Today we’d like to introduce you to Cathryn Coleman.
Hi Cathryn, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My story really started with a love for celebrating people and a determination to create something of my own. However not only for myself but my children and the community!
I’m a born-and-raised Detroiter, entrepreneur, and mother of five. What started as a bounce house and party rental business grew into what is now Detroit Balloon Store—a retail balloon store, event décor company, party rental business, and event venue serving families, schools, corporations, organizations, and communities throughout Metro Detroit.
Over the years, I invested heavily in learning my craft and the business behind it. I became a Certified Balloon Artist and traveled to learn from others in the industry, continuously adding new skills, products, equipment, and services. What began with balloons expanded into event décor, inflatables, concessions, throne chairs, rentals, balloon education, and eventually our own event space.
One of the biggest parts of my story is the building Detroit Balloon Store calls home. It was a former beer and wine store in my own community that had sat vacant for approximately 37 years and was scheduled for demolition. I purchased it through the Wayne County tax auction. At the time, the building was in extremely poor condition—it didn’t even have a proper roof or floor—but I could see what it could become.
I advocated to save the building and, alongside my husband, put in the work to bring it back to life. Today, that once-abandoned property is home to Detroit Balloon Store and our event venue, with an occupancy of 169 people. Instead of being demolished, it is now a place where people shop, celebrate birthdays, graduations, weddings, repasts, community events, and some of the most important moments of their lives.
As the business grew, so did my vision for what Detroit Balloon Store could contribute beyond celebrations. I’ve had the opportunity to work with major companies, municipalities, schools, nonprofits, and organizations, while also teaching young people balloon artistry and the business principles behind turning a creative skill into income.
Most recently, I’ve expanded our focus into sustainability by bringing Balloon Mission’s latex balloon recycling program to Detroit, becoming the first location in Michigan to participate. For me, that represents the next chapter of the business: not only thinking about how we create the celebration, but also taking responsibility for what happens after the celebration.
When I look at where I started and where I am today, I realize my story is bigger than balloons. It’s about seeing possibility where other people may see something disposable—whether that’s a vacant building, a creative skill, or even a balloon after an event—and figuring out how to turn it into something valuable.
Detroit Balloon Store has grown tremendously, but I still feel like I’m building. My goal is to continue creating opportunities, revitalizing spaces, teaching entrepreneurship and balloon artistry, and showing what can happen when you invest in yourself and your community.
And through every stage of that journey, my philosophy has remained the same: keep learning, keep building, and keep finding new ways to Float High.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely has not been a smooth road, but I think the testing parts of the journey have shaped both me and the business.
One of my biggest challenges was building a business while simultaneously rebuilding a physical building. When I purchased the property that would eventually become Detroit Balloon Store, it had been vacant for approximately 37 years and was scheduled for demolition. There was no roadmap handed to me for taking a severely distressed commercial property and turning it into a functioning retail store and event venue. There were permits, construction, financing, unexpected expenses, setbacks, and plenty of moments when the vision I could see in my head looked very different from what was physically in front of me.
Access to capital has also been a major challenge. Growing a business takes money, and revitalizing commercial property takes even more. I have had to become extremely resourceful—applying for grants and business competitions, reinvesting money back into the company, purchasing equipment little by little, and learning how to make the most of every opportunity that came my way. Some opportunities I won, and plenty I did not, but I kept applying and kept building.
There have also been the normal—but very real—challenges of entrepreneurship: learning pricing, understanding my value, dealing with difficult customers, making mistakes, navigating slow seasons, balancing inventory and expenses, and realizing that being busy does not always mean being profitable. I’ve had to learn when to say yes, but probably more importantly, when to say no.
Another challenge has been wearing so many hats. I am not only a balloon artist. I have had to be the salesperson, marketer, accountant, designer, customer service representative, purchaser, instructor, problem solver, and CEO—while also being a wife and mother of five. There have been seasons when I was so focused on keeping everything moving that I had to remind myself that sustainability applies to the person running the business, too.
But every stage has taught me something. The setbacks forced me to become more knowledgeable. The financial challenges made me more resourceful. Demanding customers strengthened my policies and boundaries. The building taught me patience and persistence. And entrepreneurship itself has taught me that growth is not always about doing more—sometimes growth is learning how to work smarter, protect your time, charge appropriately, and build systems that allow the business to operate without consuming your entire life.
So no, the road has not been smooth. But I also would not have the business knowledge, confidence, resilience, or vision I have today if it had been.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Detroit Balloon Store is a one-stop celebration business located in Detroit. We specialize in balloon artistry and event décor, but over the years we have intentionally grown into much more than balloons.
Our services include custom balloon installations, arches, columns, bouquets, centerpieces and large-scale event décor, along with event rentals such as inflatables, concession equipment, throne chairs and other specialty pieces. We also operate a retail balloon store where customers can walk in and purchase balloons and celebration products, as well as our own event venue with an occupancy of up to 169 people.
I am a Certified Balloon Artist, and one of the things I am known for is taking balloons beyond something you simply buy for a party and treating them as an art form. I have traveled the world developing my craft, and that investment in education has allowed me to create for everything from intimate family celebrations to schools, municipalities, nonprofit organizations and major corporate clients.
What sets Detroit Balloon Store apart is that we have built an entire celebration ecosystem. A customer can come to us for the balloons, décor, rentals and even the space to host their event. Having all of those services under one business allows us to serve customers throughout the entire celebration process.
But some of the work I am most proud of actually extends beyond the celebrations themselves.
Our building is an active retail business and event venue where people from the community come to shop, work and celebrate. I am incredibly proud that we were able to take something that was considered a eyesore in the neighborhood and turn it into an thriving community space .
I am also proud of being able to pass the craft forward. Teaching young people balloon artistry as well as the business behind it—everything from creating balloon designs to pricing, customer service and entrepreneurship. I want young people to understand that creativity can become a legitimate skill, career and business.
Another area that is especially important to me is sustainability. Detroit Balloon Store became the first Balloon Mission latex balloon recycling location in Michigan. The celebration industry creates beautiful moments, but I believe we also have a responsibility to think about what happens after the celebration. Bringing balloon recycling to our community allows us to help lead that conversation within our industry.
Ultimately, I believe what sets Detroit Balloon Store apart is that I have never viewed this as simply selling balloons. Balloons are the product, but celebration, creativity, entrepreneurship and community are the bigger picture.
I am most proud that something I started as a small business has grown into something that creates experiences, revitalizes property, teaches young people, introduces more sustainable practices and contributes to the community where I was born and raised.
We don’t just inflate balloons—we inflate possibilities. And we’re still finding new ways to Float High.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
What I love most about Detroit is its resilience, creativity, culture, and the people. Detroit has always been a city of makers, innovators, entrepreneurs, and people who know how to create something out of what they have. There is a certain pride that comes with being from Detroit—you can travel anywhere in the world, say you’re from Detroit, and people know exactly where you’re talking about.
I also love the opportunity that still exists here. There are buildings, neighborhoods, businesses, and ideas throughout the city with tremendous potential. Detroit Balloon Store is an example of that. Our building sat vacant in my neighborhood for approximately 37 years and was scheduled for demolition. Where someone else may have seen an abandoned building, I saw a future business and a place where my community could celebrate. Being able to contribute to the revitalization of the same city that raised me is one of my favorite parts of being a Detroit entrepreneur.
What I like least is that sometimes Detroiters have to work incredibly hard to access the resources and opportunities needed to bring those ideas to life. There are talented entrepreneurs and residents throughout our neighborhoods who have great ideas and are willing to do the work, but access to capital, property redevelopment resources, information, and the right connections can still be difficult to navigate.
I would love to see even more investment reach neighborhood-based businesses and commercial corridors throughout the entire city. Detroit’s comeback should be something you can see and feel not only downtown, but when you drive through every neighborhood, not just the popular districts.
I love Detroit enough to recognize both what it is and what it still has the potential to become. I chose to build here, invest here, raise my family here, and take a building that had been written off and give it another life here. I think that says more about how I feel about my city than anything else could.
Pricing:
- $31.30 Balloon Bouquets
- $0 Every person signed up for our Float High Birthday Club receives a free balloon on their Birthday!
- $0 It costs any person zero dollars to recycle both latex and mylar balloons at Detroit Balloon Store Float Back program and be Sustainable & Eco-Friendly
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.DetroitBalloonStore.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/BouncingAroundMotorCity
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BouncingAroundMotorCity
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/BATMC2
