%20(1).jpg)
Good Neighbor Podcast: Fort Collins
Bringing together local businesses and neighbors of Fort Collins. Good Neighbor Podcast hosted by Nick George helps residents discover and connect with your local business owners in and around Fort Collins, Colorado.
Is your business serving the residents of Fort Collins? Then, we need to talk! Visit gnpFortCollins.com to schedule your free interview.
Good Neighbor Podcast: Fort Collins
E70: Mountain Event Services: Creating Memorable Moments in Colorado
Ever wondered what makes an event truly memorable? Matt Kays of Mountain Event Services reveals it's not just about the speakers, lights, or playlist—it's about the people behind the technology and their approach to creating experiences.
Matt shares his fascinating journey from radio broadcaster in Crested Butte to event specialist, discovering along the way that he preferred connecting with people over being isolated in a studio. This realization led him to build a company that now handles everything from DJ services and photo booths to sound production and mobile live streaming for events across Colorado.
The conversation takes an unexpected turn when Matt addresses one of the biggest misconceptions about DJs—that they're just music players. He emphasizes that exceptional DJs are actually event directors who guide gatherings with skilled emceeing. "Everyone's been to an event where the DJ couldn't, wouldn't, or shouldn't have been talking on the microphone," he notes, highlighting how crucial communication skills are alongside technical abilities.
What truly distinguishes Mountain Event Services in a crowded market? Matt points to their core values: responding quickly, solving problems, following through, and infusing everything with joy. In a candid moment, he reflects on his growth as a business leader, learning that his company is an extension of himself—a revelation that transformed his approach to entrepreneurship.
Ready to elevate your next event with services that go beyond the expected? Visit https://www.mountaineventservices.com/ or text 970-372-4882 to discover how Mountain Event Services can bring their unique, joy-infused approach to your special occasion.
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Nick George.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. Are you in need of a mountain events company? One might be closer than you think. Today I have the pleasure of introducing Matt Kays with Mountain Events Services. Matt, how's it going? It's going great. Thanks for asking. We're excited to learn all about you and your event services company. Tell us about it.
Speaker 3:Thanks for asking, nick. So we are an entertainment company, we're based in Fort Collins and we primarily provide services for events like DJ, photo booth. We also do some event coverage with photography, videography, sound and lighting production big one for us and mobile live streaming services.
Speaker 2:Nice. How did you get into the business?
Speaker 3:I started as a broadcaster back in 1996 in Crested Butte, colorado. I was on the air as a radio personality and I realized pretty quickly that I didn't like being cooped up in the studio all by myself. I like to be around people and I definitely enjoyed DJing and, you know, making the vibe with music, and so I quickly transitioned away from radio work to event work bars and nightclubs, festivals, after hours, parties, and then over time, as we grow up, we start doing more professional work, and so I started doing private events, corporate events, weddings, brand activations, marketing events, that sort of stuff.
Speaker 2:Is there anything under that events category, that events planning category, that you don't do?
Speaker 3:That's a great question. Yeah, so we like to focus on things that run on batteries or electricity, and so if it's doesn't run on electricity or batteries, we're out. No tables, no chairs, no fabric.
Speaker 2:What are some myths or misconceptions in your industry?
Speaker 3:Myths and misconceptions in our industry. I think a lot of people, when they think of a DJ, they just think of music, but they really need somebody that's going to direct, inform and guide the event, and so we have made it very important for our team to be good at emceeing as well. I think everyone's been to an event where the DJ couldn't, wouldn't or shouldn't have been talking on the microphone and someone else had to take over.
Speaker 2:Who are your target customers and how are you attracting them now?
Speaker 3:Our target customers are people who are planning events in the community, people that are having events for their brand or their business and they want to connect with their customers. And we also do a lot of private events. We do a lot of weddings and we're really good at it, so we like couples and wedding planners too we know that marketing is the heart of every business.
Speaker 2:Have you ever, or have you ever, thought about doing your own podcast? Yes I absolutely thought about it before. Outside of work, what do you do for fun?
Speaker 3:uh, I like to ski and I like to travel a lot and just be on the water when it's hot outside. Those are some of my favorite things.
Speaker 2:Matt, let's switch gears for a second. Can you describe a hardship or a life challenge that you overcame and how it made you stronger? What comes to mind?
Speaker 3:Oh gosh, that's a great question. Oh gosh, that's a great question. A hardship or challenge that I had to overcome has been you know, I think I wasn't really good at managing people, even though I was a manager at a corporate Fortune 500 company before I started doing this. When I was a manager at that company, I had a boss that supported me, managers that supported me laterally, hr department, all of those things, and when I went out on my own in business, I didn't have all those things, and so I had to learn how to be an effective leader, and I had to learn that my company was an extension of me, and that was a path that I never expected to go down, but I'm really glad that I did.
Speaker 2:Matt, please tell our listeners one thing that they should absolutely remember about Mountain Event Services.
Speaker 3:Our core values are to respond quickly, to solve problems, to follow through and to infuse everything we do with joy. I think it's really important that I say that, because a lot of people it's hard to differentiate between different event companies because, at the end of the day, we all have speakers, we all have lighting, um, we all pretty much play the same music at events and so, uh, how do we stand out right? And uh, it's, it's not what we do, it's who we are and how we do it that makes us different.
Speaker 2:Matt, how can our listeners learn more about Mountain Event Services online and then by phone?
Speaker 3:Well, we have our website mountainevents. Or text us 970-372-4882.
Speaker 2:Great Well, matt. I really appreciate you being on the show. We wish you and Mountain Event Services the very best moving forward.
Speaker 3:Nick, it was a pleasure. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 1:Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnpfortcollinscom. That's gnpfortcollinscom, or call 970-438-0825.