Vancouver is a pillar of the Canadian event industry, with guests coming in from all over the province (and country!) for the unique blend of ocean, mountain, and urban backdrops. Besides having all that going for it, Vancouver also has a significant industrial history, which lends itself well to the industrial event theme, ever growing in popularity.
Do you have a big wedding reception coming up? A milestone birthday party? corporate event? From a rustic distillery to one of the most popular wedding venues in the city, we can take your everyday industrial event plans and morph them into something that only comes around once in a lifetime.
Is your venue budget a shrinking violet? Don’t panic. We’ve got Vancouver ’BC’s best event spaces available at the most affordable rental rates around! You can accomplish big things, even without a big bank account, with us on your side.
So what are you waiting for? Let’s dust off that old party planner that you left lying around and get you back to throwing the most memorable events in the community. The Giggster app will have your back the whole way, with our expert staff and stunning venues.
Vancouver Industrial Event Spaces Curated by Giggster
If you really want to impress your guests, a unique space in downtown Vancouver, BC, is a given. But what kind of spaces do we have for you to enjoy? This preview is sure to have you booking in a frenzy before the FOMO sets in.
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Garage lounges are the perfect solution for small to midsize groups still craving that industrial feel. Whether you’re planning a jam sesh, a small workshop, or a pop-up yoga class, these venues will give you all the style you seek without all the wasted space.
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Prefer something a little more sophisticated? An urban art gallery is a surefire way to achieve an industrial chic aesthetic. It also comes fully stocked with masterpieces, taking care of all your decor needs, as well as giving your guests something to do while they intermingle.
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Urban drink slingers (A.K.A. wineries, distilleries, and microbreweries) are another industry favourite where the industrial vibes are going strong. You’ll find many throughout the city with exposed brick, beams, wood, and iron from floor to ceiling.
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Expect the unexpected, isn’t that what they always say? It may not be your first thought when hunting down an industrial venue, but there are certainly a handful of office buildings around whose interior designers were big fans of the movement. If you’re hosting a work event, this might be right on brand for you already, but remember that you can always turn a venue on its head and use it in unconventional ways. Coworking lounges with plenty of couches and high-top tables, for example, could make for a really cool, hipster-inspired cocktail party with the right finishing touches.
Incredible Industrial Event Spaces in Vancouver Start at $38 CAD/hour
Exceptional Variety & Quality: With everything from art galleries located in the downtown core to unique venue houses near the beach making up our 7 listings, the Giggster app will help you get party planning right, every single time.
Hassle-Free Booking: Allow the Giggster app to transform your venue hire experience! Our site is optimized so you can rent top celebration spaces by the hour, with simple contracts and fantastic prices (starting at just $38 CAD/hour)!
24-Hour Free Cancellation Policy: Want to double-check something before booking your date, but don’t want to miss out on your dream event space? We offer a 24-hour grace period where you can cancel without penalty within 24 hours of confirmation, as long as your party is more than 48 hours from the time you pull the trigger.
Platform Protections: When renting a top-of-the-line venue like Event Space/ Film Location/We Work ETC., a wide variety of things can go wrong, despite meticulous attention to detail and careful planning. Protect yourself by opting into one of our premium protection plans, which put any damage, disruption, and liability concerns on our team’s plate instead of your own.
Things to Consider for an Industrial Event in Vancouver
Situated on the Pacific Ocean and filled with friendly faces, Vancouver is this shining star of British Columbia, but that’s not to say that the city is perfect. Here are some things you should probably keep in mind while party planning if you want to make your life a little easier.
Advantages
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Vancouver’s public transit system has a stellar reputation for being speedy and reliable. As one of the most highly critiqued features of any city’s infrastructure and services, this is a big win.
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There’s simply so much to do here. Whether you’re making a weekend of your trip into the city or you would like to keep a handful of suggestions in your back pocket to give to out-of-town guests, there’s no shortage of nature hikes, shopping, and attractions to love.
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Moderate temperatures are the norm, even as the seasons change. With a reasonably mild late autumn-early spring, and summers that never get too stiflingly hot, an outdoor event here can be quite comfortable for much of the year.
Disadvantages
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Rush hour is rough, whether you’re driving a personal vehicle or not. Taxis and rideshares will have surge pricing during these hours, so go into a commute knowing it’s going to cost you time, money, or both.
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British Columbia’s geography leaves Vancouver susceptible to some dangerous weather events. From wildfire smoke to earthquake risk, the “worst case scenario” is worth preparing for, no matter how unlikely it seems.
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Thinking of hosting an after-party? Vancouver isn’t exactly a beacon of the nightlife scene, with most of the existing options being pretty tame compared to cities like Toronto and Montreal. That said, we can always help you host a phenomenal after-party in a private rental, so all hope is not lost.
What Kind of Venue Can I Rent for Events in Vancouver?
There’s no shortage of exceptional Vancouver event spaces to choose from, with a lot of variety amongst your choices. If following your heart isn’t enough to narrow it down, allow this list of the most popular venue types to assist you with finding the right fit for your next event.
Creative Studios – Get Down to Business. Maybe you’re seeking that industrial curb appeal for a special project. From film to photography, music to social media content, a warehouse studio could be the backdrop you’ve been looking for. Even if you’re not looking for a photogenic space for your next creative endeavor, you’ll find that the AV setups and fun lighting equipment would be a big asset when planning a big club-style bash.
Event Venues – Customer Service Forward. If you’d love a space that is well-curated from a design perspective, with a bit of thought given to guest amenities, we’d recommend sticking with a tried and true industrial space that’s operational as a wedding and event venue. The owners know what’s up when it comes to hosting and will help you to tailor the space to your needs. We have to say, the service that comes with these properties is second to none. They also tend to have much more natural light than their true industrial counterparts, which is a bonus if event photography is one of your top priorities.
Working Warehouses – The Real Deal. If you want just the bare bones that you can dress up to your heart’s content, opt for a real-life warehouse. You might have to get your hands a little dirty to get it ready for its big debut, but it simply doesn’t get more industrial than this—they are still functional in the industry today!
How to Plan an Event in Vancouver
As a host, you’re probably faced with one thousand and one decisions to make. It can all be a bit overwhelming, but hosting a beautiful, special event is quite simple. Keep some of these pro tips in mind (we’ve got plenty of 'em!) and feel your stress melt away!
Ask Your Venue About Other Amenities That Might Not Be Obvious from the Rental Listing – Do you know where everyone can park? Is an all-inclusive package an option? Are there staff who assist with setup and tear down? Understanding all the extras that are available with each location can help you nail down the perfect place for your special event.
Take Time to Review your Vendor Contracts – Even if you’re meeting a prospective vendor in person, we’d suggest taking it home to read thoroughly so you can focus and identify anything that you may have some trepidations about. We’d recommend sleeping on it, if you can. Some quotes do have time limits, and some service providers book popular dates rapidly, but if a booking is so time sensitive that a vendor is pressuring you to sign something without reading it first, that should be a red flag.
Build Room into Your Plan for Things to Go Wrong – Even the most experienced event coordinators know that mishaps are not 100% avoidable. Sometimes this means coming up with a Plan B and having your backup ready to go, but other times it means preparing yourself mentally to let go of the small stuff and remember that no one knows what the original plan was except for you.
Hire Cleaners and Extra Hands, If Needed – So this won’t really apply to spaces like restaurants or wedding venues, but if you’re going truly industrial and heading to a warehouse, prepare yourself for some unexpected prep work. Sweeping and mopping the floors might need to be added to your to-do list. Same with hiding electrical panels with strategically placed decor, or hopping up on a ladder to hang decor because warehouse ceilings have A LOT of negative space. If you have the time and energy for all this, great, but don’t back yourself into a corner by assuming your space will come event-ready. The bottom line is: Hire extra help if you need it.
How to Save Money on Your Event in Vancouver
Settle in and get your notepads out! We’re going to empower you to learn some expert money management tips for hosts that will help you create a budget you’re comfortable with.
Embrace the minimalist trend.
The industrial aesthetic can certainly lean a few different ways from clean and simple to bold and busy but if you’re trying to keep costs down, choose a “less is more” approach and be really intentional with your add-ons.
Aim to “do it yourself” as little as possible.
It may seem counterintuitive, but we’re not talking about your Pinterest projects and dessert table baking, necessarily. When it comes to choosing your venue, picking a space that is pretty well fully decorated will cut an entire section out of your budget, and little amenities like tech, lighting, etc., can remove vendor hires and rental contracts from your list of financial obligations, too. At the end of the day, the less you need to outsource, the fewer costs you’ll have.
Do your own glam.
We know you want to look and feel your best for your special day, and you deserve to! But a trip to the salon for nails, hair, waxes, and makeup could cost you a small mortgage. Try to do a lot of tasks in advance and delegate those you can’t to others, so you have a few hours to pamper yourself in a budget-friendly way prior to your event.
Vancouver Industrial Event Spaces with Giggster
From a versatile warehouse that you can dress up for any theme to a fully-curated studio already well-appointed to suit your needs, Vancouver, BC, is a haven for industrial venues of every kind. Go down in history as the best event in the world when you have Giggster on your party planning team.
