Over the past three years, the Niverville Heritage Centre has hosted the Southeast Home Inspirations Show. This year, the show will take place March 18–20. Shows like these don’t happen without a lot of hard work and sponsors. This year’s main sponsor is the Niverville Credit Union (NCU).
The show started back in 2013 and its attendance has grown by about 25 percent each year. The event has three coordinators: John Falk, Melanie Giesbrecht, and Dawn Schmidt.
“Last year approximately 1,200 people came out over the course of the weekend,” says Falk.
Melanie Giesbrecht adds, “Whether you’re renovating, buying a house, or building a new house, there are all of these different trades and people that you can connect with, in all of southeastern Manitoba, to help you out with whatever your project is.”
Exhibitors come from Steinbach, Landmark, Lorette, and of course Niverville. The companies set up booths to showcase what their businesses have to offer.
“We have everything from builders to painters,” Giesbrecht says. “We have some lifestyle vendors like gym and massage, Pampered Chef, RBC, and dog grooming. A little bit of everything.”
Because of the credit union’s sponsorship, non-profit groups such as Layette Love, Cadets, and Eastman Safety Training can set up a booth for no charge. This helps showcase organizations that wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity.
“This show is a lot more than just showrooms or about buying products,” Falk says. “This makes us different than any of the other trade shows.”
Families are more than welcome to attend. This year’s show will feature a special section called the NCU Neighbourhood, a kids centre with fun activities like face-painting and balloon animals.
The home show brings out a large number of people from Winnipeg, providing the town an opportunity to show visitors just how much Niverville has to offer.
This year’s grand prize giveaway is $5,000 in creative cash donated by the NCU. What is creative cash, you may ask? It’s money that can be used towards any of the exhibitors’ products or services. Anyone 18 years or older can enter.
“You could use it to buy new furniture or build a deck, or [as] a down payment,” Giesbrecht says.
“Because it goes back to the exhibitors, it’s a win/win for everyone.”
Throughout the weekend, the main stage will feature presentations and demonstrations. There will be one presentation on Friday, two on Saturday, and the last one on Sunday. Previous years’ presentations have included “How to Properly Design the Layout of Your House” and “Bringing Your Dream Home to Life.”
The featured presenter this year is Niverville’s own Kelsey Kosman of Dollhouse Designs. Her presentation is called “Designing Your Life.” The focus will be the ways in which interior design plays a role in many aspects of a person’s life.
Dollhouse Designs has been a part of this event for three years. “I see a huge advantage of being a part of this show,” says Kosman. “The traffic generated gives me an opportunity to get face-to-face with potential clients. Since Dollhouse Designs does not sell a product, it’s especially important for us to do trade shows, such as the Home Inspirations Show. This is how we educate the public about the services available to them when they are ready to tackle their next renovation project.”
Heritage Lane Builders, a local building company since 1987, has also attended for the past three years. Owner Doug Dyck says, “I man the booth, as it is very important to me to meet people. I get to educate people on the build process, costs, and design ideas. We do not place the expectation to sell at the show, but just make contact with those considering building or buying a home.”
You can find all the info for the presentations in a minibook that is being sent to all homes in Niverville this month, or on the event’s website (see below).
Admission is $5. Children ages ten and under attend free.
