How I started my bounce house business <3

As I sat through my 9 to 5 desk job working in an administration office, I decided this was not the life for me. I had a steady pay of $400 a week. I knew there had to be a better way to make a living. I moved to a new city and looked for a new opportunity. The city was more densely populated with families and I saw an opportunity to start a bounce house business.

In June of 2010, I went online to research the prices of commercial bounce houses. I stumbled upon a package deal which would reduce the cost of 2 bounce houses. I used my credit card and purchased the units. After getting the units, I designed a flyer to advertise my business. As an incentive to the consumers, I offered 10 bags of cotton candy included with rental. I put flyers around local parks and on car windshields.

People began to notice my business and after a few months of doing well, I was able to purchase a third unit which was a larger combo bounce house and had a waterslide attached. With the additional revenue created from the third bounce house, I was able to pay off my credit card bill from the purchase of the first two. The slide combo was so successful that I purchased a waterslide. Upon arrival, I noticed it was a different size than I had ordered. I still was able to rent it out to an Air Force base. After, the company came to exchange it for the 16' slide that I was supposed to receive. Noticing how well the waterslide was doing, I decided to order another larger waterslide. This was our biggest yet measuring in at 18' tall!

I realize that my helper and I would not be able handle any slides larger than the 18' slide. The slide weighs about 400 pounds when dry and even more when wet. Waterslides and combos were attracting the most business so I ordered more of them. After a few years of running my business, I had over 20 units available for rent. As business increased we were renting out around 15 bounce houses per weekend. A unit can last up to 3 years before damage inevitably accumulates. As our units got older, I decided to sell them to others to lower the chance of repairing and patching. I sold more units to make it more manageable for myself as well. I tried adding different attractions as well to go with the rentals. I offered tables, chairs, and various concessions. I learned that the work required to set up these extra amenities wasn't worth the profit I was receiving. I decided to put my focus exclusively into the units. While the business was good, our bodies began to pay the price for the hard work. My helper began to have pains in his back. After going to the doctor to receive an MRI, he found out he had 2 herniated disks. He was unable to help after over six and a half years of work with me.