements out and you present your contract to your attorney I constructed my country before I went to my attorney and all he had to do was just modify a few things and he only modified just a minimum of things and he actually shook my hand I did an amazing job constructing it because I cover it myself all around how do you know if owning a venue is right for you you got to have a passion to serve people venues are expensive it's not a get-rich-quick kind of thing you have to be willing to work you know in the beginning you have this extra self I'm not willing to market brand do tours do contracts clean tile toilets vacuum mop floors take out trash you know coordinate tours am I willing to sacrifice myself and all of those facets of a job and job titles because when you first started out you might not have the resources to have a team or staff there to assist you with those things so all of that is important when you're thinking about owning and operating and managing a venue how to be a successful venue owner success again it really is defined some people say lots of money in the bank I say having money in the bank and having yourself still solid meaning you are still a part of a search engine and people are still coming to your business and spending with you spin to me equals success customer service equals success longevity equals success so making sure that you know to be successful you have to sacrifice yourself and it's a lot of sacrifices and a lot of family time in a long time keep in mind you're doing the tour's you know are you gonna be able to come in and physically do your tours I am fortunate enough to be able to do my own tours my system is not automated but that's a system that I have looked into for when we're on vacation or whatever being able to allow potential clients access to the venue to do tours and leave literature out for them but those are things you have to think about accessibility see for your clients that means you have to be available and are you willing to give up that time hardly about how you're gonna collect your payments how are you gonna do contracts you know Millennials out here everybody wants everything to be quick and easy and smooth a lot of people don't want to come in and sit down and fill out paperwork some people religious wants you to upload a document to them and they take it from there and scanning and email it back to you you know what software programs right because you have to invest in this stuff it's not something that's given to you for free you know you have to spend money in it you gotta be flexible too cuz people don't work everywhere people that work 9:00 to 5:00 really need someone I'm in Georgia commutes here are terrible so I have to be accessible to do tours at 8 o'clock at night sometimes I've done tours at 10:00 p.m. but that's really up to you I am and you have to be hungry you got to be thirsty for it you know success does not come overnight and if you are not a person who is willing to sacrifice your state of having your time your me time to accommodate the needs of someone else and others then this might not be a good fit for you the venue ownership part but I'm just saying these are things that I have experienced and this is what I know I had to do in order to be able to say I'm opening it up then you're number two within a three-year span having a venue for me it's a dream it's the passion I have a niche for people I love serving people but most importantly I got into this business because I was tired of the nine-to-five I wanted to be my own bar arm boss I wanted to create a stream of income that could sustain my home and also give me flexibility and I wanted to be able to allow my clients I'm access to nice thing too something nice without having to spend a whole lot of money but at the same time be able to give them on the experience when I came into my venue you gotta know your niche you gotta know your knees you can't have your hands and everything together I always saw people I mean that I am in venue ownership design event planner I am a designer I'm an event planner I'm a coordinator I am a venue owner I deal with interior design I deal with all things in that same circle which means I focus only on those things I'm not trying to sew a wedding dress so you have to know you know your passion and know what you are willing to sacrifice for it you need to have a practical plan a solid foundation know exactly what it is you want to do you got to have dedication you have to sacrifice you also need technical skills you need to be technically savvy computer savvy you need to have management skills you need to have finance skills record-keeping marketing skills you have to be a jack of many trades a master of all of them and wear multiple hats when you're first starting out as a venue owner and sometimes even as you progress along the way you still are involved in your venue I will never not be an asset to my business meaning I will always be front line and center because that is my business it's my brand it's my venue and it represents me and something that I'm giving back to my community in the cities around me and then you have the access of - why do you want to own a venue if you're in it because you're thinking you got to make a lot of money oh I'm gonna give you an X long answer it's not gonna happen like that you gotta nurture this thing you got a stroke that you gotta rub it and you gotta finesse it it's not gonna happen overnight venue ownership does not bring you lots of money in your bank account overnight it takes time it takes time I cannot stress that enough again it entails you serving people you're your own boss but you also have 2x are you willing to sacrifice your standard of living you know are you willing to take the hits because all the time there's not gonna be revenue on the table for you so are you willing to take the hit are you willing to sacrifice are you willing to serve people and that's not wrong answer to this I'm just saying those are things that you really have to look into your heart an extra stuff are these things that I'm really willing to willing to do am I willing to give up you know going to get my hair done my nails done shopping my red bottoms my designer bags I'm not willing to sacrifice all of that while I clean toilets looking ahead for my future because that's technically and basically what you have to do you have to technically put yourself in all job positions and basically you sacrificing you to make it happen for the big picture and again it doesn't happen overnight it's a process because you might go from where you might say hey I'm getting out of this because I'm talking about 9:00 to 5:00 you might go from your 9:00 to 5:00 to 8:00 to 10:00 sometimes I go to work I go in my hours of 10:00 to 7:00 I start at 10:00 and they don't end sometime to 3:00 and 4:00 o'clock in the morning and I'm back in it again I have spent the night in my video it's a passion for me it's a love for me it's not a hobby it's a business but I have to work my business in order for my business to be successful so all of Asia has pearls and guns the actual self do you have the resources to stay afloat if something was to happen will you be able to put yourself in a position to be able to take care of the utilities all in a video you know there's rent or mortgage payment unless you are building it from the ground up because you still have to sacrifice that money there's liability insurance for the venue for alcohol for food serving for your employees working workers compensation you know health insurance if you're going to offer those things utilities you know are you willing you know that money need to have some type of solid foundation for that portion of your business even when you're just starting out because remember until you signing contracts you are responsible for that lease or that mortgage payment when you go into that venue the work that has to be done the floor is the painting that you know inventory tables chairs tablecloths on supplies apply putting in hand sinks it's so much go into it on the backside you don't really see when you rent the venue space what the owner has gone through to get you to the process where you can rent kids or her space you know working 12 16 hour shifts am I ready to do it do I have the stamina to do it am i emotionally strong enough to do it is it gonna cause conflict within my relationships with my family and my children my spouse now by willing to sacrifice me and them you know it's not just financial sacrifice it's emotional sacrifice goes into it to describe your business you know when you sit down and you say I want to open up a thing you know I want to find a space and I want to operate my own venue describe that business you know describe it what's the product that you're offering and also acts yourself it's the product that I want to is me on an a venue is it gonna fulfill a need in the area where I want to put it it's the market where I want to put my venue isn't accessible there's a fella need for the fun of people in the community will it serve in an existing market if it's already venues there can I come in and piggyback off the top of these or on the back of them and be successful is there a need for another one of what's already there in my market is it enough parking you know is it handicap accessible all of those things are things that you really have to think about when you're looking into owning a business do you know who your customer would be do you understand their needs do you understand the desires do you understand their yearly income do you know where they live do you know what they like do you know their hobbies it's the service that you're offering do you think it's something that they would buy does it drive them do they need it is it a plus is it a given where your prices be competitive to quality and value for the current market that you're trying to jump in to in that same demographic because remember you're coming into an area where you action stuff hey can they utilize another venue yeah sure they can okay so but it's my venue gonna have the same quality service and value that these prior venues after the current venues have in that area you know can't do I have a finances to bring it up to par so it can be competitive with what's already currently in that area do you know how to compare yourself to other thing is you know I personally I am NOT the high-end venue I'm not the Lord anything you I'm right there in between I can't compete with the higher and then you depending on what the class specifics are however I know that I am in the middle so i market myself to the middle in the above and I hit some of the bottom but in my other location were able to so we were able to fulfill the needs are the ones who did not have the budgets to come into that middle or the above middle thing you ownership do you know how to compare yourself to these people where is the community located you know they you know you hearing in the housing market location location location location is very important so those other things that really really can define and determine whether or not you know being in your ownership is for you again I love being a venue owner I absolutely love it I adore it I have sacrificed a lot of time a lot of hours a lot of quality time with my family with my husband with my children with my grandchildren to be able to do what I do and if you're not emotionally able to do that physically able to do it because it's gonna require a lot of work you're gonna spend long hours you're gonna spend a lot of money when it comes to going into a location when you find that building once you go in through Sony encoding that now you got to figure out how to bring this building up to par it's very rare that it's if you find a diamond in the rough that you have to do absolutely nothing to tumbs up but well think I've had two venues and for both of them I've had to go in and literally start from the ceiling to the floor working that's finance I have not you know one thing I cannot proud myself on is my business has never had a loan it has never borrowed money I do not owe anyone but rent utilities and insurance and my employees I am so proud of myself for that but I make good financial decisions along the way I own all of my inventory nothing I have is finance everything belongs to me even the work vehicles so I say you have to know you know if you're willing to sacrifice financials and along the way you know as you try to build your business and money is not coming in I could think it should be or that you cuz right now in your mind you know you have this dream and it looks like it's so lavish and it's Lux on you're saying oh my god if I had a venue I could make all this money it's not going to happen like that it's not gonna happen like that it takes time so you got to have the money on the backside to carry you until you can get there and you also have to realize that you're not gonna have the people the personnel to help you as you get there financially so you don't have to do a lot of work get into a lot of elbow rubbing you know and you're a physically involved financially emotionally involved but if God has placed it in your heart to own a venue and you know that that is your calling trust your process and trust God I always tell people he would not bring you to it if he doesn't plan to bring you through it and I know you've heard that a million times but when I said I honestly I do everything on faith and I believe in me I know my niche I'm not out trying to do multiple things every I'm doing multiple things but everything that I do pertains to that one thing event planning design venue ownership I am NOT doing anything other than I'm not selling jewelry I am NOT making gift baskets I am only focus on anything Dillo it design so if you know that this is something that you really want to do and you have the resources the stamina and the emotional support that you're gonna need from your friends and family and some physical support because you're not gonna be able to do the cleanup pre and post a lot of these events by yourself if you are prepared to deal with coding zoning the county and the state regulations if you are ready financially and emotionally go ahead I wish you the best of luck I am always available again I am Carla Jackson better known as K Jackson with Kate Jackson events and design Kate Jackson design Academy and designing with K on this YouTube channel you can always hit me up ask me questions give me a phone call schedule a one-on-one come into consultations with me you can always do zoom videos with me or any method of video conference calling with me I'm hoping to pour into you because I want to pour into you I want to see you succeed but I also want you to be realistic about the desires of your heart realistic about your budgets and when it comes to owning and opening up and operating and managing a venue being realistic about your expectations from that venue but most importantly knowing why you believe on an a venue it's right for you and until next time again follow me on social media okay Jackson events and design kay jackson design Academy and on YouTube I'm designing with Kay and most importantly do not forget click that subscription button below and until next time you guys continue to plan design to your hearts or content so let's recap what we've just discussed when it comes to owning and event venue number one find a vent a building make sure it's affordable with or without events number two review your resources look at your financials and see hey meaning go look online go to your bank account and say hey do we have the money here what be be knowledgeable of your resources do I have the money to do the first alas the middle and a for all incidentals or anything else that comes up in this I'm number three discuss it with the city in the county go to zoning go to the city hall you know get your licenses let them know what you're planning to utilize the space for make sure you just close all information to them because if you do not then your license will be only specific for certain things and if an officer happens to walk in in a bill avoiding your events and you were doing something other than what you have been license to do then you could receive a fine so make sure you are very open with them and let them know what your intentions are for the space in which you're running discuss it with the city and county check rezoning like I said check with the fire marshal because the fire marshal has to come out and he or she will tell you you know your exit signs your fire extinguishers your exit doors things of that nature that's what they come out and do and you have to pay for those inspections so make sure you get a go on their website if it's um if your county offers that I know here but the county in which my opinions were in or in that we could actually go online and download the checklist and get everything in place before we actually want to land and requested an inspection because that's how you get your occupancy rating you know how many people you're even talking hole but you have to go through the fire marshal to receive that and then after that and well before you call the fire marshal make sure you brought the building up to standards make sure that you died now you can't do any auditions or anything like that without going through coding and permits you cannot just go in knocking out walls you can't knock out walls or s at hosing grease traps and things of that nature without going through coding but you can paint do the floors remodel like if you want to put a design on the wall or something clean up things of that nature you can do that without going through coding that's not something that they would you know menu to just do with a permit but if you want to hang light fixtures and things of that nature that needs to permit so you need to go through them to do that changing out lights and things of that nature anything that could be a hazard later on so bring that space up to standards turn on your utilities you know you're going to do that too you need to turn on your utilities you need light you need running water if you're going to have your space internet accessible go ahead on a call out an internet provider to do that order your dumpsters if you're gonna have a kitchen there you know order your grease trap clean your grease trap you need a separate hints you need a sink for hand-washing you know things of that nature have those things in store because when you call out the fire marshal you want to make sure all of those things are done because once they come out they charge you for every inspection so they come out and you need a hand sink no guess what you got to pay for that inspection and you have to pay for the next one for them to come out after you've had it installed so now you have a fear of finding a contractor to install get a permit install the hand sink and then come out to real spec same thing with your building signage you need to make sure that you find a company that will give you the image of what they're gonna create for you um the dimensions of it and will be able to put it together for you maybe like on a photo presentation with all of the dimensions outlined you take that to coding because they need a permit in order to hang a sign in order to put you out on the marquee in front of the building that's another permit so make sure you handling all of that that's another constantine's and done eyes and then the next thing you do after that buy supplies tables chairs linens if you're going to do food Schafer's burners dishes if you're gonna serve with china you know anything you need to operate your events and mark it now it's time to market hey I've spent all this money get this thing ready can't wait to take pictures and destin'd a professional photographer market your business market your new venue welcome to the neighborhood ladies and gentlemen let me introduce you to event Chalet you know whatever you name it but market it and the final thing I will leave you guys with is get those contracts signed you can have a venue with all the bells and whistles you need those contracts find and have great terms and those contracts to cover your monthly rent have great terms in there to cover your utilities receive residual income payment structure your payments do not let people give you $100 deposit and you don't hear from them no more to the week of the event in between that if you have a resources to pay your rent or your utilities then that's fine but if you do not or if you do and you do not want to exhaust your resources make your clients pay for the usage of your space until they get to your space because that's basically how that works

Channel: Designing With K

Views: 7,284

Keywords: owning a venue, become an event planner, becoming an event planner, becoming a wedding planner, event venue, own an event hall, own an event planning business, owning a wedding planning business

Id: OxKR_tYfVpI

Length: 30min 51sec (1851 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 19 2020