This month, Jill Shortreed of Charleston Balloon Company in South Carolina is our partner in the spotlight! Jill is one of our longest-running partners – a member of the network since 2010. Jill is the founder of Charleston Balloon Company and has made it the premier balloon company in Charleston.
A native New Jerseyan, Jill operated a party store in Point Pleasant Beach, NJ before moving down to Charleston. Once in town, Jill saw an opportunity for a balloon business to take off and started Charleston Balloon Company. There, she was able to narrow the focus of her retail store and decorating business to a 100% dedication to balloons.
The Largest Balloon Wall in America
Balloons in Jill’s shop are organized from floor to ceiling along a long wall. Her wall of balloons is so long that Qualatex, a balloon manufacturer, has recognized it as the largest balloon wall in North America! At 38ft wide, it is currently one of the top 10 largest balloon walls in the world.
Like many decorators, some of Jill’s favorite parts of delivering balloons are the positive interactions with customers. “No matter what the occasion is,” she said, “the reason for balloons is a celebration. Even at sad events like funerals, it’s happy because someone is being remembered.”
Jill believes the national community of balloon decorators to be extremely supportive of one another. “We have a great industry of people that we can bounce ideas off of. You can kind of become friends with fellow decorators.”
How has Jill been able to build a successful company? She strives to be reliable and create great-looking products. Jill says what really sets her apart is a willingness to stand by the quality of her products.
South Carolina’s summers are hot and humid, but Jill doesn’t mind. She does not shy away from outdoor decorating projects in this weather.
Tip: Use Slack to Take Photos of Balloons
Here’s a tip Jill shared on how to improve quality control for balloon bouquet deliveries and to retain delivery information: Jill and her drivers communicate over Slack, an app for iOS and Android, on their phones. Once an order is delivered, a picture is taken by the driver of the balloons and posted in a channel called #bouquets along with the order number, delivery time, and any other order notes.
Thank you, Jill, we’re so happy to have you in our network!
