LAS VEGAS (KLAS) – Hundreds of Las Vegas businesses, who are vying for NFL contracts, met face-to-face with those potential Super Bowl employers for the first time on Thursday.

R.J. Orr, for one, is tasked with the posters, signs, and graphics that will cover Allegiant Stadium, Harry Reid International Airport, and hotels in nine months. He is the executive vice president/partner for Bluemedia and the main décor planner for the NFL.

“How do we stand out in a city that is meant to stand out?” Orr asked inside Allegiant Stadium Thursday afternoon. “Understand what it’s like to get a phone call at midnight on a Saturday that says, ‘I need this in six hours.’”

Carol Ann Lafferty’s company, On Location, is tasked with pre-game hospitality, both on and off the field.

“Specialty guest rentals, decor, props, florals, catering, janitorial,” Lafferty said when asked what kind of support is needed for her work. “When we ask for something, do it, because those who don’t respond, we don’t respond to sometimes. We need to depend on everybody.”

200 small and diverse businesses, vetted by the NFL, met vendors like Orr and Lafferty for the first time Thursday inside Allegiant Stadium.

The selected businesses are part of the Super Bowl Business Connect Program, which act as a liaison between them and the NFL.

Myisha Boyce, Chief Community Engagement Officer for the Las Vegas Super Bowl LVIII Host Committee, said this was the first of multiple workshops to engage with these vendors who can potentially offer these businesses a contract for events leading up to and on game day.

“They need to be competitive in pricing. They need to be competitive in service,” Boyce said inside the stadium Thursday afternoon. “This is no longer a local opportunity, it becomes a national one.”

But, with only so many opportunities to go around, business owners are discovering how to pitch themselves to get the job done and get a name-dropping experience on their resumes.

Nar Galvez, for one, is CEO of Design One Print, which has specialized in wide-format printing for nearly 12 years.

“If I tell you it’s going to be done today, it’ll be done today,” Galvez said before the workshop began Thursday. “Doing anything for NFL would open up a lot of doors, and it looks good on us.”

The NFL vendors said the job becomes a 24/7 operation within the last few months before the game, as the final two teams are not determined until weeks before the game.