The Big Cheese with SRC’s David Comer

We caught up with David Comer, Managing Director, Staging Rentals & Construction (SRC), to chat all things MICE and not the animal.

The great thing about my job is…

Variety, theres a lot of variety in my job. I get to continue to project manage which means I stay connected to the actual product we produce for our clients and I still get to interact with the client, sell the gig and see it realised.

I also get variety because running a business requires a whole bunch of other skills.

The challenge for industry is…

We’re in the business end of the industry in that we actually physcially actualise what clients desire. So we’re not in the digital end, we deal in physical objects, we don’t deal in the digital space, so the challenge for us is to maintain relevance.

But I don’t think you’ll ever replace the human contact that this requires in our industry.

My greatest achievement is…

My family. But within my business, it’s our longevity. We’ve been around for 26 years.

We have a lot of people who have worked for us for a long time which is testament to the culture and the environment we create at Staging Rentals and we have a lot of clients who have been with us for a very long time too.

The biggest thing in MICE this year will be…

The impact of the Millenial manager on the shape and direction of event production.

I try to relax by…

Having fun. Drinking good wine, eating good food, exercising. Sport which I like. Music which I love. A bit of theatre, darling.

I don’t understand why…

People shy away from a challenge; I’ve always found it is when some of our best work is produced!

My favourite venue is…

All venues are my favourite venues, I love them all, but my current favourite is obviously the ICC. Getting to know it, it’s big, they have a great team down there and we have a really good relationship.

So, I’m really enjoying working there at the moment. I recently saw Nick Cave at the theatre at the ICC and the audio was terrific, the venue was great, and I recently did a really big job down there for Toyota which was a great success thanks to the team at the ICC.

I’ve always wanted to travel to…

Antartica. The last continent unexplored etc.

I am scared to death of…

Nothing really scares me to death. We all have our little fears and worries but I think that’s too dramatic.

I can’t live without…

The good things in life – family, fun.

I really wish I had…

Bought property in Sydney back in the 70s and 80s.

If I could invite four people to a dinner party, they’d be…

Adrienne (wife), JC and maybe Muhammad, I’d keep the fourth seat free for JC or Muhammad to bring a plus one to see who they’d bring.

For anyone starting out in the industry one piece of advice I’d give would be…

Be flexible. Be prepared for change. Our industry evolves quicker than any other and, don’t be scared of a challenge.