Local vendors on display as Mon Valley Home Show opens Friday
There’s a $5 entry fee, but some businesses are offering free passes.
The Mon Valley Home Show, a century-old staple in the region, will continue its tradition of offering homeowners a place to find all their maintenance needs.
Hosting more than 100 vendors, the show will begin Friday from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. at cfsbank Event Center, off of Route 51 in Rostraver Township.
The home show has evolved into many different versions over the years, according to organizer John Lunt.
“The show has a little more than 100 years of history,” Lunt said. “The show started off as the Farm and Family Show that ran for about 30 years, and then it became the Builders Association Show, and that ran for about 35 years, and then 35 years ago, it became the Mon Valley Home Show.
“So this show has been taking place here in the Mon Valley for over 100 years. It’s a big part of our community. I encourage everybody to come out to the show, whether you think you need to come or not, it’s an important part of the Mon Valley.”
The home show will continue from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. The cost is $5 to enter, with a discount for seniors, but Lunt said several businesses in the Mon Valley are providing free passes for the event, like Randall’s Restaurant in Perryopolis and Howard Hanna Simon Real Estate Services.
The home show features a variety of businesses such as roofers, plumbers, heating and air conditioning vendors, window installers, pool companies and even insurance companies. Some vendors also sell food products at the show.
Lunt stated that they require contractors to be insured, so if area residents are looking for insured contractors, the Mon Valley Home Show is the right place to find them.
Funds raised from the event will go toward hosting the next home show.
“It’s very expensive to put this show on, there’s a lot of labor in it,” Lunt said. “There’s a lot of advertising involved with it, and there’s a lot of work with it.”
Lunt added that they’re still accepting additional vendors, and anyone interested can call 724-929-6600 or 724-929-2400.
“The show is just a great way to promote your business,” he said. “Show the people in the community looking for your services, that you’re here. And a lot of businesses don’t think it’s important to exhibit at the show. I have to say they’re 100% wrong. This is our community. This is your time to thank past customers, present customers and future customers for their business and support and putting a face to the name of the business.”
Lunt noted that the amount of people who come to the show often depends on the weather. If it’s nicer weather, Lunt said they might expect smaller traffic due to people wanting to be outside, and if it’s a rainy day, they tend to see more customers.
In recent years the home show has tried to expand its advertising efforts throughout the region in an effort to bring in more people.
“When it’s beautiful, people are out cutting their grass, getting ready for spring; when it’s crappy, people are out thinking about cutting their grass getting ready for spring,” he said. “So it’s hard to say what the attendance will be. We’ve had attendance as low as 3,000 people. We’ve had attendance over 10,000 people. Every year is different.”
A list of this year’s vendors and other information can be found at http://www.monvalleyhomeshow. com/home-1. html. Equipment Connection, Beacon Supply and the Mon Valley Independent are event sponsors.
