Stop the press! We have just purchased our very own, shiny new, Archery Games vehicle that will transport us to your Archery Tag events each week!
We have been using our own cars – a sedan and tiny hatchback, as well as borrowing a van from family to help get us around Sydney for event bookings. We've done this for almost 2 years now, ever since we started Archery Games, became licensees and brought out the equipment from the U.S.. But way back then, at the end of 2013 and even into 2014, we were newbies, just starting out. We had the bare minimum of equipment, just what we needed to set up and run Archery Tag games for everyone.
Oh since then we have come so far...
We had known for a while that since our business was expanding, both in terms of equipment and demand for events, that we were soon going to be looking at getting a purpose made vehicle such as a van. We contemplated using a trailer, but then we knew we had equipment that was long, and heavy, and would possibly not even fit in a trailer. Our tear drop flags that surround the field for example, are about 2.3m long! Since we started we've added things like purpose made weights, flags, barricades, containers, more masks and bags, a sound system and more to our resources, so we definitely needed more space.
Also, we've relied on our beautiful family and their van to help transport our gear to and from events, every weekend even sometimes during the week, and we can't keep doing that forever. Time to insert a huge "thank you!" to Paula and Mario who have helped us tirelessly to get to this point.
We drove into the Toyota dealership in Castle Hill this week, with a mix of excitement and trepidation. Which vehicle to choose? How much was this going to cost us? Can we afford it? Do we realllly need it? The lovely Tom, a young gentleman from the U.K. took us to see a few different types, but the Toyota Hiace stole our hearts. It's spacious, sturdy and strong. Fits everything we need. Looks new. Smells new... We were like TAKE MY MONEY, MAN.
Anyway, skipping over the boring details of cost, insurance, etc. etc., we were stoked to hear the words "You're approved!" and then, "Sign here and here and here." I don't think I've ever seen such a huge grin on Alex's face.
We took photos, selfies, recorded a quick video, more grinning, and finally were able to drive our precious new van out of the dealership and home. And if you don't mind a bit of fluffy stuff... bringing the van home was like a symbol of our hard work, sweat and tears, light bulb moments in the middle of the night, and our constant strive to improve our service when bringing this insane new combat sport of Archery Tag to you guys.
I'm so proud of us, and in particular of Alex, for getting Archery Games to this point where we are able to give you an amazing experience right from when we pull up in our (shiny new) van and unload the gear! So watch out for us when you next book an event...
Next step... to get this baby wrapped!