Hello friendly faces! It’s that time of the week! We’re back with a new Chicago North Shore Moms spotlight brought to you in part by Mary Gifford of Gifford Law.
Lilia Barba recently learned a tough business lesson. She’s not only passing along this information to anyone starting a business (or anyone who has a small business), she’s celebrating her success! Formerly called Balloons and Paper, now Bashy Bash, the truly lovely Glencoe mother of three, is the founder of this unique, on trend, bright, cheerful and inspiring party supply store.
We first interviewed Lilia two years ago when she was just opening her brick and mortar location. Chicago North Shore Moms had the absolute pleasure of catching up with this amazing entrepreneur, and trust us when we tell you, you’ll want to read this chilling tale that ends with the statement, “I wish I had known then, what I know now.” Welcome back, Lilia!
Hi Lilia! Please introduce yourself. Where are you from, where do you live now and what brought you to your current town?
Hi! My name is Lilia Barba. I was born and raised in Mexico. We have been living in Glencoe for five years. I love love love the people. I love my neighbors, my friends. After six years in the city… I needed to move. We started our search in Hinsdale and moved our way up. Until one day my best friend told me about this little town close to the Chicago Botanic Garden. I was sold as soon as I passed the Glencoe sign.
Tell us about your children and what they are up to since we last heard from you in 2021.
I have three kids and an adorable dog. My oldest is sixteen years old and a junior at New Trier. She wants to be a psychiatrist, loves to read and it is just the sweetest person you will ever meet. My son is my middle one, and is 12 years old. He is an amazing soccer player. His dream is to be a professional soccer player some day. The youngest one is 9 years old. She loves everything about Taylor swift. Bruno is my amazing Australian doodle, he is trouble, but I adore him!
What are one or two fun facts to know about you?
I have more than 20 pairs of eyeglasses.
I love love beer and I am known to always show up with it.
My favorite music group is MUSE.
What are your favorite North Shore places, spaces and eats to frequent?
After my paddle practice I never fail to go to That little French guy in Highland Park. When I am at the store all day, I love to get sweet potatoes fries from Honeycomb restaurant in Winnetka. And my go to place when I don’t want to cook is Shanghai Garden in Glencoe. I love many restaurants in the North Shore but these are the places I go once every week for sure.
What gets you through a tough day?
Lots and Lots of coffee. I always have an indoor cup of coffee in my hand, no matter where I am. I love listening to the entrepreneur podcast. And the only thing I can do to actually relax is playing platform tennis – I try to squeeze playtime at least four times a week.
You have such a strong entrepreneurial spirit. Please tell us about your first business, Craftophologie and how that inspired you to open your doors to your first brick and mortar location.
Craftophologie was the name of my etsy shop. I opened my shop in 2012, and it was the perfect place to be at that time. People were looking for unique decorations and the place to search for was Etsy. My medium is paper, so I started creating custom designs from tv shows, books, favorite stuffed animals that were not popular. Think cake toppers, happy birthday banners, with their custom design all made out of paper. Nothing was printed. I can’t explain how much I loved it, but it was not profitable.
At the same time I was creating pinatas for my kids. I never thought about selling those because the shipping cost was outrageous. They were too big. By that time I had created a following, and a client requested a small pinata. I posted and it was a tremendous hit. I have always wanted to scale my business, and now thinking back I wished I would have invested on it. I was always wanting to make it bigger but waiting for my kids to grow up.
Then covid happened… My son’s birthday was right after everything shut down. I wanted to do something special, so we organized a drive by “party”. I created this huge balloon arrangement for my front door (by watching you tube videos) and gave emoji with a mask mini pinatas as party favors.
Two things happened simultaneously. My best friend was talking to a New York Times writer about her article. The article was going to be focus on people that were doing a spin on these difficult times. My bff mentioned what I did for my son’s party and she decided to interview me.
After that everything was like a dream. My etsy shop blew up, local people started reaching out to me to get my mini pinatas. It was amazing!
At the same time, I posted my son’s bday pics in facebook and one pic went viral. People started to contact me to get balloons. I am a YES person, and let’s figure it out later….
It became very clear very quickly to my husband and I that there was a huge potential for a business. He encouraged me to come up with a plan, and little by little we created a business plan.
The process to actually opening the store was not smooth sailing. I am very proud of myself that I never gave up…so many roadblocks, so many negativities outside of my circle.
Finally, Oct 2021 I opened Balloons & Paper in Winnetka.
Your business recently completed a rebranding, which has proven both tumultuous and a blessing. What happened?
I am ecstatic to write that we completed our rebranding a 100% and we are now officially called Bashy Bash!
Here’s the catalyst: A person in another state, on the opposite side of the country got approved for a trademark on their name very similar to mine. Our business is similar to the point that we work with balloons. The concept is totally different, but it is what it is, and I had a week to change my name. I focused on changing everything online, first. The outside of the store took longer than anticipated since we had to start from zero again.
A few attorney friends stepped up and helped me get out of this nightmare. The support from my friends, my clients, my family and my employees has been overwhelming.
We are now in the process of trademarking our new name, BASHY BASH. This nightmare opened my eyes to not only run a small business but to create a brand. My brand.
Having been through the ringer lately with your small business, what advice can you offer the women reading this who are struggling with starting a business. What should we know that your hindsight can tell us?
My first advice is to whatever idea you have… always dream big. Ask this exact question: “what is the absolute best scenario for your small business?” Whatever the answer, break it down in parts. You don’t have to achieve anything yet, but it will help you make the correct decisions at the beginning.
Protect your business. Invest in your name, in your brand. I got lucky but it would have been very easy to go the opposite direction. I was completely clueless… I thought that if my website is available, my Instagram/Facebook name is available and my name is available to register in my state that would be enough. Always contact a trademark attorney, it is a peace of mind.
Give us your dets!
Come stop by the store in Winnetka, across the street from Hometown Coffee and Juice and take a look around. We have loads of unique party supplies for your next celebration!
Follow along with us:
Facebook: bashybash_winnetka
Instagram: @bashybash_winnetka
website: www.bashybash.com
ph, 847.386.6666
About our Meet of Mom Sponsor
A very heartfelt thank you to CNSMoms’ Meet a Mom sponsor, Lake Forest mom of three and owner of Gifford Law, a solo Estate Planning Firm (wills and trusts). Mary, we appreciate your support of local moms in our North Shore communities! Learn more about Mary by visiting her Meet a Mom spotlight here! Contact Mary directly here: [email protected].
