Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, we provide an appropriate amount of sternos to operate each piece of equipment. If you require
additional sternos, we are happy to sell you additional units.

No. We offer sheet pans as additional rental items for a reasonable charge.

A good estimate is approximately 1.5 glasses per person for the first hour and 1 glass per person every hour following. Please keep in mind the amount and types of beverages being served and your guests preferences when determining the right amount of glassware for your event. 

To allow for your guests to go up for seconds, we recommend 1.25 plates per person. This may vary based on the menu offerings. 

We are able to service rental orders for a variety of guest counts as well as decorative visions. We take
great pride in the consistency of the rental items that we offer and as such, we strongly discourage
having multiple rental companies on site for your event.

We have two showroom locations!

• 150 East 39th Street in New York City
• 145 Main Street in Southampton

Appointments are recommended for both locations.

We do not carry any tents or canopies in our current rental collection.

Our office hours are Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 5:00pm.
Our warehouse operating hours are 9:00am - 5:00pm, however we are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for event-in-progress emergencies.

Our main warehouse is located at 118-130 Railroad Avenue, Paterson, NJ 07501.

We have showroom and design centers located at 150 E 39th Street, New York, NY 10016 and 145 Main Street, Southampton, NY 11968.

Our staff is available to answer your questions via telephone or email.  Email is the quickest way to receive answers to questions when we're not in the office.

Cancellations require 48 hours notice prior to date of service, not day of event. Cancellations made with
less than 48 hours notice are subject to a 50-100% restocking fee.

Items cannot be removed the day prior to delivery.

We want you to be assured that you are not alone in your event planning! Something Different does
have an after-hour emergency number so that you can get in touch with one of our Difference Markers
should an unexpected situation arise. Simply call our main number at 973-742-1779 and listen to the
choices until you hear the selection to be connected to an on-call manager. Press the button and then
wait for a direct connection with an actual LIVE Something Different Senior Difference Maker.

ONLINE We encourage you to visit our website at www.sdpartyrental.com to place your order via our
online login and event cart process.  Submitting an event rental cart only processes quotes, not confirmed orders.  A customer service team member will send you back your quote and review all details with you.  You are not alone in this process!
EMAIL Feel free to contact us for a proposal with all your requirements at info@sdpartyrental.com
PHONE Please note while we are happy to chat on the phone, phone orders can lead to “rental gremlins”…those little things that get misheard and that we consider quite large (i.e. sending the wrong product, wrong color, wrong size). It’s no fun to encounter “rental gremlins.”

Event date

Event start time and end time

Event location and address

Delivery date and times as well as any specific delivery instructions. **For example, is there a freight elevator? Will there be stairs? Are the doors wide enough for whatever equipment you are ordering? How far of a walk is there from the truck to the final drop location of the rentals?

Pickup date and times

Onsite contact and phone number

Do we need a Certificate of Insurance for delivery?

Credit Cards (Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover ) * Please note there is a 4% Processing Fee for all credit card transactions
Domestic Wire transfers and ACH transfers * Please be specific when requesting this option as the banking info is different*

Advance reservations are always recommended to ensure product availability; especially when we are in peak event seasons (September - December and April - June). We recommend placing your reservation at least two weeks prior to the date of your event.

We are happy though to accommodate any orders you may place your order whether one day in advance or up to one year in advance. 

You are strongly encouraged to gives as much as notice as possible especially if this is a large event. Our products are in high demand and we cannot guarantee availability until a deposit is received and the order has been confirmed as a rental reservation. Nevertheless, we will always do our best to accommodate last minute orders as well, subject to availability.

While we encourage all final revisions on an event order be made within 48 hours of the delivery date, we can accept small revisions (items additions) up until noon the day prior to delivery. Items cannot be removed the day prior to delivery.

If you find yourself needing to remove items after the cut-off time, these items will still be charged to the order. For any additions to your order made after the allotted timing, they will be subject to a same-day processing fee, re-run and/or weekend/warehouse opening fee. 

Please log-in using our website portal to create event carts that you can submit for a quote or contact one of our customer service Difference Makers.  Note that we reserve website pricing view only for event professionals such as caterers, planners, designers, florist and venues.

We have many different programs that are designed to reward our most loyal clients. Please contact one of
our Business Development Difference Makers for more details.

Yes, we do tax on rental items, sale items and service fees (including delivery). If you are a tax exempt organization, you must pay with a check or credit card from the organization claiming the exemption and submit both a state 119.1 tax exemption form and 501-C form. 

We have delivery/pick up charges that apply to all orders - please refer to our listing of typical delivery/pick up fees that may be associated with an event. Orders that require more complex delivery/pick up arrangements or arrangements outside our standard business day may incur additional charges.

We will make arrangements with you for delivery and pick up. Any delivery required outside our normal
business hours are subject to additional charges. We make every effort to accommodate your schedule and the venue's requirements. We prefer to arrange delivery one day before your event and pick up one day after your event with the widest windows possible.

We appreciate your patience in the event of unforeseen circumstances that require us to deviate from our
delivery and pickup plans.

Our regular delivery hours are 8am-6pm Monday-Saturday. For an additional charge, delivery and/or pickup service can be provided after hours or on weekends and holidays. Exact time requests are also available for an additional charge.

Yes, we deliver at all times. Our standard delivery and pickup windows are Monday – Saturday 8am –6pm. We offer
additional services such as: Sunday deliveries and pickups, small window deliveries and pickups, after
hours as well as holiday deliveries and pickups for an additional fee. 

We welcome will-call pickups at our warehouse. Please make your reservations in advance by calling or emailing one of our customer service Difference Makers at 973-742-1779.

Something Different Party Rental will be required to set up and take down our stages and dance floors. All other
equipment (tables, chairs, linen, glassware, etc.) is typically handled by the customer. We do provide production services for table, chair and pipe & pipe set-up and break-down at an additional charge. These arrangements MUST
be made prior to delivery and pick-up.

All deliveries and pick-ups that are to first floor locations that the truck can access or with access to elevators are not subject to additional charges.  

If our delivery/pick-up team needs to utilize stairs or has limited access/obstacles to delivery locations there will be additional fees based on those factors. Please discuss with your customer service representative to confirm all delivery & pick-up logistics prior to first delivery. Any of these factors that are not identified when the order was confirmed will be subject to additional fees. 

Typically we allow you 3 days for your rental period. You may receive/pick up the items the day before the event
and return or have them picked-up the day after. For weekend events we would allow drop-off/pick-up Friday and returned or picked up on the following Monday. Please note that this is usually dependent on the venue and their requirements. Should there be a possibility that our rental products will be integrated with another companies', we strongly suggest asking us for an after-hours pickup. You will be responsible for any items not available or missing from pick up, lost or requiring an additional pickup truck at a later time.

All glassware, concession equipment, and food service equipment should be returned without food or beverage inside it, and placed back in the containers/packaging materials in which they were delivered. Please return glassware upside down in their appropriate crates. Charcoal grills must be free of charcoal and ash and cool before being returned.
Propane grills should also be free of excess food.

Absolutely Not! Linens are to be returned as dry as possible and free of food, wax, and debris. Any tears, rips, stains and candle wax damage will be subject to additional fees. SDPR provides orange linen bags, we ask that you do your best to fit all linens inside of these bags. If linens do not fit inside our orange linen bags, please place them into clear plastic bags after use and not into black trash bags so we can separate when they are returned. 

You will have up to 5 days after your event to return any missing items. After 5 days, any items not
returned and items returned broken or damaged will be subject to replacement fees. All replacement
fees will be applied to the credit card on file at which time you will receive a final invoice.

We make every effort to assure an accurate count of the equipment you rent from us. When we deliver
the equipment, you should check our count against the contract. If you are not present at the time of
delivery, check over your order and call us if there are any discrepancies. You will be responsible for any
discrepancies in the count at the time the equipment is returned to us.

All rental equipment is and remains the property of S. Stern & Company Inc. DBA Something Different
Party Rental and is to be used ONLY by you for the event/time for which it is rented. You reserve the
equipment for a specific time and are responsible for the rental price, even if you do not use the
equipment. You are responsible for keeping the equipment in good condition from the time it is
delivered/picked up until it is returned to our driver or to our office. You are expected to exercise
ordinary care to safeguard the equipment. Equipment must be protected from weather at all times. If
you pick up the equipment, you must be able to transport it safely and bring adequate straps to secure
the equipment into your vehicle. Any water damage or damage outside normal wear will be subject to
additional charges, repair or replacement.