The 31st-annual CHTM trade show at the C.A. Nesbitt Arena May 6-8 was slightly smaller than before the COVID-19 pandemic but vendors and the public alike said the return of the Thompson springtime tradition makes it feels like life is getting back to normal.
Organizer Sue O’Brien said there was a mix of old and new vendors this year, though some longtime exhibitors did not return due to various impacts from the past few years of public health restrictions.
“It’s not as big a show as we typically have had but there’s been a lot of people who have retired out in the past couple of years because of COVID. Some people are having supply issues and other people were daunted by gas prices because we have some people who travel from Alberta, southern Manitoba and Saskatchewan.”
Scaled-back or not, those who came to shop were grateful to be at their first trade show in three years.
“It’s nice to get out, nice to see society opening up again,” said Jackie and Louis Fitzpatrick.
Patricia Ross, who said the best part of the trade show was the lemonade, attended with her family and was glad they had the opportunity to be out and about.
“Things are finally starting to feel normal in this town again.” Ross said.
Longtime trade show vendors Gary and Linda Boyle were once again in attendance to sell toffee and nuts and give away Gary’s nut jokes for free.
“The crowd seems to be really happy to have something to do,” said Gary, who’s been hawking his products at the Thompson trade show for more than 15 years. “Everybody seems quite happy to get out and be a community again”. He also noted that despite the smaller set-up this year, sales had been good.
Though everything from sweet treats to massage tools were available for purchase, some of the local companies at the snow weren’t necessarily looking to make a sale right then, but to increase awareness of the seasonal or year-round services they provide.
Geoff Greenfield of Howling Wolf Tours, an ecotourism business that opened in 2018 and offers boat tours to Manasan Falls on the Burntwood River as well as Paint Lake tours, said the last few years were hard on his business after a successful 2019 but he remains “bound, bent and determined to reopen” and eventually expand to include land-based excursions as well.
Originally from Ontario, Greenfield is passionate about Thompson and the surrounding region.
“I want to celebrate what I love about the North and the outdoors but I also want to change the mindset about the North and specifically Thompson,” Greenfield said. “Thompson’s gorgeous. I love it. There’s so much in town itself that people aren’t really focusing on.”
For Billy Doyle, AKA The Phone Guy, who opened a Copper Road storefront for his three-year-old previously home-based business less than a year ago, this was his first trade show. He repairs all makes of smartphones and tablets with a lifetime warranty on screen replacements.
“We’re a trustworthy company,” he said. “If we can’t fix it, we won’t charge you.”
Other organizations used their presence at the trade show to get the word out about what they do and maybe even recruit some help.
Lynn Sauvé was there representing Awasis Agency with the aim of becoming more well-known in the community.
“We’re looking for foster parents, support workers and respite workers to work with our children that are from one day old to 17 years of age.”
