Expo organizers pleased with turnout

Organizers of the 2023 Dodge County Expo said Monday they were pleased with the turnout for the event Saturday at Triton High School.

“It went very well,” said Expo Committee member Lynette Nash. She said the traffic flow seemed to be “very steady” and that gave both vendors and visitors a chance to interact with each other.

Committee member Kristy Faber agreed that the Expo was a success and the flow of the event went well.

“It went great,” she said. “It seemed the flow was more even.”

The Expo doors were open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. with Faber saying attendance starts to increase between 9 and 10 a.m. and then slows down around 12:30 p.m.

This year’s event saw 97 vendors taking part, Faber said. Organizers try to keep track of the number of visitors by using a clicker to mark each person who enters comes through the doors but exact numbers are hard to determine. Nash said she estimated there were about 1,500 visitors perhaps more.

The exact number of visitors is not what determines the success of the Expo, Nash said.

“It’s about quality, not just the numbers,” she said.

All businesses who attend as vendors must be members of one of the Dodge County Chambers of Commerce, Nash said, as this is an event to spotlight what is available in Dodge County. It also gives Dodge County government agencies, non-profits and service organizations a chance to inform residents what they have to offer.

It is an opportunity for them to explain what they have to offer to new customers and clients and also to reconnect with those people they may not have seen in a long time.

The whole idea of the Expo, Faber said, is to stay local.

People genuinely enjoy coming to the Expo, Nash said. They enjoy talking with the vendors and each other, getting the “freebies,” and learning what is available in the county.

They also get a chance enjoy some entertainment.

This year, the Rockin’ Hep Cats, led by Colton Smisek, provided musical entertainment and dancers from The Studio performed, while Boogie from KMTelecom and T-Rex from MBT Bank were roaming the Expo. Rookie the Clown was on hand to make his balloon animals and there was a scavenger hunt for the kids.

Refreshments were also available.

All these events, committee members said, make for a great family event.

With this year’s Expo now history, the committee will hold a wrap-up meeting and go over the surveys from the vendors as to feelings on what worked or what did not. After a break the work will begin again to plan the 2024 Expo.

Nash said that the basics of the Expo stay the same and that other than the COVID years they just “tweak it” each year.

The Expo is a one-day event, and the committee is quite awesome in putting it together, Nash said. When something needs to be done, she said, someone just steps up and does it.

The event is always held the last Saturday in March at Triton High School.