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Dry hire describes the space, not one standard package
One venue may provide only an empty room. Another may include tables, a kitchen, refrigeration, a built-in service counter and cleaning staff. A bar supplier may use dry hire to mean a physical bar and staff while you provide the drinks. Never rely on the phrase alone. Ask for a written list of what is included and, just as importantly, what is not.
Every line below needs one named owner: venue, caterer, bar company, glassware supplier, planner, couple or another contractor.
1. Drinks and quantities
Decide what is served in each phase of the wedding
Separate arrival drinks, the drinks reception, wedding breakfast, toast and evening bar. Confirm whether the caterer already supplies table wine, water or toast fizz before calculating the stock you will buy. Use the evening guest count for the evening bar rather than automatically using the ceremony headcount.
- Final guest count, including evening-only guests
- Known non-drinkers, drivers, children and alcohol-free requirements
- Beer, wine, fizz, spirits, mixers, water and soft drinks
- Separate reception and toast quantities
- Sale-or-return terms and the deadline for returning unopened stock
- Delivery date, storage location and who counts stock in and out
The free calculator covers spirits, mixers, wine, fizz, ice and glassware. It deliberately does not invent beer, water or soft-drink quantities because the current form does not ask enough about the guest profile or service format to produce an honest answer for those categories.
2. Refrigeration and ice
Buying enough drink is useless if it cannot be kept cold
Ask for the usable internal dimensions of every fridge, not simply whether the venue has a fridge. Catering food may occupy the available space. Confirm when stock can arrive, whether power remains on overnight and who has access before the event begins.
Serving ice
Ice placed into drinks. It needs clean, food-safe storage close to the working bar.
Chilling ice
Ice used in buckets or troughs for beer, wine and fizz. Calculate it separately.
Delivery
Confirm vehicle access, delivery window, drop location and the person authorised to receive it.
Meltwater
Plan drainage, emptying and safe floors. A bucket of melting ice is also a handling job.
3. Glassware
Confirm quantities, types, collection and return terms
Split the order into flutes, wine glasses, highballs, beer glasses and water glasses according to the service plan. Cocktailhire's public calculator uses one working glass per planned serve when there is no washing during service. If the venue has a commercial washer, agree the collection and wash cycle before reducing the physical stock.
- Which supplier provides each glass type?
- Who unloads and checks the delivery?
- Who collects used glasses from tables and outdoor areas?
- Can glasses be returned dirty?
- Who repacks crates and counts breakages?
- When can the supplier collect after the wedding?
4. Staff and guest flow
Name the people serving, supporting and clearing
Bartenders cannot be assumed to handle every task around the bar while also maintaining service. Decide who restocks, collects glasses, handles waste, clears spillages and covers breaks. Cocktailhire's starting benchmark is one experienced bartender per 50 guests, rounded up, but menu complexity, service peaks and the physical layout can justify a different team.
- Number of live bartenders
- Barback or stock support
- Floor-based glass collection
- Welcome-drink or table-service staff
- Break cover and the named event lead
- Arrival, setup, service and de-rig times
5. The working bar
Check what the bartenders will physically work from
A decorative front is not automatically a functioning event bar. The team needs a stable worktop, clean water, handwashing, ice storage, waste containers, safe flooring, lighting, tools and stock close enough to replenish without abandoning service.
- Bar dimensions and final position
- Delivery route, doors, stairs, lifts and floor protection
- Potable water and handwashing
- Power sockets and tested extension arrangements
- Lighting after the room changes for the evening
- Back-bar storage and secure overnight stock
- Bins, bottle waste, cardboard and recycling
- Who cleans the bar area after service
6. Venue rules and licensing
Get the venue's alcohol position in writing
Confirm whether alcohol is being supplied free to guests or sold, whether the premises already has the relevant authorisation, and whether any event-specific permission is required. In England and Wales, a Temporary Event Notice may be relevant to licensable activity at an event, but the correct route depends on the premises and how the bar operates. Scotland and Northern Ireland use different licensing systems.
This checklist is operational guidance, not legal advice. The venue, local licensing authority or appropriately qualified adviser should confirm the position for the actual event before alcohol is sold or licensable activity takes place.
7. Supplier handover
Create one final responsibility schedule
Put the answer next to each item and circulate it to the venue, planner and suppliers. The dangerous gaps are usually the tasks that everybody assumed somebody else was doing.
Provided by
Name the company or person supplying the item.
Received by
Name who will be present when it arrives.
Used by
Name the team responsible during the event.
Removed by
Name who clears, collects or disposes of it afterwards.
Include mobile numbers for the venue duty manager, planner, caterer, bar lead, ice supplier and glassware supplier. Confirm the final timeline after venue access times are fixed.
Build the quantities
Turn the checklist into a working shopping plan
Enter the guest count, service length and drinks split into the free Cocktailhire Wedding & Party Drinks Planner. It will calculate the covered quantities, let you search for nearby mainland UK ice and glassware suppliers, and create a PDF without asking for your name or email address.