CHARITY Guests do their bidding at eBay gathering

What does a host serve at an eBay party? Why, e-tinis, of course.
By TERRY ARMOUR
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
CHICAGO -- Julie Horowitz was sipping a martini and cruising eBay. She came across a black Coach bag. She just had to have it!
"This is fun," the 30-year-old Horowitz said, sitting her martini down next to the laptop. "What more could a girl want than to shop at a party?"
The people at eBay are banking on that sentiment for the holidays. The online auction house recently picked a tony home in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood as the first stop for a series of cocktail parties where people can eat, drink, mingle and, of course, buy stuff off eBay.
The gatherings already have become the rage in Manhattan, where trendy 20- and 30-somethings have been getting together to share the do's and don't's of "eBaying" over a few cocktails.
Taking part
Now that eBay has gotten wind of the trend, it is planning its own parties. After Chicago, soirees are set for New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, with proceeds of purchases made going to selected charities (proceeds from the Chicago party went to the Carole Robertson Center for Learning).
"We just want to facilitate what people are already doing," said Jennifer Caukin, one of the eBay representatives on hand for the Lincoln Park shindig.
As soft acid-jazz played in the background, 30 or so people (mostly women) mingled and sipped "e-tinis," a tasty lime-green concoction. It was like any other cocktail party -- except for the laptops sprinkled about the room.
With the help of eBay's Margie Cader, Tanya Lodwig, a 35-year-old North Sider, ventured onto the Web site for the very first time.
"We're looking at shoes right now," Lodwig said as Cader helped her scroll through pictures of Versace and Chanel pumps.
A few feet away, 26-year-old Amanda Cash's e-tini sat untouched. Cash said she was there to shop. She already had bought a Louis Vuitton strap and a few DVDs.
Would she ever throw an eBay party of her own?
"I wouldn't, but I know somebody who would," Cash said. "And I'd probably show up. You know, it's kind of addictive after a while."
With that said, Cash resumed her search for a Gucci handbag.
There's nothing like partying with a purpose.