An interview with Beau and Bell Tent Hire

Spring has sprung and outdoor events are being scheduled for the summer in accordance with social distancing measures being relaxed.  We caught up with Jade at Beau and Bell, a Sussex based Bell Tent and Giant Tipi Hire company, to discuss their plans….

Tell us about Beau and Bell?

We are proudly celebrating over 10 successful years in business. Beau & Bell came about due to a collective passion for glamping, festivals and outdoor experiences. We provide Giant Tipis for reception spaces at weddings, festivals, corporate and private events and can set up furnished Bell Tent Villages for accommodation.  As Beau and Bell has grown so has our love for the industry, our experience and our knowledge. Now a dedicated team of experts, we can create the event of our clients dreams for up to 400 guests in our beautiful Giant Tipis and provide a truly magical Bell Tent glamping village alongside it. We will also happily still rent you a tent if that’s all you require!

What effect has COVID-19 had on the business?

Being in events this has really tested our resolve!  On a positive note, as many businesses will have done, we have adapted to continue to provide some of our services whilst looking to the future and bettering our proposition.  Last spring and summer our teams created outside spaces in clients gardens, for instance, turning them in to havens for their families to enjoy a holiday at home.  When lockdown loosened up we provided for small receptions and group holidays at campsites, for example, where our furnished Bell Tents and Giant Tipis were put to good use for group bookings.  In the background we were working with a lot of brides and grooms who had had their plans put back for their weddings and helped them with rescheduling and / or downsizing.  It has been really important to pick up the phone and chat any changes through and stay close to what the client wants, being flexible and reassuring in order to not make our business a problem when they are looking for solutions!

What services have you continued with and what have you changed?

It’s been really pleasing to put our Bell Tents to good use in lock down in the Spring.  Ordinarily we would not open up our business until May at the earliest and now we forecast that in future years it would make sense to work in the earlier Spring months as well, mainly for private events in clients gardens.  We will always look to provide our Giant Tipis for large reception spaces for corporate events and weddings but we have found they are popular for smaller scale celebrations too.  We have also helped venues make use of their outside spaces, by providing our Giant Tipis in Pub Beer Gardens for example.  This year we have been invited to create pop up campsites for landowners and are really excited to set up our flagship site at South Farm in Rodmell.  Here we will have a Giant Tipi for communal space and accommodate guests in Furnished Bell Tents with woodburners, set in the beautiful backdrop of the Sussex Downs.

What have been your biggest challenges?

There have been so many in such a short space of time and there have been businesses in our industry that have not survived.  We always have the challenge of recruiting likeminded crew to deliver exceptional service.  Because we are a seasonal business we have some new faces on board year on year.  Storage of our equipment and ‘mothballing’ over the winter months, constantly re-evaluating, looking at costs in the absence of ‘normal income’ and planning for different covid and non covid scenarios has been highly on our minds. Being in contact with our clients throughout the last 12 months has really been key in delivering what they need, if not for now then in the future.  With a surge in interest with staycations and outdoor events, we have been on a big buying programme to satisfy demand for this year.  It has been important for us to appropriately time our commitments to take bookings and make purchases whilst thinking about what might or might not be possible this year.

What does the future hold for Beau and Bell?

We have built a really good relationship with a manufacturer who can work on some impressive modifications to tents and related furnishings.  This is something that we are taking great pride in as we know the benefits will be huge in terms of cost but also what we know works, making our events a better experience for our clients.  There’s a possibility after this rental season that we would further our range and possibly expand into retail with a niche set of products to offer glampers.  We also want to appeal more to corporates who might want to work with us on, for example, an annual summer drinks receptions – hosting their clients in our Giant Tipis at amazing venues in or around Sussex. 

For information on services Beau and Bell provide please contact Jade on info@beauandbell.co.uk