Robert Copley, CERP

REGION FIVE DIRECTOR

The designated voting representative of all ARA general members in Region Five will vote for the director for their region.

Robert Copley, CERP
Event Essentials
Windsor, Wis.

Robert Copley, CERP, is sales manager at Event Essentials, Windsor, Wis. He is responsible for overseeing and supporting the company’s sales team while also handling top accounts and serving as a member of the Event Essentials Management Team.

In 2010, Event Essentials grew into a separate business as the event rental division of A to Z RentAll & Sales, an equipment rental store founded in 1954 by Rex and Enid Hoffman. In addition, A to Z RentAll & Sales became a founding member of the American Rental Association (ARA) in 1955. The company recently sold the equipment rental side of the business to RentalMax, Carol Stream, Ill., making Event Essentials a standalone event rental company with 26 full-time employees.

Background: “I started in the equipment and event rental industry while in college working summers on the trucks for Event Essentials. I also spent one summer working at our tool location on the counter to experience the customer service and computer software side of the business. After graduating college in 2008, I began a full-time position as an account manager. Over the last 11 years, I have worked on the operational side of our event division and became sales manager in 2016,” Copley says.

Activities and recognition:

• ARA of Wisconsin: president, 2014-present.

• ARA Event Rental Shared Interest Group member: 2014-2016.

• ARA Leadership Conference attendee: 2009, 2013, 2019.

• ARA National Legislative Caucus attendee: 2019.

• The ARA Show™ attendee: 2009-present.

• Peer Executive Group member: 2018-present.

• The United Way of Dane County loaned executive: 4.5 months in 2010, member of a team that collectively raised $16.5 million to fund Dane County programming.

• Youth Basketball Team, Sun Prairie, Wis., assistant coach: 2019-2022.

• Junior Varsity High School Boys Basketball assistant coach, Sun Prairie, Wis., 2021-2022.

• AAU Basketball 12U Girls basketball coach: 2021-present.

• FLAG Group member, University of Wisconsin Business Center: 2018-present.

• Rental Management 10 to Watch Under 40: 2014.

What do you expect from ARA board service?

“While serving on the ARA board, I am looking forward to the continued opportunity to meet and network with industry professionals and use these connections to learn and grow as a young professional. Over the years, I have been extremely fortunate to follow in the footsteps of exceptional industry leaders, one of which I also get to call family. Kevin Hoffman, who served as ARA president in 2018, has included me in many leadership opportunities at Event Essentials that have sparked my interest in participating in similar opportunities within ARA. Also, it is through these leadership opportunities that I can give back to my community with time and resources. My family, friends and colleagues have been instrumental in supporting my desire to learn and grow as an industry professional that can positively contribute to society in many ways. With this desire, I look forward to opportunities and challenges that will provide me with new learning and broaden my horizons within the business world,” Copley says.