EDGEWATER – With six years of experience under their belts, the Edgewater Home and Lifestyle Expo committee has their operation down pat.
During the expo, held on Saturday, April 27, members shuffled through a steady stream of visitors – 450 in all – making sure everything ran smoothly. They greeted and checked in attendees. They made sure vendors were taken care of. They even made popcorn – lots of popcorn.
The popcorn committee churns out bag after bag of fresh popcorn for Home & Lifestyle Expo. (Mason Souza | Sun Day Photo)
The committee is headed by its co-chairs Rosalie Bozan, Carol Johnson, and Barb Bork. These women lead a small army of volunteers and work closely with Lifestyles Director Carrie Schneider to put on the expo every year.
“It’s really a good group; we work very well together and we have fun, and it’s interesting because at the end of their shift, they can go home,” Bozan said. “Nobody goes home.”
While the day of the expo was certainly a busy one, the work had begun well beforehand – last November to be exact, when the committee sent out preliminary notices to vendors to save the date. A committee meeting in January determined that the formal invitations would be sent in February, and as vendors begin filing their R.S.V.P.s, the committee kicked into a higher gear.
Next came the placing of vendors, a delicate art to Bozan.
“The challenging part is actually when we get together to plan where to put people because you have, like, two or three of the same business, and you try not to have them back-to-back or across from each other,” Bozan said.
While the vendors are being mapped out, other volunteers begin prep work for vendor accommodations. This includes everything from allowing vendors to come set up on Friday afternoon or Saturday, and providing them with a free breakfast.
It is a perk much appreciated by many vendors.
“This is one of the only expos that we do that actually provides food for the vendors,” Joy Griffin Scanlan of 1st Place Health said when asked what sets the expo apart from others.
The Edgewater Home and Lifestyle Expo Committee (Photo Provided)
Another unique offering is the free popcorn provided to vendors and guests. On Saturday, members of the aptly named popcorn committee dutifully churned out bag after bag of golden, buttery popcorn. Though a newly formed group, they worked in-sync with almost mechanical efficiency.
“The big deal is putting [the machine] together and cleaning it up; the popping is not a problem,” Ron Roller said, adding that his wife volunteered him to be popcorn committee chair.
After the expo, vendors are asked to fill out surveys, which the committee takes as suggestions for improvements in upcoming expos.
Don Gaylord, financial advisor at Edward Jones, has been coming to the expo every year since the beginning and has noticed the changes.
“They make little tweaks every year. Every year it seems to get better,” he said.
Gaylord, who had a (fake) money tree on his booth, said he enjoyed the social aspect of the expo.
“I tell my wife, ‘It’s kind of like spending the day talking to a lot of friends,’” he said.
For the guests, the big draw is getting in touch with local businesses and being able to comparison shop without driving. Paul and Carolyn Olson said they were “in the market” for a new physician and used the expo as a chance to meet several.
“It gives you an opportunity to see different people that do different jobs, and sometimes you don’t realize what you can do to make your home more lovely,” Carolyn said.
While Gaylord’s money tree was a sight to be seen, it was not the only attention-grabber. Eye candy abounded as vendors sought to entice crowds with various wheels, electronic displays, and free giveaways.
“I love that five-minute massage,” Carolyn said of her favorite attraction.
Attendees sample the booths that spanned the Creekside Lodge’s presentation rooms.
(Mason Souza I Sun Day Photo)
Vendors hoped to get the most out of their booths, as many acknowledged having a presence in active adult communities was key to their business.
“It is very big,” John Stringer, owner of a contracting company said about word-of-mouth referrals. “It is the key to success in a community like this because everybody talks to one another. Everybody shares, and they have a really good exchange of information.”
Russ Boone, a sales representative for an awning installation company, agreed that referrals in Edgewater were important to his business. A returning exhibitor, he acknowledged that the expo has improved between years.
“The personal service here is very, very good,” he said. “There’s someone to help every single vendor walking through the door.”
Bozan credits all the happy vendors’ comments to the work of the committee, adding that the same hard work can be found in Holiday Magic, Music on the Green, and other Edgewater events.
“When we take on any event, we become a team,” she said.
