How I got my job as… Co-Founders of Dubai’s first biodegradable balloon brand
Welcome to EW‘s weekly series ‘How I got my job as…’ where we speak to some incredible entrepreneurs and businesswomen both based in the UAE and globally to find out about their career paths led them to where they are now; what their daily routines look like; the advice they’d give to those starting out; and the hurdles they’ve had to overcome.
This week we chat to the co-founders of Dubai’s first biodegradable balloon business, Ineza. Colleagues-turned-friends Geraldine and Zahra decided to harness their corporate backgrounds to go it alone becoming entrepreneurs.
Having worked on events with key luxury brands including Chanel, Cartier, Manolo Blahnik and Gucci, it’s safe to say this pair found a hole in the market in Dubai and have never looked back since they launched nearly a year ago.
What inspired you to launch Ineza?
The short and honest answer to this is motherhood. We have our children to thank for giving us the courage to push beyond our comfort zone. We were both working in the energy sector and ambitious to build successful careers. However, when motherhood arrived bringing with it joy but lots of extra responsibilities, we started to question ourselves on whether our personal and professional goals were aligned – We quickly realised the answer was no.
After reading Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg, we would often joke about going it alone, but were never brave enough to take that next step. With a combined career of 15 years between us in the region, we had gained immense knowledge and experience of marketing and communications of which events was a large component so we were always on the lookout for fresh and new ideas.
Although balloons are not in any way innovative as a concept, we started to notice that Europe, the US and Australia were trailblazing a more sophisticated aesthetic. We noticed that they were now being used in concerts, TV shows, catwalks, top tier members clubs and fine dining establishments. In that moment, we both realised that this was something we hadn’t readily seen in the region in terms of quality or innovation. We spent the next six months researching the market which also included a trip to London to undertake professional training with industry experts. As a result, we took a deep breath and embarked on a journey that has brought us to this juncture.
We were colleagues not once but twice within our careers and we became firm friends – we just felt that some things are just destined. We were resolute that we would pursue our passion for creativity combined with our corporate skillset to create a successful business.
How do you make balloons sustainable and where do you source Biodegradable Latex?
On our journey, we discovered that the balloon industry was evolving in line with global concerns of the environmental need to reduce plastic waste. This was encouraging as it aligned with our ethos to ensure that the brands, we procured were ethically sourced and accredited. We absolutely never compromise on quality as this is paramount to us.
We are mindful that the responsibility falls on us as a business to ensure that we do our utmost to ethically source our products to reduce the environmental impact. One of our key values is sustainability and we practice this through as many channels of our process as possible.
We use high-quality latex balloons which are a natural plant-based product and therefore do not have the same destructive impact on our planet. Latex is a biodegradable substance produced by rubber trees and decomposes at the rate of an oakleaf. The latex is extracted and harnessed without harming or reducing the rubber tree population.
Do they last as long as normal balloons?
External factors are a huge determinant of this. Indoors and in air-conditioned areas they last longer. Of course, with installations left untampered, we have seen them last up to 14 days and in some cases longer. Outdoors if the temperatures are high, they have a significantly shorter life although some have been known to survive more than a few days. We don’t like to guarantee longer than a day as there are many factors at play which determine this. We think most people are pleasantly surprised at their lifespan compared to traditional balloons.
What are the key elements of your role?
As Managing Partners, we manage every element of our business ourselves. Coming from a corporate background we find that we are very structured in our approach. We have divided some areas of expertise, but when it comes to the creative output both of us are equally invested. One of the key elements of our practice is to actively pursue business development by building on existing relationships and acquiring new business. A lot of our commissions have come from happy client recommendations and we continuously work on providing our clients with the best experience and product – We care passionately about our business and continuously seek client feedback to gauge their satisfaction and improve our offering.
Talk us through your daily routine.
As a start-up, every day is very different and no two days are the same. However, one part of our routine that remains the same is the school run! As mothers, our children keep us grounded to the realities of everyday life – we wouldn’t change that for the world.
Our mornings then start like any other working day. We meet and discuss prospective, pipeline and completed projects. We divide our day on working on creative briefs we receive from clients and developing pitches, servicing our clients on the projects in hand – actively engaging and updating them on the phase of their individual projects and finally reconciling completed projected.
We also allocate time for client and vendor meetings that we undertake most days of the week.
In short, it’s fluid but productive. Some days are harder than others – but we’ve given birth so there is very little than can phase us!
When onsite on an installation, we are pretty fuelled with adrenaline but it takes one split second “wow” that makes it so rewarding.
What advice do you have for anyone looking to follow in the same footsteps?
Firstly, as women – we need to equip ourselves with self-belief that no matter what you don’t have to accept the status quo. If you want to do something different, try it and go for it. At worst you will fail, but we promise you in the early days those small wins will fuel you and before you know it, like us you’ll be a year into it and look back at how far you’ve come.
In a partnership – make your vows count! It’s like having another spouse. Not every friend is one you can embark on a business with. You need one that, like a marriage, you can be tested on at every level and come out the other end still laughing about it. You can agree to disagree, hold each other together through the lows and celebrate in the highs. The key is transparency and to know you have a partnership through it all.
As a business, find something you love, research the hell out of it and pilot it.
What is the best piece of advice you ever received?
Stay in your lane and just keep ploughing forward. Don’t look at what others are doing.
You need to let your work speak for itself.
What has been the biggest challenge you had to overcome?
Launching a few months before the pandemic. We had confirmed corporate clients within our first quarter which was phenomenal. We started on such a high that we couldn’t believe how much positive sentiment was behind us and our work. As soon as the seriousness of the situation became apparent, we lost the work we had pitched so hard for. We took time to regroup and understand the situation and pivoted into the B2C space which initially wasn’t our core Business focus. The silver lining was that it was met with huge popularity with some collections selling out and now have become a revenue stream on our digital platform. As the lockdown came to an end and we embarked on the last quarter of the year, work we feared we had lost has now been rescheduled before the end of the year.
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