Another manufacturer interview this week sees us joined by John Penn from APAC Packaging! APAC started supplying growers with products and progressed from there, supplying more and more products in the floristry industry. In 2013, they started to look for a quality balloon product to supply to the industry, and found it in Mexican company Convertidora who primarily supply North and South America with balloon products. In North America they are more commonly known as ConverUSA, and ConverGram in South America after their 50/50 partnership with Anagram. Kaleidoscope is the name Convertidora wants to use for their balloon and party range for the European Market. The company produces a staggering 12 million balloons a month and employ 2,000 staff in their Mexican factory, making them one of the largest balloon produces in the world, second only to Anagram.

John is the Area sales manager for the South of England, who joined APAC in 2014 to help launch the foil balloon side of the business. Since then APAC have been expanding their range of balloon products beyond just the foil ones, and have now introduced party banners, badges, latex balloons, balloon boxes and tableware. Their product range has grown considerably even in just 1 year; you can tell just by comparing the thickness of their old and new catalogues!

Speaking of the product range, we are beginning to stock more and more Kaleidoscope balloon and party products here at Balloon Market. You may remember the balloon boxes and Post-Boxes we spoke about on previous BMTV episodes: both APAC products! We also stock Banners, Badges, and a healthy range of foil balloons. Something we don’t yet stock (but are very excited about) are the LED light boxes that John brought in to show us. These boxes are made of wood, and have a switch on the side to turn on the LED light bulbs on the front. Their shapes include numbers 0 – 9, a light-up “MR & MRS”, a couple of LOVE designs and two Christmas ones in red and white. Definitely something we are looking forward to stocking.

Now, the most exciting product that APAC are bringing to the market is of course the Gellibean range. These plastic balloons caused quite a stir when we mentioned them in a previous episode, and we received a fair few comments asking us when we were going to get these in! We are delighted to say they are now in stock, and you can find them by clicking here! What sets Gellibeans apart from regular foil designs is that they are printed on the inside rather than on the surface, which is the standard method of printing foils. We’re sure you know how annoying it is to inflate a foil balloon and notice a scratch on the design, or that some of it has been rubbed off. As Gellibean balloons are printed behind a plastic layer, the designs will never rub off, so worry no longer! Another benefit of Gellibeans is their glossy translucent finish, which lets light shine through the colours, making them vibrant and clear.

So what does the future hold for APAC and Kaleidoscope? They are currently building an 82,000 sq ft warehouse to stock half a million balloons, which is pretty much every line Kaleidoscope stock! This warehouse is part of APAC’s plans to expand in the UK market, and to begin to supply product to Europe. Although they are the “New Kids on the Block” as John likes to put it, they are hitting the industry hard. It’s not just the designs that stand out but also the quality from Kaleidoscope. John was telling us of a customer who ordered 5000 letter and number balloons from APAC, and has returned only 98 to date. Take it from us, Kaleidoscope are here to stay!

Rob

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