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But then, his phone started ringing.
South Jersey parents, he said, were calling for balloons and signs to recognize milestones for their children.
“Right now, graduations are exploding,” Sicolo said. “We’re creating signage and balloons and things like that, banners for drive-by parties.”
Sicolo said parents are especially keen to recognize their graduates.
“High school grad, college grad, they want to do something because these kids have worked so hard to achieve what they’ve achieved and now they can’t have these graduations and parties,” Sicolo said.
Ron, who prefers to be identified only by his first name, owns Looney Balloons in Thornbury, Chester County. His 30-year-old business also included corporate events, weddings, bar mitzvahs, and graduations, which all ended, too.
A few weeks ago, Ron said someone sent him a Facebook message asking if he still did lawn signs to celebrate birthdays.
He said he hadn’t done those for seven years, but he found materials in a storage shed and set up a display at a home.
His happy client posted it on Facebook and other social media.
“And, the business just exploded, literally exploded,” Ron said. “The phones, we can’t even keep up with the phones, the emails, the Facebook posts.”
Ron said he’s been delivering lawn signs and balloons at all hours of the day and night for weeks.
“It’s a whole new way of celebrating your birthday,” he said. “And, you know what, in some ways probably more memorable than a regular birthday.”
Both said the boom has been a godsend for their respective businesses and agreed this new line of home-party business is here to stay.