Balloon architect Aurelija Meakin established her ‘Balloonista’ brand in 2016 following a corporate career in the telecoms industry in London which left her feeling uninspired.
 

“I've always been very entrepreneurial and creative with dreams of having my own business,” says Aurelija, who relocated to the UK from Lithuania in 2004 after studying fashion design and technology at university. “I got to the point where I worked long hours for somebody else and all my creativity was gone. I thought, what can I do that makes me smile every day and happy to go to work? I didn’t know what my business was going to be, but I didn’t want to work for someone else.”
 

The answer wasn’t an obvious choice for Aurelija – and balloons certainly weren’t on her radar at first. Until she attended a friend’s wedding in South Africa which changed the course of her life.

“I used to hate balloons as a child because all I remembered were green, red and yellow pear-shaped things attached to a curtain rail that used to pop in your face,” she says. “The inspiration happened when I went to a friend’s wedding in South Africa with beautiful pastel coloured balloons. She had a balloon business in Dubai so I thought I’d give it a go and I went to Dubai to get trained.”

Aurelija hasn’t looked back since. Balloonista has blossomed into a booming business and now has an expansive list of clients that includes high profile events, private homes of celebrities and five-star hotels such as The Savoy, The Dorchester and Grosvenor House in London.

The choice of investing in an all-electric zero-emission e-Sprinter van went hand in hand with Aurelija’s environmentally conscious mindset and mission to provide a top service to her growing clientele. It also now means that her vehicle is exempt from the £15 per day London Congestion Charge when making the 18-mile trip from her base in Orpington to deliver her creative designs.

“Our biggest market is central London so there are congestion charges and I need the vehicles because we deliver all the time and we have lots of private clients,” she says. “They are mainly based in places like Chelsea and Knightsbridge so those are the kinds of locations that we operate in. Branding is also very important to me – logos matter, and the association with the three-pointed star is perfect,” says Aurelija.

Aside from aesthetics, practical features such as volume capacity were also crucial deciding factors for Aurelija and her team, because her balloon designs are preassembled so that valuable time isn’t wasted creating displays on site – where often space is limited.

The eSprinter is able to lend a helping hand with its 55 kWh high-voltage battery pack mounted beneath the body which does not affect the available space within the van. At 11m3 the medium length, high roofed electric van is half a cubic metre bigger than its rear-wheel drive equivalent making it the ideal business companion.

“We really do utilise every inch of space to the fullest, which is crucial to my business. Additionally, the van is beautifully constructed and effortless to drive; as smooth and comfortable as you’d expect from Mercedes-Benz,” she explains.

For more distant commissions, and for larger projects that require both vehicles, Balloonista continues to use its existing diesel-engined van in addition to the e-Sprinter.

The challenges of Covid-19 meant that work halted for Balloonista within one of her biggest markets – the events industry. Yet Aurelija brought her vibrant personality to the public – without her balloons – delivering vegetables in her spare time.

“There was no help at all during that time, because I was running everything from my house so I couldn't get any support whatsoever. We had to diversify and make changes because we couldn’t do any installations and nobody could leave the house,” she says.

“I couldn’t just sit at home and sulk, so at that time I had friends who were local florists who diversified and started delivering vegetables, so I helped them with that. It got me out of the house and I was able to listen to audiobooks and learn about business which I listen to when I do deliveries. I also used the time to develop the website to attract luxury customers.”

With plans to work with an alcohol brand in the South of France, the award-winning company is going from strength to strength and shows no signs of slowing down.

“I smile everyday,” says Aurelija. “The challenges are that you wear 20, sometimes more, hats but I’m really glad to be doing what I do now.”

* The indicated values were determined according to the prescribed measurement method – Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP). Electrical WLTP range for the eSprinter in miles (Km), combined 82.6 (133) – 95.7 (154). Electrical consumption in kWh/100 km , combined: 35.8 – 40.9; CO₂ emissions in g/km (combined): 0.

^ Prices correct as of May 2022 and based on an Electric @ 26.50 p/kWh