We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lyn Larson. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lyn below.
Lyn, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?
Starting a business in my mid 50’s has been both exciting and scary. I had worked for someone else in the balloon industry for 10 years. Late last year she decided to make some changes and eliminated my position. It came as a shock since I was her only full-time employee and we had expanded the business to 2 shops. I felt I was an essential part of her growth and success, so it was difficult for me to move on. But I didn’t have a choice. It was time for me to do something else. But what should I do?!?
I had worked more traditional office/business jobs for many years before getting into the balloon business so I knew I could always apply for that type of job and be a work-from-home person or sit at a desk in an office. But that just didn’t feel right. I truly love working with balloons. I love the creative side of what I do. I love the customers I have established and wanted to keep creating amazing balloon designs.
I started getting messages from existing customers when they had found out I was no longer at the business. They said they wanted to work with me – it didn’t matter who I worked for – and they hoped I would start my own business. That type of love and support was truly humbling. But in the back of my head I was still unsure if I should begin a business at my age. Isn’t starting a business for younger people? Am I too old to do this? Do I want to invest the money we have saved up in a new business or should I keep it for retirement? Lots of questions…
I came to the conclusion that I truly wanted to try starting my own business and see how it would go. My family was behind me so I started looking into the logistics. Financing seemed to be my biggest issue. I wasn’t sure how I would move forward – should I contact the bank and take out a loan? Do we dip into our savings? Then I ended up being at the right place at the right time. I ran into an acquaintance who offered to invest in my business and help behind the scenes, letting me develop the business and be the face of the company. It was almost too good to be true! I ended up going into a partnership with these investors. They provided the financial backing and have given me the freedom to develop the company since they are not overly familiar with the balloon business. I reached out to distributors that I had worked with in the past and set up accounts with them. I sent out texts and emails to past customers letting them know I had started my own business. The support was overwhelming. I was excited to start moving forward.
I have now been running my own company for 7 months and have more business than I expected to have at this point. It has had its challenges. Building a business from the ground up is not easy. Expenses add up and you have days where you are very excited and eager to build the business – the next day you think it is going to fail and you wonder why you did this. It is a rollercoaster which is a natural part of starting a business. But with the love and support of business partners, companies, customers, family and friends I’m getting through the ups and downs and am feeling the pendulum start to swing to the positive side.
Do I wish I would have started my own business sooner? No. Working for another company for 10 years was very necessary for me to learn how the business works, develop my skills as a balloon artist, train employees and build relationships with vendors and customers. Do I wish I would have been a little younger when all of it fell in to place?? Certainly. There are times I wish all this had happened while I was still in my 40s, but I’m loving being my own boss and can’t wait to see where this business is at 12 months and beyond. I’m excited to grow POP! Balloon Decor into a thriving business.
Lyn, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My name is Lyn Larson, and I am the owner of POP! Balloon Decor in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. Before getting into the balloon business, I worked different, more traditional office jobs. But all of my jobs tended to be in a service roll. I loved getting to know my customers, helping them figure out what I could do to solve their issue or make a situation better. Service is a core value for me.
How did I get into working with balloons? I was working a more traditional office position. When that company consolidated departments, I was presented with the opportunity to find a new job. While I was on the job hunt, I began working for a friend who had purchased a balloon shop. My intent was to work for her for a few months while I searched for my next adventure. After 3 months of part time work, I was given a full-time salaried position and stayed at that business for 10 years. I truly felt like I had found my creative calling. I can envision designs and what type of decor works best in a space. It comes very easily for me – which isn’t the case for everyone.
After working for her for 10 years she needed to make a change and eliminated my position. I was heartbroken to leave a job that I loved and that brought me so much joy. Not being able to work with my existing customers anymore was so difficult. Many customers grew into friends. I loved creating balloons for different events and struggled with what I would do next.
With the support of my family, friends and customers, I opened my own business in January of 2024. It has been both scary and exciting. But I know I am where I belong. I am able to serve people personally and professionally, for both large events and small intimate gatherings. I provide them with the best service and decor to make their event truly special. Every event is custom. I don’t have package pricing or set designs. I love looking at a space or seeing color inspirations and coming up with something unique for that event. I am so grateful that I am able to run my own business and am working hard every day to build my customer base and business relationships so POP! Balloon Decor will keep growing and will be around for many years serving the community.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
I knew I wanted to start my own business but didn’t have the financial resources to do so on my own. My husband and I were trying to figure it out. It was very stressful but we were working through it. Then the impossible happened.
I walked into a local sweet shop to purchase some treats and ran into an acquaintance who knew me from my previous job. He found out I was no longer there and asked me what I was doing now. I told him I was thinking of starting my own business but needed to build up my business more before getting a space. He wished me well and went on his way.
The next day he reached out again to find out more about this idea I had of starting my own business. I told him my idea of having a workspace – not a retail shop. I wanted a space where I felt safe working alone, had enough space for me to create larger orders and also had a space where I could meet with clients. He told me of a space that he knew of. I thanked him but told him I didn’t have the capital yet to justify rent and needed to build up my business. We ended the conversation and he said he would do some more thinking.
Later that day he reached out again and said he had an idea. What if he and others from his group invested in my new business. We would all split the start-up costs and would rent a workspace – would that be helpful? REALLY?? Would that be helpful?? It almost seemed too good to be true! We did some more talking a couple of days later and we all decided that we would form this partnership. They told me to come up with a name and develop logo so the business would be up and running by the middle of January so I could start building clientele during the slower months. 4 weeks later I had a company name, logo and was in my new space reaching out to customers. I would purchase the necessary equipment and supplies as orders started coming in, slowly building up my inventory. I’m proud to say that my business is growing and I’m excited to see where POP! Balloon Decor will be in 3 months, 6 months, 12 months…
How did you build your audience on social media?
I am probably not the right person to speak about social media presence. I wasn’t ever very good at it and didn’t understand the ins and outs of how it worked from a business perspective. But I knew that social media presence is vital to a successful business these days so I started doing some research. I reached out to some people I knew who helped me set up Facebook and Instagram accounts. I made sure those 2 accounts were linked so if I posted on one platform it would auto feed to the other. I did some research on effective hash tags by looking at accounts for similar businesses/industries. I decided very quickly that I would try and post something every day. And for the most part, I have been able to do that. I learned the importance of mixing up the types of posts – stories, reels, regular posts. On occasion I add in a video in addition to still photos. I put some posts to music. I always try to tag locations, businesses, people so that my post will get more traction through their accounts.
My biggest struggle has been my website. I am not a web designer, but I have tried to create my own site which has been a struggle. I am still in the process of building my website into something easy to use and one that represents my business and my story. I was told by a marketing person that I should have a photo of myself on my website – not just images of my product. Product images are very important, but people want to see who it is behind the scenes that is doing the work. I signed up to win a free head shot from a local photographer when I was at a trade show, and I ended up winning it! So now I have a professional head shot that I can use on my website and other places on social media.
The website is definitely a work in progress, but we are moving ahead and making progress. I hope to have it all tweaked soon. If I had a few pieces of advice that I have learned over these few months, it would be make sure your website is mobile device compatible and doesn’t just look good on a computer. So many people use their phones to search for information/places so making your website easily accessible and readable on mobile devices is critical. For now, I keep posting on Facebook and Instagram. I have learned the importance of replying to every comment and even commenting on other sites to help build my company’s visibility. I haven’t gotten into Tic Tok or Snap Chat yet, but I will look into those as my business continues to grow. Remember, you’re never too old to learn new things and YOU CAN DO IT!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.popballoondecormn.com
- Instagram: popballoondecormn
- Facebook: POP Balloon Decor
- Linkedin: Lyn Larson
