Meet Eva Nguyen

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Eva Nguyen. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Eva, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

I found my purpose of starting my balloon business back in 2021. I had a friends farewell party and everyone put me in charge of decorating. Balloon garlands were quite popular at the time so I ordered a kit off of amazon. The day of the party came and I was putting the kit together with my partner, Danny, he assisted me with blowing and tying the balloons. During the entire process, Danny noticed the enjoyment I was having putting the balloon garland together. My friend’s husband even said if since I enjoy doing this process I should look into starting a business. I didn’t believe at first people would really pay to have balloons decorations set up but I took the step and here I am now. Along the process I did take a class with Magic Balloons PDX to really learn different techniques and the business aspects of the balloon business. I have learned so much and I continue to grow. I really look forward when I have clients book me for balloon decorations. I feel so excited when I’m putting together the balloon decorations. It is really soothing to me, blowing up the balloons and then styling them to what my vision is. My clients trust me and I appreciate the vision they provide so I would know what they’re expecting while some put their entire trust to me to do what I please as whatever the end results are, they will be satisfied. The smiles and joy that comes from clients when they see the finished look is what makes me feel so happy and that feeling is just so satisfying. I absolutely look forward to the end results and client’s reactions.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I work full time as a Front Desk Lead at WesternU Health, a primary care clinic, I’ve been in medical administration for 7 years now. I started PDX PartyDrop in June of 2021. I would spend weekends and sometimes weekdays providing balloon decorations for those who book with me. I have the flexibility with my clinic job to be able to take days off as needed if a balloon client were to book me during my clinic hours. I am grateful for the flexibility.

I’ve always had an eye for creativity, balloon decorations was my “calling”, I enjoy working with clients, discuss their vision in detail, the colors, the style. Every detail is very important as I like to put together a visual for clients so they have an idea of what they’re expecting. I find it very helpful and my clients love it too. I like helping people because I have skills that not a lot of others do and being able to use my skills to make others happy, makes me happy too. I know that I can provide to others in ways and that alone is satisfying.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

1. Creativity, being able to put together ideas of what clients provide in what they want their design to be. Thinking outside the box and creating the concept of multiple ideas together into one.

2. Communication, clear and thorough discussion between yourself and clients. Don’t ever hesitate to ask any questions that you may come across. I like to be thorough so my clients knows exactly what they’re expecting and the process so there isn’t any hidden surprises.

3. Quick with hands, when putting together the balloon decorations, there is a technique that does take some practice and anyone can do it. I personally have a quick hand to anything hands on project wise. Being able to work fast, tackling down the balloon technique, will make your work go by fast because sometimes you’re on a time crunch and things needs to get done. Keep practicing, it only gets better every day!

Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?

The number one obstacle that’s a challenge that I always find myself facing is putting a price on my work. I have many who says I undersell myself and that I should charge more. I always want to make sure people get the results they’re wanting but also provide budget friendly cost. What I value is the memories that people will create with my artwork provided and that alone makes me happy, but everything does come with a price and I wouldn’t be able to keep going on without proper pricing. That is a struggle I constantly find myself pondering about, if I am over charging, or under charging. I always get nervous to provide clients the final price and am afraid of loosing people over the price but I also am learning to know what my worth is so I can keep providing my skills to others.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pdxpartydrop