Elegant Event Lighting
Elegant Event Lighting is a Schaumburg, Illinois-based event lighting and draping rental company founded in 2009, serving wedding couples, corporate event planners, and private hosts across the Greater Chicagoland area with custom lighting, chandelier, dance floor, and draping installations bundled with design and on-site production services.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersSchaumburg, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Elegant Event Lighting does
Elegant Event Lighting is a privately held, founder-owned event production company founded in 2009 and headquartered at 630 Morse Ave, Schaumburg, Illinois. The company designs, rents, and installs premium event lighting, chandeliers, uplighting, Pinspots, string lights, custom gobo/monogram projections, LED and vinyl dance floors, ceiling and ceremony draping, and staging for weddings, corporate events, galas, fundraisers, and private celebrations in the Greater Chicagoland area. All services are delivered as bundled packages that include consultation, custom design, equipment rental, professional installation, on-site management, and teardown.
The company's core technology is professional-grade event lighting equipment combined with bespoke design services; there is no software platform, no proprietary AI, and no digital product — the offering is fundamentally a physical rental-and-installation service. Production capabilities span chandelier installations, uplighting, gobo projections, fabric draping, and staging, executed by a team of approximately 11-50 people including an Owner (Jay Sims), Business Development (Tamara Sims), Operations Manager (Jane Busila), Creative Director (Luke Zimmer), Employee Development Lead (Katie Hanck), Warehouse Supervisor (Brandon Rodriguez), and Fabric Lead (Alina Orlova).
The business model is a proposal-based, consultative sales motion targeting clients in the $8,000 to $15,000+ budget range. Clients request proposals through the company website or by phone, receive a custom quote covering materials, design, labor, installation, and teardown, and pay a non-refundable retainer of 20-50% of the gross contract value to secure the booking, with the balance due 30 days before the event. Revenue is generated primarily through one-time event rentals plus professional design services. Distribution runs through direct inbound leads, venue referrals from approved-vendor partnerships at premier Chicago venues (Four Seasons, Peninsula, Ritz-Carlton, Chicago Botanic Garden, Adler Planetarium, Drake Hotel, Langham, Theater on the Lake), and an active Instagram and blog presence. The company has no disclosed institutional investors, no funding rounds, and operates as a self-sustaining independent business.
Elegant Event Lighting firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Elegant Event Lighting
- Legal name
- Elegant Event Lighting
- Website
- https://eelchicago.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Elegant Event Lighting is a Schaumburg, Illinois-based event lighting and draping rental company founded in 2009, serving wedding couples, corporate event planners, and private hosts across the Greater Chicagoland area with custom lighting, chandelier, dance floor, and draping installations bundled with design and on-site production services.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Elegant Event Lighting industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Event Lighting Rental Services
- NAICS
- Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries (711)
- SIC
- Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Lighting Design & Lighting Equipment Rentals (THAHAEAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Event Lighting Decor (Uplighting, String Lights, Effects) (HSACAOAE), Lighting & Power Rentals (Uplighting, Generators, Distribution) (HSACAFAE), Event Decor Design & Styling (HSACAOAB)
Keywords
Where Elegant Event Lighting is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Schaumburg
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Elegant Event Lighting business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Event Lighting Rentals: Rental of lighting equipment including chandeliers, uplighting, pinspots, string lights, and dance floors for weddings, corporate events, and private celebrations. Equipment rental includes professional installation and teardown services.
- Custom Lighting Design Services: Consultation and design services creating bespoke lighting plans tailored to venue specifications and event requirements. Includes design planning, fixture selection, installation, and on-site support.
- Drapery and Décor Rentals: Ceiling draping, fabric backdrops, ceremony draping, and tent draping services for venue transformation and ambiance creation.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Multi-year contract | Standard Event Lighting Package |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Multi-year contract | Event Proposal and Booking |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
Elegant Event Lighting product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Elegant Event Lighting rents and installs event lighting (chandeliers, uplighting, pinspots, string lights, gobo projections), dance floors (LED and vinyl), draping (ceiling, wall, fabric backdrops), and staging for weddings, corporate events, and private celebrations in the greater Chicago area. Each engagement includes custom lighting design, professional installation, on-site management, and teardown as an all-inclusive package, with a service minimum of $8,000 per event.
Product overview
Elegant Event Lighting operates as a single unified service offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core product is comprehensive event lighting rentals and design services, encompassing wedding lighting, corporate event lighting, dance floor rentals (LED and vinyl variants), draping services, custom lighting design, outdoor event lighting, and staging rentals. All services include professional installation and teardown. The product portfolio centers on transforming event venues through chandeliers, uplighting, Pinspots, string lights, fabric draping, custom gobo/monogram projections, and dance floor installations. The company serves primarily the Chicago metropolitan area with a service minimum of $8,000.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Event Lighting Rentals
Quantifiable outcome
- Transformed venue spaces with professional lighting creating memorable experiences as evidenced by client testimonials
Companies that use Elegant Event Lighting
Customer profileNamed customers11 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Elegant Event Lighting technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Elegant Event Lighting partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators1 record
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Elegant Event Lighting competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- CORT Events: CORT Events offers event furniture rental and tradeshow services nationwide for weddings, corporate events, and exhibitions — comparable to EEL in event rental distribution and customer base, but specialized in furniture and tradeshow infrastructure rather than lighting-led design.
- Encore Event Technologies: Encore is the largest provider of event technology, AV, and venue services in North America with embedded venue partnerships across hotels and convention centers — comparable to EEL through venue-driven distribution and event service delivery, though much broader in capability and national scale.
- BBJ (La Tavola): BBJ La Tavola is a national event linen and tabletop décor rental company serving luxury weddings, galas, and corporate events — comparable to EEL in luxury event décor focus and venue-driven distribution, but specialized in linen versus lighting-led design.
Direct peers
- Marquee Event Group: Marquee Event Group provides event rental equipment including lighting, draping, flooring, and staging for weddings and corporate events — comparable to EEL as a multi-line event rental provider serving similar customer segments with venue-driven distribution.
- Hensley Event Resources: Hensley Event Resources is an event rental company offering lighting, tents, furniture, flooring, and décor for weddings and corporate events — overlapping directly with EEL's lighting rental and decor bundling for premium events, though broader in product scope and based in the Southwest.
- Event Source: Event Source is a Midwest-based event rental company offering lighting, draping, flooring, and furniture for weddings, corporate, and social events — comparable to EEL in product mix, customer type, and bundled service delivery.
- Party Reflections: Party Reflections provides tent, furniture, lighting, and décor rentals for weddings and corporate events in the mid-Atlantic — sharing EEL's event-rental-plus-design model and venue-approved approach with comparable B2B-couple client mix.
- Quest Events: Quest Events is a nationwide event lighting and production company designing and installing custom lighting, fabric treatments, and décor for corporate events, weddings, and galas — directly mirroring EEL's core event-lighting-rental-plus-design offering, but at multi-market scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Elegant Event Lighting social profiles
Digital presenceElegant Event Lighting financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Elegant Event Lighting leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Elegant Event Lighting funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Elegant Event Lighting M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Elegant Event Lighting
What does Elegant Event Lighting do?
Elegant Event Lighting rents and installs event lighting (chandeliers, uplighting, pinspots, string lights, gobo projections), dance floors (LED and vinyl), draping (ceiling, wall, fabric backdrops), and staging for weddings, corporate events, and private celebrations in the greater Chicago area. Each engagement includes custom lighting design, professional installation, on-site management, and teardown as an all-inclusive package, with a service minimum of $8,000 per event.
Is Elegant Event Lighting a public or private company?
Elegant Event Lighting is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Elegant Event Lighting founded?
Elegant Event Lighting was founded in 2009. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Elegant Event Lighting based?
Elegant Event Lighting is headquartered in Schaumburg, United States, in the North America region.
How does Elegant Event Lighting make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Event Lighting Rentals are the primary driver. The others are custom Lighting Design Services and drapery and Décor Rentals.
Who are Elegant Event Lighting's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are CORT Events, Encore Event Technologies and BBJ (La Tavola). Direct peers are Marquee Event Group, Hensley Event Resources, Event Source, Party Reflections and Quest Events.
Does Elegant Event Lighting have an API?
No public API is recorded for Elegant Event Lighting.
What industry is Elegant Event Lighting in?
Elegant Event Lighting's product category is Event Lighting Rental Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAHAEAB, Lighting Design & Lighting Equipment Rentals, with a secondary code of HSACAOAE, Event Lighting Decor (Uplighting, String Lights, Effects). Its NAICS code is 711 and its SIC code is 7990.