Marquee Hire Stock Tracking That Works From Anywhere
North Down Marquees switched from paper folders and Excel to GoodEvent Business in 2022. Now Margaret can track stock remotely, quote before leaving a client driveway, and say yes to more jobs.
Before & After GoodEvent at North Down Marquees
Before
- Everything was paper-based - physical folders, printed documents, no remote access
- Quotes were built in Excel - slow, error-prone, and tied to the office
- Decimal point errors in Excel could cost thousands on a single generator quote
- Checking stock availability meant phone calls and guesswork
- Responding to enquiries was slow - competitors replied first
After
- Stock, orders, and kit availability tracked remotely from any device
- Quotes built in minutes from phone, tablet, or laptop - anywhere
- The system calculates pricing automatically - no manual data entry errors
- Availability visible instantly - no phone calls, no guessing
- Margaret sent a complete quote before leaving a client driveway - and won the job
Marquee Hire Stock Tracking That Works From Anywhere
North Down Marquees has been one of Northern Ireland most established marquee hire companies for over 40 years. Based in Northern Ireland, NDM supplies marquees, furniture, dance floors, stages, generators, and portable toilets for events across the region. With a team of around 35 staff and a wide range of kit to manage, keeping track of stock and quoting accurately had always been a challenge.
Margaret McNair-Robinson joined as Senior Project Manager in 2019. What she found was a business running entirely on paper.
The Problem: Paper Folders, Excel Errors, and No Way to Work Remotely
In Margaret's words: "When I joined in 2019, everything was paper-based. We needed a digital solution - something live and accessible from anywhere. Since we travel frequently and I am rarely in the office, a cloud-based system was essential."
Every quote was built in Excel. Every document was printed. Stock checks meant phone calls. If you were off-site, you were working blind.
The risks were real. A misplaced decimal point in an Excel formula could mean quoting a generator hire at the wrong price - potentially costing the business thousands on a single job. There was no automated calculation, no live stock view, no way to know at a glance what kit was available without ringing the yard.
And when a client called asking for a quote, NDM could not always respond quickly. Their competitors could. Speed matters in marquee hire. The first quote in a client's inbox often wins the job.
For a 40-year-old business with a strong reputation, the gap between their operational ability and client expectations was growing.
What Changed: GoodEvent Business
Stock Tracking From Anywhere
GoodEvent Business gave the NDM team a live dashboard they could access from a phone, tablet, or laptop - anywhere, at any time. No more ringing the yard to check availability. No more printed sheets that went out of date the moment something changed.
As Margaret puts it: "Tracking stock, orders and availability of kit remotely has made our quoting much more efficient. The tool has allowed us to say yes to more jobs, taking a lot less time to plan and organise."
With real-time stock availability visible across the business, the answer to "do we have it?" went from a phone call and a wait to an instant check. That speed flows directly into quoting.
Faster Quotes, Fewer Errors
GoodEvent Business replaced Excel entirely for quoting. Pricing calculates automatically. Items link directly to stock. When a quote converts to a booking, everything - inventory, scheduling, invoicing - updates in one place via integrated quote management.
The error risk that came with manual spreadsheet entry is gone. "Previously, manual data entry errors on Excel could cost us thousands - like misplacing a decimal point in a generator quote. Now, the system calculates everything accurately, ensuring we do not undercharge."
Quotes also include product images so clients can see exactly what they are booking. No more back-and-forth asking what a particular item looks like.
The Quote That Won the Job
One moment captures what changed at NDM better than anything else.
Margaret was on a site visit for a high-end wedding. She was up against well-known competitors. While still on-site, she built a complete quote with images and pricing using GoodEvent Business on her phone - and sent it before she left the client driveway.
"The client had my quote and phone number in their inbox before my competitors had even left their office. We won the contract because we were first to respond."
That is what mobile quoting does in practice. It turns a site visit into a closed booking.
One Live System for Office and Site
With everyone working from the same live information, the miscommunication that used to happen between office and site stopped. Changes made in the field appear instantly for the office team. Invoices reflect what actually happened on the job. The load lists that go out to the yard are always current.
NDM also uses GoodEvent Layout to produce floor plans that attach directly to client quotes - giving customers a clear visual of their event setup before they commit.
The Result
Since NDM made the switch in 2022, the difference has been tangible - not just internally, but with clients.
A well-known event organiser who had worked with NDM for over 20 years called specifically to praise the new quoting process. He loved the clarity of the quotes, the product images, and the speed of response. That kind of feedback is rare. It shows the client experience improved alongside the operational one.
As Margaret says: "Since we took the leap in 2022, GoodEvent has been a game changer for us here at NDM. The constant support from the team has made the transition a lot easier than we first anticipated. Tracking stock, orders and availability of kit remotely has made our quoting much more efficient. The tool has allowed us to say yes to more jobs, taking a lot less time to plan and organise."
A 40-year-old business that ran entirely on paper now runs on a live system that goes wherever the team goes.
Try It Yourself
If you are running a marquee hire company on spreadsheets and paper folders, NDM's story is probably familiar. The good news is the switch is simpler than it sounds - GoodEvent Business is built specifically for the events hire industry, and the NDM team were up and running without the disruption they feared.
Track your stock remotely. Quote faster. Win more jobs.