Dry hire suits venues that want to keep their operating load light and let the organiser build the event with their own suppliers; full service suits venues that want to capture the whole spend and control quality end to end. In practice, most event venues live somewhere in between, in a hybrid model they did not always choose: approved caterers, mandatory AV, corkage fees. The problem is that the model is usually inherited rather than calculated, and it weighs on every quote, every contract and every operating day.
This article sets out the definitions, compares the economics of each model (margin, average deal size, team load, risk), shows which one fits which type of venue and team, describes how to move from one to another, and details what the choice changes in your terms and conditions and in your quotes.
Dry hire, full service, hybrid: what are we actually talking about?
Dry hire means renting an empty space: walls, floor, access, sometimes basic furniture and utilities. The organiser brings the caterer, the sound and lighting, the décor and the staff. The venue charges a hire fee, possibly plus service charges (cleaning, security, energy), and steps back from production. This is the model of many warehouses, industrial spaces, community halls and some country estates.
Full service includes everything: space, food and beverage, AV, furniture, on-the-day coordination, sometimes accommodation. The venue sells a complete package, priced per head or as a flat fee. It owns quality end to end and collects the whole spend. This is the model of MICE hotels, conference centres and many estates that have their own kitchens and a permanent team.
The three most common hybrid forms
Between the two, three mechanisms show up everywhere. Approved caterers: the organiser picks from a short list, and the venue takes a commission, usually 10 to 15%. Mandatory AV: one exclusive technical supplier, justified by safety and knowledge of the building. Corkage: the organiser brings their own drinks and pays a fee per bottle or per guest. Each one shifts a little margin and a little responsibility back to the venue.
What does each model really bring in? Margin, deal size, workload, risk
In dry hire, revenue per event is low but the margin on that revenue is high: few variable costs, no food purchasing, no service staff. The average deal is limited to the hire fee plus a few extras (cleaning, furniture, parking). A 100-person corporate event on dry hire often brings the venue €2,000 to €6,000, where the same event on full service can exceed €15,000.
In full service, the deal is three to five times bigger, but net margin is calculated after food and beverage purchasing, staff, AV subcontracting and breakage. In the field, a well-run full-service venue makes a lower net margin per event in percentage terms than a dry hire venue, but a far higher one in absolute value. The full calculation is laid out in our method for calculating event profitability.
Team load and risk follow the same slope. Dry hire: one person can handle several events a week, and the main risk is damage to the building. Full service: you need a kitchen brigade, floor staff and a coordinator, and the risk sits in perceived quality, late cancellations with purchases already committed, and dependence on a handful of suppliers. The hybrid model tries to capture part of the spend without carrying the whole load, with commission as the adjustment lever; on that point, average deal size in B2B events and its upsell levers gives benchmarks by segment.
Comparison table: dry hire, hybrid, full service
The table below sums up the differences on the criteria that matter when you decide. It does not say which model is better: it says what each model demands of you.
| Criterion | Dry hire | Hybrid | Full service |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average deal per event | Low (hire fee + extras) | Medium (hire fee + commissions + AV) | High (complete package) |
| Margin as % of revenue | High | Medium | Lower, but high in absolute value |
| Headcount required | 1 to 2 people | 2 to 4 people | Permanent team + casuals |
| Main risk | Damage, organiser non-compliance | Partner quality | Perceived quality, cancellations with committed purchases |
| Control over guest experience | Low | Partial | Total |
| Quote complexity | Simple, flat fee | Medium (extras, commissions) | High (per head, menus, variants) |
| Sales cycle | Short | Medium | Long, several rounds |
A venue that is unsure can read this table line by line and tick where it stands today. If three lines or more pull towards a different model than the one shown on the website, the question deserves a serious look.
Which model fits your type of venue and your team?
The building settles part of the question. A venue with no professional kitchen, no storage and no floor staff cannot sell full service without subcontracting, which amounts to a hybrid in disguise. Conversely, a hotel with a restaurant and a brigade that sells its rooms on dry hire leaves a large share of revenue on the table, and complicates coordination with outside caterers working in its own kitchens.
The team weighs as much as the walls. A two-person structure running a castle or an industrial space is better off staying on dry hire or a light hybrid: every added service is a skill to hire, schedule and guarantee. A team of ten with a food and beverage manager and a technical manager can carry full service and extract the absolute-value margin that justifies those salaries.
Venues whose value lies in their character (heritage, industrial, open air) often do best with the hybrid: the space attracts, approved caterers secure quality, mandatory AV protects the building. How to sell that difference is covered in our article on atypical venues and their commercial argument. Classic function rooms, often in head-to-head competition, gain from choosing a legible positioning rather than switching between models depending on the day's enquiry; the way Joinways supports function and reception venues starts from that observation: a clear offer gets priced faster.
How do you move from one model to another without breaking your business?
Moving from dry hire to hybrid is the most frequent and least risky move. It starts with a short list of three to five approved caterers, chosen for consistency more than price, with a written agreement on commission, clean-up and shared responsibilities. Building that network is described in our guide to managing suppliers and caterers. It continues with mandatory or recommended AV, then a few in-house extras: furniture, cloakroom, welcome coffee.
Moving from hybrid to full service is a jump in scale: investment in a kitchen or an exclusive partnership, hiring, stock management, food safety liability. In the field, venues that succeed do it in stages: small formats first (meetings under 40 people, breakfasts), then dinners, then large events. Each stage is validated over a season before the next one starts.
The reverse move, from full service to dry hire, also exists: venues that lose their chef, downsized teams, a wish to simplify. It requires renegotiating terms and conditions, rewriting the spec sheet and warning repeat clients. A clear and complete venue spec sheet then becomes the central sales document, since it is what tells the organiser what they will need to bring and what is provided.
What the model changes in your terms and conditions and your quotes
On full service, the quote is a long document: guest count, menus, drinks, AV, staff, timings, extras, rules for revising the number of attendees. The terms and conditions govern the guaranteed number, allergies, service, overtime. On dry hire, the quote is short, but the terms need to be more precise, because the venue no longer controls what happens inside its walls. The 8 essential clauses of terms and conditions for event venues remain the base, to be completed according to the model.
The quote also reflects the model. A hybrid venue must be able to show clearly what is included, what is optional, what is billed by a third party and what goes through corkage. That is where quotes get complicated and errors creep in: a forgotten commission, a per-head price applied to the wrong number, an extra counted twice. Structuring your event quotes with standardised lines and options reduces that risk and shortens response time.
The points to lock down contractually on dry hire
- The exact scope of what is provided: spaces, furniture, utilities, access, parking, with everything else explicitly excluded.
- The hire hours, including build and breakdown, with the rate for each additional hour.
- The check-in and check-out inspection, done jointly and signed, with photos, and the amount of the security deposit.
- The organiser's and their suppliers' obligation to carry public liability insurance, with a certificate provided before the event.
- The rules that apply to outside suppliers: access, delivery hours, use of kitchens, waste management.
- The technical limits of the building: electrical capacity, floor loading, noise levels, rigging points, and who checks them.
- Cleaning and reinstatement: who does it, within what timeframe, and at what price if the venue has to take it on.
- The cancellation and postponement regime, with a dated scale, and what happens to the deposit.
- Liability for damage caused by one of the organiser's suppliers, and the venue's recourse.
These points do not lengthen the quote: they live in the terms and conditions and in the hire contract. The quote stays short, which is precisely the advantage of dry hire for an organiser comparing several venues.
Frequently asked questions about dry hire and full service
- Can you offer both models in the same venue?
- Yes, as long as the offer stays legible: dry hire on weekdays for meetings, full service at weekends for receptions, or dry hire for one space and full service for another. The risk is selling case by case, which lengthens every quote. Set simple rules and put them on the spec sheet.
- What commission should you ask from an approved caterer?
- In the field, the most common range is 10 to 15% of the caterer's invoiced amount before tax, sometimes less for large regular volumes. Above that, the caterer passes it on to the client and your venue looks expensive. Some venues prefer a fixed fee per event, which is simpler to control.
- Is dry hire less profitable than full service?
- In absolute value, yes: the deal is smaller. In margin percentage and per hour of team work, often not. The right comparison is annual net margin relative to headcount and capital employed, not revenue per event.
- Is corkage compatible with a full-service venue?
- Yes, it is common for weddings and private events. The fee per bottle or per guest covers service, glassware and the lost margin on drinks. Specify in the terms what is accepted (wine, sparkling) and what is not (spirits, soft drinks), and who serves.