TUCKED away at 21 High Street, Rushworth, Balloons and Stuff has become the go-to gift shop for locals and visitors alike, a place where you can wander in looking for one thing and walk out with a handful of finds you didn’t know you needed.
Owned and operated by Bruce and Gwen Annette, it’s a shop built on the simple idea that a gift shop should have something for absolutely everyone, of every age.
Balloons and Stuff has been built on genuine resilience. Bruce and Gwen opened in 2019, only to be hit almost immediately by COVID lockdowns. Rather than close up, they pivoted to an eBay store, serving customers online when the shopfront couldn’t and ensuring it was back to business as usual when restrictions finally lifted.
Since then, locals and tourists have rediscovered the charming shop, and Bruce and Gwen have used the momentum to grow it into something far bigger than its name suggests.
Today, the shelves hold a genuinely unique range including, but not limited to, wind-up tin toys, jigsaw puzzles, Disney figurines by Britto, jewellery and money boxes, long wool Aussie sheepskins and cowhides, Shelta umbrellas, moccasin ugg boots and slip-on footwear, Roogenic tea and bushfoods, Sherrin footballs, personal cooling products, Stanton hats for men and women, and of course, a wide range of balloons from coloured-latex to foils and large 100cm numbers.
The personal touch from Gwen and Bruce is what really makes Balloons and Stuff standout. The combination of hard-won resilience, a genuinely unique range, and real hometown service have earned the store a loyal following, with locals and travellers making a point of stopping in.
In a world of impersonal online ordering, Balloons and Stuff is a reminder that the best gifts often start with a real conversation with real people, in a real town.
Next time you’re gift hunting, head to 21 High Street and let Bruce and Gwen guide you to something special.
