Balloon Babes’ owner Katie Kelly-Hope is shown in front of the photo booth she created last summer. Courtesy Photo
Balloon Babes
INGLESIDE – In October 2020, Katie Kelly-Hope started Balloon Babes after hearing the owners of Loonies and Balloonies in Cornwall were retiring and the store was closing.
Currently located just outside Ingleside, Kelly-Hope explained Balloon Babes offers helium balloon bouquets, balloon garlands, arches and personalized “balloon art called marquees.” She is in the process of building up her specialty balloon stock, despite having over one hundred different balloon shapes. Kelly-Hope mentioned this is an ongoing process and she will often order additional balloons when making a specialty order for a customer.
One of the reasons she began her company was so families would have “the option of not leaving their homes,” so she offers delivery between Ingleside and Cornwall as well as customers being able to pick up their orders in Ingleside.
Balloon Babes began in Cornwall, but “once we started ‘blowing up’, we had to relocate to a bigger space. When they found their new home in the Ingleside area, they had the area to put together bigger balloon builds. She noted the community has been incredibly supportive to the young company, saying she “couldn’t ask for a better group of people.”
“The first time we had any cancellations was with the current round of shutdowns,” said Kelly-Hope of an obstacle which many businesses have faced during the Covid-19 pandemic, but noted she is looking forward to when things open and people can begin to celebrate special events once again.
When asked about one of her favourite parts of the job, she mentioned it was the smiles from people who were either picking up or having balloons delivered. “The smiles – the excitement from the kids who see their balloons coming to the door, the family members in retirement homes getting get well gifts or birthday, she mentioned her happiness in being able to spread some joy in people’s lives.
Kelly-Hope commented one of her favourite activities is being able to give back to the community. She created a photo booth for the Arts in the Park event in Cornwall which featured a hot air balloon. She also created a giant pumpkin for a Halloween event at the Newington Wesleyan Church and participated in the Christmas Parade in Ingleside this year.
Looking to the future, she is hoping to “add a bit more to Balloon Babes then just balloons” and is looking to make party décor a bit easier for her client, however this is still in the planning stages. For more information, please visit either her Facebook page or www.BalloonBabes.biz.
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