Women's Expo provides wide array of vendors

MOSES LAKE — Dale Haven, owner of Fantasy in Ice, said consumer shows like the annual Women’s Expo and Bridal Showcase, held Saturday, are valuable regardless of whether he gets a lot of bookings that day.

“It’s planting seeds,” Haven, Basin City, said. “I had (a show) last Friday, and (a woman who inquired about his ice sculptures) had my card for 20 years. This was her last kid.”

The ATEC building at Big Bend Community College was filled with services and ideas for brides, and indeed all women. Vendors offered cooking classes, jewelry, health insurance, event venues; there were businesses offering fitness classes, home and event decor, event decorating, event venue rental.

Photographer Rosalie Black lives in Moses Lake, and had samples of her work on display. Next to the photograph of a bride and groom at a Warden grain storage facility was a photo of a bride posed on the steps of the New York Public Library. Black said she has photographed weddings in the Big Apple and Rhode Island, as well as all around Washington, and does a lot of work in Memphis, Tenn. (That’s where she photographed the traditional Hindu wedding, she said, pictures from which were on display.)

But it starts at consumer shows, where brides talk to vendors and learn about their options. That’s the way Black and other wedding photographers book their seasons, she said. People have a favorite time of year, she said – spring or summer, fall or winter. “Mine is wedding season,” she said.

Ashley Jo Meadows, Moses Lake, is working on growing her new business, and so was Marie Barth, owner of Classy Country Catering in Ritzville. Meadows owns Honey Cakes, a specialty cakes business she operates out of her home, she said. But she wants her business to grow, and the Women’s Expo offers an opportunity to show prospective customers her products.

“It’s a good way to get your name out,” Barth said. Her business isn’t limited to Ritzville – she’s catered events in Chelan and Leavenworth – and the Women’s Expo was a good venue to get that information out to prospective customers.

“I love this show,” said Tammie Gilley, Tri-Cities. Gilley is a consultant for a direct-sales company that provides meal ingredients, and it’s her best way for her to talk to consumers in the Moses Lake area, she said. Her customers in Grant County buy her products at the show, she said.

The Women’s Expo finale was a style show of special occasion and wedding dresses. Teresa Akers, owner of Celestial Selections in Spokane Valley, provided the dresses. “It’s a way to get our name out, so people learn about us,” she said.