Joan and Tom Doroshenko spent about an hour wandering about the civic center on Saturday afternoon at the 52nd Brantford Lifestyle Spring Home Show.
“We usually come to see what’s new and available,” said Joan of Brantford.
“They had multiple new products here today,” said Tom, adding that he liked the woodworking display by the Golden Horseshoe Woodturners Guild.
“You can glue different colors together, then you can turn them down into whatever you want. That’s when they look good,” he said.
“I also learned how to make sawdust.”
The show, which opened Friday and continued until Sunday, marked the return of an in-person event, which was not possible for the past two years because of the pandemic.
“It was nice coming here to see what’s available,” said Joan. “And to see if you won anything.”
There were 45-plus booths and exhibits to explore — many of them local businesses.
“You get a mix – there are bigger corporate companies that will service all of Southern Ontario, but we also have a lot of local companies, too,” said Matt Jenkins, son of Dave and Sharon Jenkins, co-owners of home show producer Jenkins Show Productions. “That’s one thing we pride ourselves on, trying to get the local companies.”
“It’s a community home show — it’s for the community,” nodded Sharon Jenkins.
Peter Glover from Absolute Home Creations in the Hamilton area said it is great to get back on the home show circuit.
“Last week was the first, in Ancaster; that was really nice,” said Glover. “I love it. I’ve been doing them since I was in my teens with my dad.”
Matt Jenkins said the family organizes a number of shows in the Greater Toronto Area.
“Now that things are opening back up (after the pandemic), people are kind of coming out of their shells and willing to come back to events,” he said. “So, it’s really nice.”
Sharon Jenkins said that many show visitors are in the market for home products and services
“So, the exhibitors are getting quality leads,” she said. “That’s a good thing. It’s nice to be able to talk to someone in-person, build that rapport with a company.”
Matt Jenkins noted that show visitors may benefit from special deals not available simply by going to a company’s website.
“With these guys you can talk, you can negotiate a little bit. You can get the ‘home show special’ or whatever it might be.”
“You can also ask more questions, and you can get the answer right away,” said Sharon Jenkins. “There are so many vendors that you can talk to.”
This year’s home show featured free admission. And, while the civic center was not overflowing on the weekend, crowds were steady.
“It’s kind of a transition year for shows,” said Sharon Jenkins. “They’re all coming back, which is fantastic, but everyone has to adjust this year.”
