Boswell’s Discount Party Supplies

Every we celebrate New Years Eve with friends in Walnut Creek through a big party. We learned about Boswell’s and now use them every year for balloon deliveries and party supplies. They are great! It makes a huge difference to be able to have the balloons delivered the day of rather than having to pick it up. The decorations we get in advance, and are always pleased with the price and selection.

I came in a few days ago needing some help putting together a surprise balloon arrangement that was a little complicated. The manager Megan I believe her name was and Rachel were so incredibly helpful and polite. They went above and beyond to help their customer achieve what they were looking for. Thanks Boswells!!! It turned out perfect!

What a great store! I came in needing to purchase items for a baby shower. Your sales girl, Casey, was so very helpful and nice. She not only helped me pick out the perfect decorations, she made a beautiful balloon bouquet for me. Boswell’s prices are pretty fair and everything is so organized. If you ever need baby shower decorations — I highly recommend coming here!

I almost didn’t go because of the bad reviews. Good thing I was too lazy to drive all the way to Party City, so I got to visit Boswells. I bought a piñata, party favors, and balloons.
Goodness, people sure are way off the mark about this place. The service was okay, the selection was good, and prices are fair. It may be just a few cents more than big box stores, but you’ll feel better shedding a little more to support a small business.
The place is big, clean and organized. The service is also good. There was a sweet elderly lady on the counter who kindly suggested that I keep in mind that their balloons last 8 hours (see below), a nice gesture indeed. Then again, balloons with such a short life span was disappointing. Party City and even dollar store balloons last at least two days. Not sure why that is.
At any rate, I have more compliments than complaints. Good store overall. I’ll be back.

I’ve been here several times and I love that they have a very large variety of things. However, items are not discounted by any means so don’t let the name of the store fool you. It’s always a bummer when you settle for something then find cuter items at another place that’s cheaper :(. Which happened to me. No big deal, but also be aware that the return policy is tricky. You can only get your money back if you pay with cash/​debit, you’ll receive only store credit if you pay with a credit card. Again, no big deal but I think it’s good to be aware of this.
I’d say it’s the place I go to when I’ve exhausted my other favorite party stores.
The customer service is OK too. The youngsters working there aren’t that great, but I recently was helped by a woman who truly understands customer service. I liked her!

They have a huge selection of party supplies and costume attire. I was very impressed with their stock. However, rating 3 stars because the store was messy and not well organized. The costume accessories were in such random spots. The service was also sub-​par. The staff appeared to be young so it could have been that they just haven’t been trained to provide customer service. When I asked one of the employees to help me get a costume down from one of the walls, he grabbed the stick but seemed unenthusiastic about assisting. He then said «ugh, I hate doing this so much» when getting it down. It made me feel guilty for asking! The experience with other staff members was much of the same.

Horrible customer service. Tried bringing some business to this store called in advance and was quoted a price. I get there and the price was wrong by a long shot. Would have been a $ 60 sale but ended walking out. Spoke to a Manager and did not receive an apology so going forward they will never get my business as well. You would think that they would honor what they quoted. I guess that’s why these places always end up going out of business. Too bad for them. Spent my money at another party store Wherw they actually sold me the same product for what I was originally quoted. That’s how you keep customers. Shame on your poor Management for not handling it in the first place.

Horrible service. I came into the store and was looking for a helium balloon kit. All I needed was a helium kit with balloons. The lady at the cash register rudely said «we’re closed,» although no one said anything to us when we came into the store. So then I said, «well we can go somewhere else if you’re closing» and she replied, well if you know what you want, then go get it but we are closed.” Okay. So again, I told her we could just leave if they were closing. But she said to go get what we needed so we headed to the aisle to do so. When we got the balloons, the other cashier next to her said,“we’re closed” and proceeded to usher us out of the store. He then said rudely said, «yeah» and closed the door behind us. I’ve been to Boswell before to buy party supplies but it was never this bad. I’m very surprised and disappointed by their rude lack of service today.

I’m super surprised to see all the negative customer service reviews, I had an AMAZING experience this last Friday. I had a bunch of random stuff I needed and was afraid I’d have to make an extra stop at Michael’s or Target, but Boswell’s had it all!
I called ahead and ordered a dozen balloons, they were ready when I got there. A nice young lady helped me find all the random stuff on my list, she stopped what she was doing and made sure to show me all the options they had and was really happy to help. I was very impressed with the nice staff and prices!
I will definitely come again for my party needs :)

Don’t believe the hours on the website. Call before you drive all the way there i got there at 5:06 and they closed 1 ½ hours early for MLK Jr. day. Closed at 5:00 when the website said they close at 6:30!

The worst customer service, and very uncourteous.
I ask my husband to go and buy large balloons but he got extra large balloons (12:30 pm) after my boys nap time i go to the store and try to exchange them for the ones i wanted (with my receipt at 5:30 pm on the same day!!!). The employee was very rude she didn’t even heard me, she didn’t care, they don’t make exchanges no returns, nothing! So very disappointed.
I am deeply frustrated because i used to buy my crafts, stickers, plates, cups, party stuff, etc … :(they loose a family customer.
Whatever you buy is non returnable… Sad to know

The store is simply ok and the prices are inflated. The ladies that work here are SO rude! I know I’m the 5 billionth person to come in asking for frozen crap, but they could at least be nice about it like the other party stores. They just acted like my business was a massive inconvenience to them and were completely disinterested and kind of acted like they wanted me to hurry up and get the hell out of there. Only one young girl working there was nice to me. I bought some stuff (the only frozen stuff they had was stickers so I improvised) but I wish I hadn’t given them any money. Needless to say, I won’t be shopping here ever again.

It takes a lot for me to write a bad review. I believe you need to give businesses a few chances before writing negatively on Unilocal.I can honestly say I’ve given them numerous opportunities to change my mind. I’ve tried to write this a few times now, and every time I just start getting angry. I remember when this place opened up in the eighties. It was fun to go grab some cheap candy/​plan for a slumber party, but over the last few years I can not remember a time that the women here have not been rude.
Last time I went in with my mom, who is the sweetest person, to get Fourth of July decorations, and the woman was… you know those corny movies were the actor is overplaying the part of the rude salesman? Or, you know on classic SNL were the flight attendants would just smile horribly, and say «Have a nice day!». That’s how the woman at Boswells treated my mom. Now, they had done that to me over, and over again over the years. The overly stereotypical persona are these womens norm. Cows. And it’s not once, or twice but over a dozen times to the point were my mom and I decided to go into Pleasant Hill to get party supplies from now on. She lives three blocks from Boswells, but we would rather go miles away for someone to be, at least, sorta nice to us.
They don’t deserve your patronize.

PROS
very low prices
huge inventory
plenty of parking, even before major holidays
can be one stop shop — tablecloths, napkins, plates, plastic champagne cups
easy access to freeway
can transfer from their sister stores
many seasonal items — e.g. Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, SuperBowl
CONS
apathetic staff
occasionally surly staff
not well organized
unappealing /​non existent displays for ideas
due to low prices, quality of items not high, will only last for one party
I shop at Boswells frequently and would give them 4, possibly even 5 stars if the customer service was even slightly better.

This place is awesome! Friendly staff, wide range of party supplies for almost every occasion, costumes, facepaint and great looking balloon bouquets! You won’t be disappointed shopping at this store for supplies =] 5 stars!

$ 50 costume marked down to just $ 5? You were my life saver for Halloween this year, my dear Boswell’s. My friend and I were in the market for matching costumes and some face paint so we could zombify ourselves (it ain’t October unless I turn myself into a zombie at least once) and as every Spirit store was miles out of the way we decided to give this place a try. My last Boswell’s experience had been 10 years ago when I was a kid and my mom and I were stocking up for my birthday extravaganza, and I remember it being a great store back then. They had plenty of funky paper plates for me to select from, and a wide variety of knick-​knacks for my party guests, streamers of every color, and the party hats were off the chain. This is still the case, so kids everywhere (and overgrown kids like myself) can rejoice in knowing they can fill their wacky party accessory quota for cheap.
This store has everything, and for a fraction of the price. Items probably aren’t quality enough to last you more than one use, but when you get them at such a steal it doesn’t really matter. Thumbs up, Boswell’s!

There’s no holiday more sacred to a yin/​yang partier/​ascetic like myself than Fat Tuesday/​Ash Wednesday.
Upon planning my pseudo-​sultry costume I was appalled that I couldn’t find any kind of Mardi Gras mask in my cavernous closet, and while spelunking in that cave only found two random strands of beads. Clearly a trip to a costume store was called for, and when Eureka struck that my fantastic party throwing friend/​fiend Nique F. had reviewed Boswell’s in Lafayette I hightailed it here just before they closed.
They had two entire displays dedicated to soon to be bon vivants, with gaudy beads and feathery masks galore. As I strolled around the store I realized what a complete mess of a place this is… in a semi-​charming way. Having found what I needed (because I so needed these things), I wasn’t irritated that the unicorn pencil top erasers were in the streamers bin, or that the GI Joe paper plates were in the whoopie cushion labelled bin. If I were a Lamorinda mommy planning a birthday party, however, I would probably be miffed at this lackadaisical approach to organization, especially since no one said a word of hello or offered any assistance to me during my entire lap around the store (just making sure I didn’t need any more baubles to round out my kitschy purchases.)
All told, $ 12.67 for two Mardi Gras masks and a pack of beads. Jay-​Z and I received plenty of compliments on our masks which are surprisingly still intact. Definitely recommend Boswells for any last minute touches to your costume, and perhaps to your party if you have the patience to sift through a ton of trinkets and toys.

I much prefer the Boswell’s in Danville as it is more organized and has better customer service.
One of my best friend’s got married in DC and I helped throw the local reception for she and her bride. It was a lovely party (if I do say so myself) with a bunch of wonderful people all around but since I was doing this (along with the other bride’s best friend), I needed some party supplies. I went to this location the day before the party as I needed a punch bowl that was portable and I knew that Boswell’s (or at least the one in Danville) would have one. Oh, this location had punch bowls, but they had NO ladles! They were out and explained that the SR location did the ordering for their location and well, lots of things were missing from the shelves.
I will come here in a pinch but will stick with the location that has better stock and service.

When your shopping list includes such oddities as:
— giant blow-​up fruit
— two sombreros
— double-​sided tape
— feather boas
— glittery glasses
— one pink wig
…Boswell’s is your local dealer. They do indeed have lots of the same goods you’d find online at Oriental Trading Company, but since I’m a last minute party planner, Boswell’s is a life-​saver during these 11^th hour shopping sprees.
Prices are pretty low, and quality is predictably disposable, but if you need inspiration for your next event — conventional or bizarre — just stroll the aisles of this family-​owned shop and you’re sure to walk out with a party in a bag.

Boswell’s has everything you’ll need to:
— throw a party
— stuff a piñata
— make posters
— stuff stockings
— decorate your car for sports
— create a school project
— make goody bags
— stock an easter basket
— dress a trick-​or-​treater
You get the idea. Plates, party supplies, toys in bulk, balloons — all that good stuff we tend to spend more $$ on than we mean to. Boswell’s is a one stop shop. It’s pretty old & could use some TLC (both the people and the store), but it really is a treasure trove for your next gathering.
Tip: Writing a check here can be very laborious, so make sure to bring your Visa card or cash to check-​out quickly.