A bounce house company will receive a city-backed loan to develop a place to store their equipment.
The Jamestown Local Development Corporation was asked to consider a loan for Fire Guys Bounce Houses and Party Rentals LLC to help them get a headquarters to run their business in the city.
The business is run by three firefighters, and two — Mick Madden and Michael Willis — were in attendance at this week’s JLDC meeting. The business started out in 2022 with three bounce houses. In 2023 it grew to 16 bounce houses, including some with obstacle courses, which Stephanie Wright, Jamestown economic development coordinator, said was the most popular type of house rented for the business.
More recently, the business has also added Christmas lights to what owners have available to rent out.
“They have become certified Christmas light hangers,” Wright said. “So, last year they started hanging, maintaining, storing after they take them down, and that was a huge boost in their business. In 2023 they saw revenues of $98,000.”
The business has no debt or overhanging expenses except for business insurance on the truck that they already own. The loan the business owners are asking for allows them a place to keep their business.
“Right now the business itself operates out of Lakewood on Winch Road, which is Mick’s house,” Wright said. “They are storing their equipment in and kind of renting from a friend and that opportunity is going away. So, they’re looking to move into their own permanent headquarters and a permanent site for storage.”
Fire Guys Bounce Houses is looking to move into 270 Steele St., which Wright said is right under the Third Street bridge. The building has three bays, which are three separate places for lease. One is owned by Williams Fabricating, which is a business that has been in the area for a long time. There is no real start up cost, though the business will be doing some exterior painting, rearranging, and putting up signage. They will have some lease payments.
Fire Guys asked for a loan of $97,600, which Wright said is a bit more than what is normally done for a small business development loan, but she added that not everyone has the same needs and that there are different needs in different places. It will be a 10-year loan at four percent interest. Chautauqua Opportunities is also involved in the loan, and will be taking the loan to its board for approval today.
Wright said the loan does fit the qualification of their small business loan. Mayor Kim Ecklund said a question was raised about making sure that the loan was not given out without a written legal letter from Corporation Counsel Elliot Raimondo, who was not in attendance because he was at a conference. The board approved the loan and will work on the final paperwork with Raimondo.
Based in New York, Stephen Freeman is a Senior Editor at Trending Insurance News. Previously he has worked for Forbes and The Huffington Post. Steven is a graduate of Risk Management at the University of New York.