South Bay Events

What South Bay Events does

South Bay Events, doing business as Live Screen Printing and operating under the legal name Rival Events – Live Screen Printing, is a private experiential marketing and event activation services provider headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company's core offering is on-site live customization of merchandise — primarily screen printing on apparel and tote bags, supplemented by mobile embroidery for hats and accessories, and custom laser engraving for drinkware, leather goods, and hard goods. Mobile equipment is transported to client event venues, where attendees watch their custom designs produced in real time, transforming standard event giveaways into interactive, shareable experiences.

The customer base spans three primary horizontal segments: corporate events and B2B activations (trade shows, corporate holiday parties, executive retreats, product launches), festivals and cultural events, and consumer brand activations. The company delivers service across five U.S. metropolitan markets — Los Angeles (regional headquarters), New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and Denver — using a direct sales motion with custom quote-based pricing, phone-based inbound (888-810-0705), email inquiries, and organic content marketing via its website and Instagram. The company is privately held, has 1–10 employees, has no disclosed institutional funding, and operates as a labor-intensive project-based services business rather than a software or platform company.

Name

South Bay Events

Legal name

Rival Events - Live Screen Printing

Website

https://southbayevents.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

South Bay Events (DBA Live Screen Printing) is a private event activation services provider that brings on-site live screen printing, mobile embroidery, and laser engraving to corporate events, festivals, and brand activations across five major U.S. metros.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Experiential Marketing & Live Event Customization Services

NAICS

Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Trade Shows & Exhibitions (Booths, Show Management) (BPAFAGAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Party Favors, Gifts & Custom Merchandise (HSACACAM)

Keywords

• Live screen printing
• On-site embroidery
• Laser engraving events
• Brand activation services
• Experiential marketing

Headquarters

HQ city

El Segundo

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Live Printing Services: On-site live screen printing services at events where attendees customize and receive printed merchandise. Revenue generated from service fees for mobile printing operations at corporate events, trade shows, festivals, and brand activations.
2. Mobile Embroidery Services: On-site embroidery services providing live customization of hats, apparel, and accessories at events. Revenue from service delivery at event locations.
3. Branded Merchandise Sales: Sale of high-quality branded merchandise including premium items like Stanley cups, drinkware, and custom-printed apparel created during events.
4. Corporate and VIP Gifting: Premium gifting services for corporate executives and VIP events including personalized and engraved products.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

South Bay Events provides mobile on-site customization services for live events, deploying screen printing presses, embroidery machines, and laser engraving equipment directly to client venues. Attendees at trade shows, corporate events, festivals, and brand activations personalize apparel, hats, drinkware, and accessories in real time. The company also delivers experiential marketing activations and corporate/VIP gifting programs built around these live customization capabilities.

Product overview

South Bay Events operates as a live experiential marketing and event activation company offering a portfolio of on-site customization services. The core offering centers on live screen printing technology, complemented by mobile embroidery, custom laser engraving, and various branded merchandise solutions. The services are offered as individual activation stations (Live Screen Printing, On-Site Mobile Embroidery, Custom Laser Engraving, Hat Bar Customization) that can be deployed at events including trade shows, corporate events, festivals, and brand activations. Customers can choose from pre-approved designs or custom-branded options, with all printing and customization happening live at the event venue.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Live Screen Printing On-site screen printing service that brings printing equipment directly to events so attendees can select pre-designed artwork or custom-branded options and watch their designs printed live on t-shirts, tote bags, and other apparel. Used by corporate event planners, trade show organizers, and festival producers.
• On-Site Mobile Embroidery Mobile embroidery service that customizes hats, apparel, and accessories in front of guests at events, trade shows, and brand activations. Delivers premium embroidered merchandise on-site rather than shipping it after the event.
• Custom Laser Engraving On-Site On-site laser engraving service that personalizes metal drinkware, leather goods, and hard accessories with names, logos, and custom designs in real time. Used for corporate gifting, experiential marketing, and live events.
• Hat Bar Customization Events Interactive hat bar stations set up at events where guests personalize headwear with branded designs, colors, and custom artwork in real time. Combines a live customization experience with branded merchandise output.
• Corporate, Executive, and VIP Gifting Premium gifting service that produces high-quality personalized and engraved merchandise for corporate executives, VIPs, and senior stakeholders at corporate events and executive gatherings.
• Branded Marketing Giveaways & Promotional Swag Customizable branded merchandise and promotional swag solutions produced live at marketing events, trade shows, and corporate gatherings to boost brand visibility through wearable, personalized items.
• Brand Activations & Immersive Experiences Interactive brand activation services that combine live entertainment with on-site merchandise customization to create immersive experiences for audiences at consumer-facing events, retail activations, and brand campaigns.
• Trade Show Booth Giveaway Items Specialized merchandise service for trade show and expo booths that delivers live-customized, interactive giveaway items designed to increase booth traffic and attendee engagement.
• Corporate Events, Summits & Retreats Service package for corporate gatherings, summits, and retreats that combines live merchandise customization with experiential marketing elements to support team building, executive events, and internal corporate programming.
• Customized Festival Merchandise Festival-specific merchandise customization service for music festivals and large-scale public events, producing trendy, memorable, and customizable items that boost attendee engagement and brand visibility.
• Experiential Marketing Services Full-service experiential marketing offering that combines interactive entertainment with on-site branded merchandise customization to engage audiences at B2B events, brand activations, and trade shows.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Custom Ink: Online custom apparel and merchandise platform (t-shirts, hats, totes); comparable in the custom-branded merchandise space though delivered via e-commerce rather than on-site.
• Momentum Worldwide: Global experiential marketing agency producing live activations, festivals, and corporate events for major brands; competes in the same experiential and brand activation category.
• MKG: Independent experiential marketing agency producing brand experiences, events, and activations for consumer and B2B brands — comparable service offering and target buyer.
• Sparks: Global experiential marketing agency that designs and produces live brand activations, trade show experiences, and corporate events — overlapping directly with South Bay Events' experiential and event activation services.
• George P. Johnson (GPJ): Large experiential marketing agency focused on trade shows, conferences, and live brand experiences — comparable customer base (enterprise marketing teams) and live-event execution model.
• Jack Morton: Established brand experience agency producing immersive event activations, trade show experiences, and corporate events; competes for the same corporate event-planner and brand-activation budgets.

Broad incumbents

• HALO: Large branded merchandise and corporate gifting provider serving enterprise clients; comparable in the branded swag and VIP gifting categories though operating at much larger scale.
• 4imprint: Large established promotional products company selling branded merchandise to businesses; overlaps in the branded merchandise and trade show giveaway categories at much greater scale.
• Vistaprint: Mass-market custom printing and marketing services platform; broader portfolio but overlaps in custom-printed apparel and promotional products used for events and small business marketing.

Emerging players

• Swag.com: Digital platform for custom branded merchandise and corporate swag — adjacent offering serving the same B2B buyers with a software-led model rather than on-site live production.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/rivalscreenprinting
• Facebookfacebook.com/SBE.page
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/south-bay-events-inc.

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about South Bay Events