The Great Recession OR Slow News Year

Coming out of the Winter season is always an exciting time in the rental / production world and this year is no different. This last day of February marks the end of playtime, it's time for the busy season. This last year has been an emotional challenge for many Americans due to the constant media attention to the economic meltdown, collapse of the house market, and my favorite exaggeration - the Great Recession! I didn't let the media hacks get me down and I mostly tuned them out and focused on all the good things - such as having the best January ever due to the many Inauguration events happening in DC in 2009. I'm sure if I was writing this from a construction company or auto dealer it would have a different tone.

The Great Recession was great to me for a few reasons which I'll list:
* Fuel prices (gasoline AND diesel) dropped.
* My stock portfolio got beat up, but that's okay, I'm not retiring for a while.
* Interest rates on mortgages dropped and I refinanced without ANY costs to a much lower rate.
* All the vendors I deal with were willing to make a deal to sell more product.
* Purchased a used forklift at a great price and in top notch condition.
* Hired a new employee that was laid off by the county - their loss, my gain.


It's all in the way you look at thing, the glass is half full.

I'm not surprised to report that I'm hearing over and over from customers and vendors - things are really picking up, March and April are VERY busy. I can report the same thing - March and April are looking to be very busy months, but they always are (which I AM thankful for, and I don't mean to sound egotistical). The busy season will feel more hectic than ever because we've come out of the recession finally, sure thing. Many companies, in may industries have made their operations more efficient after years of functioning in the "irrational exuberance" economy that was America.

I was happy and content over the last two years personally and in my business life because my overhead costs were in control. The majority of what you heard about in the media was people in overpriced homes in interest only loans, or similar financial instruments. I've always been conservative with a backup plan, and money in savings to smooth out the bumps. As a result the media hype never got to me and I never really worried about any of it. Business is solid and I'm ready for the busy season, again.

Out with the old

Afterglow Lighting was started in 1998 with the purchase of four Used Intellabeam 700HX fixtures and a I/Beam LCD Controller from Don Turner. When I say that I purchased them from Don I mean that I sat down with him and he told me to draw up a payment schedule and he'd approve it. The next day I drafted the agreement saying that I would pay $2000 up front, and $500/month. Total purchase cost was approximately $5300 for the package, and it was paid on schedule.

Intellabeams were available in the used market because of the introduction of the Technobeam by High End. Since used gear was the only thing I could possibly afford, the tried and true Intallabeam was the ideal moving light for me. I started off doing club work for the Maryland based Pink Floyd tribute band Several Species. After a few shows in the Recher Theatre I started doing corporate work and parties. Other equipment was added to inventory as the cash flow allowed and for many years all income was 100% reinvested. (I had a fulltime day job at the time)

In the year 2000 the *new* Hammerjacks night club was buying used gear to outfit its reincarnation. I sold my four Intellabeams after 2+ years of steady work through the lighting company doing most of the sales for the club. If I recall correctly I got $800/fixture which wasn't much depreciation for 2+ years. My four I/Beams went several others to Hammerjacks for it's short lived existence. From what I understand, Cancun Cantina purchased all of the Hammerjack's Intellabeams at auction, and now they sit a warehouse at Cancun Cantina.

For the first time in the company history I sold perfectly good moving lights to turn around and pay more than double for the new version of the same thing. In September of 2000 I responded to market demand and sold off my Intellabeams to purchase new Technobeam Iris fixtures. My timing was pretty good because I skipped the first version that didn't include an iris.

Just under ten years later it's time to sell the ever reliable Technobeams. We only built up an inventory of six units due to the popularity of moving head fixtures, but they have been a pleasure to own. I listed the Technobeams (and some hard working Trackspots) this morning on GearSource.com with a sense of nostalgia. I'll be sad to see them go because they work great and have always been reliable, but for what we do now it's not the right fit. So we'll sell the Technobeams for under $1300 then invest the money into more Martin Mac 700 Profiles at over $7800 each.

I'll refine the sales plan to "Sell Technobeams and buy CASES for Mac 700s"