43
Business Expo coming to Austintown March 24
Photo
Neighbors | Sarah Foor .Mark Cole, vice-president of the Mahoning Valley Main Street Chamber, along with Joe Wrenn, envisioned an all-in-one Austintown expo that will include displays of bridal, craft, home and garden, or sportsman goods. The Main Street Business Expo will be coming to Austintown Middle School on March 24.
Photo
Neighbors | Submitted.Joe Wrenn, president of the Mahoning Valley Main Street Business Chamber, hopes that the upcoming Austintown Business Expo on March 24 will help bring small businesses together and encourage growth and cooperation in the local economy.
By SARAH FOOR
Joe Wrenn and Mark Cole, president and vice president, respectively, of Austintown’s Main Street Chamber organization, are passionate about giving small businesses the tools to succeed.
Instead of a single bridal, craft, home and garden, or sportsman show to offer local businesses the chance to network and sell their wares, Wrenn and Cole envisioned Austintown’s first all-in-one Main Street Business Showcase. The event will come to Austintown Middle School March 24 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
“With Main Street, we try and bring businesses together. If we can introduce people to each other and start referring businesses and people back and forth, we can keep a lot of business here in this area. We don’t want customers to have to travel to Cleveland of Pittsburgh for services that can be found right here in the Valley,” said Cole.
Expo officials are offering booths at the event for a bargain price of $100 each, focusing less on making a profit and more on bringing the community together.
Along with many local vendors sharing their goods, the event will provide fun for kids with a visit from the Easter Bunny, an egg coloring contest and Easter egg hunt, and an indoor play zone provided by Austintown Bounce.
Live business seminars will be hosted throughout the expo, sharing information on estate planning, business coaching, insurance, taxes, wedding planning, as well as many more educational opportunities.
Admission to the event will be completely free. Any guest is invited to gain lifetime admission to the Main Street Chamber Organization, also for free, and attend any of their events to network.
“It’s all about having people come out and meet their local people. We want it to feel like a carnival or a parade atmosphere, have people be happy and celebrate everything that is going on in the Austintown community,” Cole added.