Events & Tents began at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 4, with an optional tour of Event Rental in Gretna, La., an American Rental Association (ARA) member store with a 60,000-sq.-ft. warehouse, and Event Restroom, an affiliate company. Tickets for the industry tour were sold out by Dec. 1, but those who signed up said the tour was a great way to kick off The Rental Show.

Event Rental, Gretna, La., is owned by G. Richard Young, and Event Restroom is owned by his brother, Steven Young. Over the past 10 years, the Youngs have been involved in many facets of the event industry, from disaster operations to movie releases, renting right through Hurricane Katrina, the aftermath and rebirth of the area and recent oil spills.

Event Restroom sits on seven acres, and includes everything from showers to restroom trailers, something many rental stores have requests for. Event Rental’s Gretna location is just a few minutes away, and includes several buildings’ worth of inventory. “For us, it was great,” says Brandon Ahlgren, owner, Elite Events & Rentals, Safety Harbor, Fla. “I love seeing how motivated Richard is. The way they did their shelving really helped me.”

The Youngs recently opened a new location in Lafayette, La., and also recently did a pilot for a reality show, which may air this year, Richard said. "They filmed the pilot at Gretna Fest, where we had 150 tents.”

Events & Tents continues today with a presentation by Richard and Jordan Carbotti of Perfect Surroundings, Newport, R.I., and more seminars.