Posted on 1st October 2026 by Penny Gibbs
Last month, Euro-Matic UK celebrated 10 years in business.
What started as a short-term plan for Paul and Helena King has grown into an internationally trading family business, supplying specialist plastic balls for play, industry and water management.
The business began in 2016 at a time when Paul and Helena were also planning their family. Paul had moved on from a large international role and initially saw Euro-Matic UK as something to keep him busy. Helena planned to continue with her job in London, while Paul could help with the school run.
The plan soon changed.
“All it took really was some dedication, some good customer service, good product and it just built itself naturally from there.”
Ten years later, the children who were just starting school are approaching their GCSE years, while the business their parents started has continued to grow.
Watch this short video of Helen and Paul reflecting on the business after 10 years.
Paul and Helena have very different backgrounds, something Helena believes has played an important part in making the business work.
Her experience is predominantly in commercial growth, marketing and taking products from concept through to development. Paul brings an engineering background and the ability to get into the detail of more complex projects and find practical solutions.
Then there are all the other jobs that come with running a small business.
From websites and spreadsheets to deliveries, warehouse work and customer visits, both remain closely involved in the day-to-day running of Euro-Matic UK.
“We both come into work and we both just get on with it and it just works.”
There may be the occasional disagreement at home over who has put the washing in, as Helena admits in the video, but that is another story.
Playpen balls are probably the product most people immediately associate with Euro-Matic. But they are only one part of the business.
Euro-Matic also supplies balls for reservoirs, chemical treatment tanks and a wide range of other specialist applications.
Today, three key areas demonstrate just how different those applications can be.
Euro-Matic playpen balls are used across soft play centres, family entertainment venues, sensory spaces, events and brand activations.
Quality has always been important. Random samples are compressed to half their diameter 20,000 times during testing, while the commercial playpen balls come with a two-year guarantee against splitting or breaking under normal use. Euro-Matic says no other supplier offers the same guarantee.
Croffles are floating technical balls designed for open process tanks, including chemical processing, electroplating and manufacturing.
By creating a floating cover across the liquid surface, they can help businesses reduce heat loss, evaporation, fumes and chemical loss.
For customers, that can mean a relatively simple product helping to tackle much bigger challenges around energy use, working conditions and operating costs.
Euro-Matic shade balls are used across reservoirs, wastewater, industrial water storage and other open water applications.
They form a floating cover that can reduce evaporation, restrict sunlight and algae growth, deter birds and protect water quality. Some Euro-Matic products have already spent decades on water and remain in use today. Current shade balls have an expected lifespan of more than 25 years in standard conditions.
Paul believes this combination of product quality and specialist applications is one of Euro-Matic’s biggest strengths.
For Helena, success is not simply about completing an order. It is about customers returning when they have another project.
A customer might start with one playpen installation before opening another venue. An industrial customer may test Croffles in one chemical tank before rolling them out across a wider site. A water company might begin with one reservoir before considering others.
“It’s really important for us that our customers stay with us for years.”
That long-term relationship is closely connected to what Helena describes as the core of Euro-Matic: a quality, sustainable product backed by people who understand the application.
Ask Paul to choose one project he is most proud of and he struggles to pick just one.
Over the years, Euro-Matic UK has worked on major projects with Yorkshire Water, Wessex Water, Heathrow Airport and Brussels Airport.
For Paul, the important part is not simply having recognisable names on the customer list. It is being able to look back at complex projects, know they were delivered successfully and see the reputation that followed.
“It’s pretty much all the projects, all the big projects that we do, and we can look back and say we’ve done it really successfully.”
That track record now stretches across leisure, water management, airports, manufacturing and chemical processing.
Reaching 10 years is an achievement in itself.
Like many small businesses, Euro-Matic UK has had to navigate Covid, rising costs, staffing pressures and the everyday challenges that come with running and growing a company.
Helena believes remaining hands-on has helped them through those periods.
“We are hands-on… we know every aspect, and I think that’s why we’re successful.”
That means Paul and Helena can still be found working across the business, from customer projects and deliveries to the warehouse and website.
The last few years have also brought growing recognition for that work.
In 2025, Euro-Matic received the E2 Media Award for Excellence for Best Ball Manufacturer, while Helena was recognised as Best Business Woman of the Year at the IE100 Awards.
Then, in June 2026, Euro-Matic celebrated two wins on the same evening. The business was named Small to Medium Business of the Year at the Express & Star Business Awards and Best Trade Supplier at the Association of Indoor Play Awards. Euro-Matic was also a finalist for the Sustainability Award and AIP Innovation Award.
For Paul and Helena, those awards reflect more than business growth. They recognise the focus on quality, sustainability and customer service that has shaped Euro-Matic UK over the last decade.
The next milestone could be a particularly personal one.
Both Paul and Helena want Euro-Matic UK to remain a family business and, eventually, giving the next generation the opportunity to take it forward.
Paul sees the years ahead as a chance to pass on the experience they have gained, not only to their children but also to new members of the team.
For Helena, there is already a sign that growing up around the business has made an impression.
Their eldest son, Jaiden, has chosen Business Studies as he moves into his GCSE years and is already showing an interest in one day becoming involved in the family business.
“He’s seen from the very get-go that we’ve worked together, we’ve made something successful, and now he sees that as a potential future for him.”
Whether you need playpen balls, Croffles for a technical application or shade balls for water storage, contact our team to discuss your requirements.
