Pelton's party store doesn't clown around

For the past nearly three decades when people started planning a party, one of their first trips has been to Pelton's Party Rental in Yuba City to pick out everything they could want to make their event memorable.

But that trip wouldn't have been possible except for a lucky draw. Manager Stephanie Bateman said that Norman Pelton, at the time an unhappy Caltrans worker, went with his then-wife and a friend to a party trade show and happened to win 20 banquet linens. She said that, even though the Peltons didn't have an immediate use for the linens, the couple slowly started buying more party things and going to more trade shows until they eventually opened their party supply business and Norman was able to leave state employment.

Bateman said that while the store has always been on Plumas Street for the past 27 years, it has changed location three times, first opening on the west side of the street directly across from its present location, where it moved 12 years ago.

One of the reasons Pelton's Party Rental has had such a long and successful run is its inventory.

"We have anything you'd need to rent — other than karaoke machines, margarita machines and projectors," Bateman said. "People are amazed at what they can get here because they don't realize that this is their one-stop shop. We have the linens, table settings, gazebos, arches, dance floors, canopies, plus all kinds of decorations and party attire."

She said that set-up is included with the rental fee for canopies, arches and dance floors, but chair and table set-up requires an additional fee. Pelton's added the decorating of venues to their repertoire of services this past May.

The store's most popular items are in the "Over the Hill" section. Bateman said those are decorations, hats and the like for events such as parties that are aimed at people in the 30- to 60-year-old range. "No matter how much we order, within about a week it's gone," said the manager.

She said the second-most popular goods are items in solid colors such as colored plates, cups, napkins and linens for parties. But what brings in the most profit are the rentals, which make up about 80 percent of the store's profits.

The store's busiest season runs from late April through September, Bateman said, explaining that their busiest month is May, when every one of their more than 5,000 chairs are put to use because of all the graduation ceremonies and parties.

As with all businesses, there are challenges. For the nine employees at Pelton's, it's keeping up with inventory and keeping up with customers' requests, Bateman said.

It's also working with people to help them understand some of the financial realities of the rental business.

"One thing people don't understand is that when something isn't returned, whether it's lost or damaged, they think they don't have to pay for it." said Bateman, explaining that some of their inventory can only be purchased in packs; so when something is lost, they can't reorder just one fork or one knife — which means the replacement fee is more than just the cost of that single item.

Another issue is when people don't make their rental reservations enough in advance. She said the problem is that much of their stock comes from overseas or out of state, and it can take a couple of weeks to receive the requested materials.

But there's much to like about the party rental business, Bateman said.

"The best part of this business is the people you meet. There are so many different people coming in for weddings, birthdays, funerals and so on. You really get to know a lot about people," she said. "They tend to share their stories about how they met and how that ties into what they're renting."

Pelton's, while interested in profit, also does what it can to help local schools, nonprofits and churches.

"If they (nonprofits) need something like table covers, and we have enough in stock, we will donate the item," Bateman said. "If we're unable to donate, we do offer a 10 percent discount to churches, nonprofits, schools and military — of course. We also do a lot of themed gift baskets for schools and churches that they can use as raffle prizes."

Other than the fact that Harold Pelton still owns the store, Bateman said there's a reason Pelton's has stayed on Plumas Street all these years — it's where the people are. "We get quite a few walk-ins because we're right on Plumas Street, especially on weekends — which is one of the reasons we're open seven days a week."

They've also found the store gets a quite a few people coming in during Yuba City's Summer and Christmas strolls. She said it doesn't matter to them that those people might not buy during those events, because those walk-ins get to see what the store has to offer and will probably come back later.

The Plumas Street beautification and reconstruction project that tore up the street in 2007 and 2008 took a big bite out of Pelton's profits.

"Before the street construction, we were doing really well. But during the two years the street was under construction, no one had access to the store. People didn't want to have to park around the corner and walk," Bateman said. "Even now, we've lost a lot of our customers because people don't want to drive along Plumas Street because it's so narrow and there's no parking."

She said that at this time they're doing about half the business they had before the construction project, admitting that some of the loss is due to the economic situation. "We've never come back to our pre-construction level," the manager said.