This weekend played host to a tradeshow which brought local business together, drawing customers in droves to see what the show had to offer.

The eighth Christmas Spirit Tradeshow setup in the Stockade in Kinetic Exhibition Park had over 100 vendors selling and marketing products and services ranging from an escape room, baked goods, and multi-level marketing businesses.

Jennifer Collinson, one of the organizers of the one-day tradeshow, said that they change they rotate vendors each year to keep the show feeling fresh.

"So we have a good variety, every year we change up the vendors so it's a unique mix, we try not to double up too many things, of course, we're going to have a couple home jewelry makers and things like that, but we don't take two of the same of the multi-level marketing people."

Collinson said that as someone who has had a home-based business in the past, she knew the benefit of giving local vendors a place at the show, and wanted to help grow southwestern Saskatchewan's economy.

"Over 90 per cent of the vendors are local to Swift Current and southwest Sask, so we really like to try to take vendors from our area, just to help them try and grow their business in the area and grow their customer base, there is no sense in bringing in vendors from Winnipeg, or Edmonton, because you're not going to have repeat customers in the area, so we want to grow the economy here and help people out who are trying to build their businesses in southwest Sask."

Speaking on the advertising aspect of the show, Collinson said that being seen by potential customers at a tradeshow can create a customer base.

"It's great to come, you get to see so many shoppers and potential customers, and get your name out there, and people will come back to you all year round because they remember seeing you at the show, and then you just build your customer base and it goes from there."

Confirming what Collinson said, Dustan Vipond, who was at the tradeshow representing Stickman Racks at the Christmas Spirit Tradeshow, said that about 50 per cent of his business comes from tradeshows.

"It's great advertising, its hard to gauge but there's always lots of orders that come in after the fact, people that have picked up a card and stopped by the booth and had a look, being local helps too, there's no panic to buy what we have here, we can do something custom for them."

Among the vendors selling their products at the show was a booth selling homemade baking, including traditional Norwegian baking to benefit the East Side Church of God Library.

Sheila Holderbein, who works at the library was selling the baked goods, and said that she enjoyed raising money at the event for the valuable resource of education.

"We love to make money for the church library because books are so important, it just widens everybody's education, and books are so awesome to read, they entertain, they teach."

Holderbein said that as one of two fundraisers that they host for the library, this show was a huge part of keeping books current.