Who started You Rent It.com?

You Rent It.com was started by Gezinus Hidding, who, aside from being a faculty member at Loyola University Chicago, also has been the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Verhuur.nl, the largest online rental portal in his native Holland.
Market research showed there was no US site similar to Verhuur.nl. You Rent It.com is now the sister company of Verhuur.nl, benefiting from its years of industry experience as the largest online rental portal in the Netherlands.

Who are we?

In this startup phase, You Rent It.com is led by Gezinus Hidding, aided by a group of advisors. As the business grows, a management team will be recruited, with emphasis on sales, internet marketing, information technology, and rental industry expertise.

Who are our users and customers?

We have two main types of users and customers: (prospective) renters and rental vendors. Renters look for ideas, products to rent, or rental vendors for their party or event. Renters do not have to pay to use our web site. Rental vendors offer products (goods, services, or information) for rent. Rental vendors can advertise themselves with different types of listing, ranging from free listings to full listing page advertisements.

Who are our renters?

Our typical renters are do-it-yourself renters, i.e., they do the planning and organizing themselves. They are typically female, 16-50 years old. Even though the rental industry is organized by segment of product type (e.g., halls, dj's, party rental equipment, etc.), our renters want to find information about all their rental needs in one place. They want good, trustworthy, information, and fast. We offer one-stop shopping for renters' information needs.

Who are our rental vendors?

Our typical vendors are small- to medium-sized rental vendors. They may be small vendors operating locally or nation-wide, or they may be medium-sized organizations with various regional branches. Because the rental industry is fragmented, with underdeveloped eCommerce opportunities, many rental vendors want exposure to (potential) renters, who may be local or far away. Of course, we also welcome businesses or individuals who may rent "on-the-side" or large, nationwide rental firms.

Chicago, Illinois area: You Rent It.com helps you find vendors for products to rent for your party or event in the Chicago metro area, aka Chicagoland, which lies mostly in Illinois. We feature vendors covering the City of Chicago, e.g., downtown Chicago, the Loop, the West Loop, the South Loop, Lincoln Park, Edgewater, and Rogers Park.
You Rent It.com also features vendors who cover suburbs of Chicago such as Addison, Algonquin, Arlington Heights, Aurora, Berwyn, Bloomingdale, Chicago Heights, Cicero, Crete, Crown Point IN, Des Plaines, Dolton, Downers Grove, Elgin, Elk Grove Village, Elmwood Park, Glendale Heights, Glenview, Harvey, Homewood, Itasca, Joliet, Lisle, Lockport, Lombard, Maywood, Naperville, Niles, Northbrook, Oak Lawn, Oak Park, Orland Park, Park Ridge, Schaumburg, Skokie, Streamwood, Tinley Park, Wauconda, Wheeling, and Wilmette.