GIBBON -The "Warm Your Home"-based Business Expo on Saturday drew crowds of people to the South 80 Social Circle in Gibbon.
This event was held as part of the community's second annual three-day "WinterFest" celebration.
Pam Meyer of Gibbon has organized the expo for the second year in a row now. Last year the expo was held at the community center. This year they moved it to its new location.
"It's a wonderful flow of traffic (through the expo)," said Meyer. "It's a little bit of everything (at the expo)."
This year's event featured things like handmade mittens, candles, homemade rugs, crafts, sweatshirts, purses, photography, jewelry, headbands, and soothing flute music, to name a few.
Meyer said last year they had 20 vendors for the expo. This year they were able to book 39 vendors which nearly doubled its size. Meyer calls all of the vendors and then organizes all of the information for the expo.
This year vendors traveled to Gibbon from the Twin Cities, Comfrey, Cosmos, Clara City and other places.
Meyer said she owns and operates her own home-based business with Avon.
"I thought I'll just try it and see if I get any bites," said Meyer, "It's been going really good."
She began selling Avon to her co-workers at BIC (where she works full-time) in Sleepy Eye. (Meyer has been employed at BIC for 25 years.)
"Avon has changed a lot," said Meyer, "It used to be just makeup and perfume. Now it's clothing, shoes, jewelry and Tupperware."
She enjoys selling Avon because she meets many new people.
Michele Vogel is an educational supervisor with the home-based book business called Usborne Books. She has owned her own business for the past three years.
Vogel said she first heard about this business opportunity at a vendor fair at Courtland. After she joined up with Usborne, she got involved right away with a training.
"The ladies I went with were so much fun," said Vogel, "They made it seem like this was do-able. That you could get good books in kids' hands and make an income."
Vogel also said that books are important for kids.
"You've got to make learning fun for kids," said Vogel, "Even if its a sticker book... it's still reading."
Vogel said she has three children: Nick, 14, Jacob, 7 and Amanda, 5. She is also employed full-time at J & R Schugel in New Ulm.
Her home-based business selling books offers her flexibility.
"You can put as much or as little as you want into it," said Vogel.
There was a "good turnout with lots of traffic" for Saturday's expo, Vogel said.
The "WinterFest Warm Up" (wine and beer tasting) held Friday evening kicked off the three-day WinterFest celebration. Meyer reported that once the tickets went on sale for the wine/beer tasting event they were sold out within six days. There were 220 tickets sold for the event. Following the wine tasting, there was music by The Other DJ Company.
Saturday's events included a Frosty Kickball Tournament, "Warm Your Home"-based Business Expo, Medallion Hunt, Bingo, Steak Fry, Mustache Contest and music by Black Rose Production and alsoThe Other DJ Company.
The event concludes Sunday with a Community Breakfast from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the South 80 Social Circle. A free will donation will be taken.
This weekend three-day event is organized by the Gibbon FunFest Committee.
