This Cookie Policy explains how Oscar's Den (London) Ltd, trading as The London Balloon Shop, uses cookies and similar technologies on thelondonballoonshop.com, what each cookie does, how long it lasts, and how you can control them. It should be read together with our Privacy Policy.
1. What cookies are
A cookie is a small text file that a website places on your device when you visit it. Cookies let a site remember things between pages and between visits, such as what is in your basket, whether you are signed in, or which choices you have made. Some cookies are set by us and some are set by third parties whose services we use, such as our payment provider or our advertising platforms.
Cookies that are strictly necessary for the website to work are used automatically, because the site cannot function without them. All other cookies – analytics, advertising and preference cookies – are used only where you have given your consent through our cookie banner, and you can change your mind at any time.
2. The cookies we use
The tables below list the cookies set when you use this website.
Strictly necessary cookies
These cookies are needed to run the shop, keep your basket and session working, take payment securely and remember your cookie choice. They cannot be switched off in our systems.
| Cookie | Set by | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|
PHPSESSID |
thelondonballoonshop.com | Keeps your browsing session together so that your basket, sign-in state and checkout steps work as you move through the site. | End of browser session |
tlbs_cookie_consent |
thelondonballoonshop.com | Records the cookie choice you made in the banner, so you are not asked again on every page. | 12 months |
__stripe_mid |
Stripe | Used by our payment provider to identify the device during checkout and to prevent fraudulent card transactions. | 12 months |
Functional cookies
These cookies remember choices you make so the site is easier to use. They are used only with your consent.
| Cookie | Set by | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|
tlbs_rv |
thelondonballoonshop.com | Remembers the balloons you have recently viewed, so we can show them to you again on a later visit. | 30 days |
Analytics cookies
These cookies help us understand how visitors use the site – which pages and products are viewed, how people reach us and where they run into problems – so that we can improve it. The information is used in aggregate. They are used only with your consent.
| Cookie | Set by | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|
_ga |
Google Analytics | Distinguishes one visitor from another so that visits can be counted without identifying you by name. | Up to 13 months |
_ga_WD9174RZHG |
Google Analytics | Holds the session state for our Google Analytics 4 property, so that a visit is measured as a single session. | Up to 13 months |
Advertising cookies
These cookies let us measure whether our advertising works and show relevant balloon adverts to people who have visited the site. They are set by the advertising platforms we use and can be read by them on other websites. They are used only with your consent.
| Cookie | Set by | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|
_gcl_au |
Google Ads | Links a click on one of our Google adverts to what happens on the site afterwards, so we can measure conversions. | 90 days |
_fbp |
Meta (Facebook, Instagram) | Identifies a browser for the Meta Pixel, so we can measure and target our advertising on Facebook and Instagram. | 3 months |
We also use Google Tag Manager to load the analytics and advertising tags above. Google Tag Manager does not set cookies of its own; it controls when the tags that do are loaded.
Where you have consented to advertising cookies, our advertising partners – Google, Meta and Pinterest – may set further cookies of their own on your device, for example when their Pinterest Tag or Meta Pixel loads. Those cookies are governed by the partner's own policies, which are linked in section 5. We review the cookies used on this site regularly and update this page when they change.
3. How we ask for your consent
When you first visit the site, a banner tells you that we use cookies and lets you accept or refuse the ones that are not strictly necessary. Your choice is stored in the tlbs_cookie_consent cookie for 12 months, after which we will ask you again. Strictly necessary cookies are set regardless of your choice, because without them the basket, checkout and security features do not work.
4. How to change or withdraw your choice
You can withdraw or change your consent at any time:
- Through your browser. Delete the cookies stored for thelondonballoonshop.com; our banner will then appear again on your next visit and you can make a new choice.
- Through your browser settings. Every major browser lets you block or delete cookies, either entirely or site by site. Blocking all cookies will stop the basket and checkout on this site from working.
Instructions for the main browsers:
You can also opt out of Google Analytics across all websites using the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on, and manage interest-based advertising from many providers at Your Online Choices.
5. Third-party privacy information
- Google (Analytics, Ads, Tag Manager): policies.google.com/privacy
- Meta (Facebook, Instagram): facebook.com/privacy/policy
- Pinterest: policy.pinterest.com/en-gb/privacy-policy
- Stripe: stripe.com/gb/privacy
- PayPal: paypal.com/uk/legalhub/privacy-full
- Dojo: dojo.tech/legal/privacy-policy
6. Contact us
Oscar's Den (London) Ltd, trading as The London Balloon Shop
88b Belsize Lane, London NW3 5BE, United Kingdom
Company Registration No. 00844356 (England and Wales) | VAT No. GB243673947
Email: sales@thelondonballoonshop.com | Telephone: 0207 328 6683