The Temple Area Builders Association’s (TABA) 45th Annual Home and Garden Show took place last weekend, Friday, Feb. 21 to Sunday, Feb. 23, at the Bell County Expo Center. The show, spread out across 100,000 square feet of space, showcased 130 exhibitors – from pool contractors and landscape architects to air conditioning companies, realtors and other businesses. In addition to the exhibitor booths, the event also hosted a Kid Zone and a car exhibition sponsored by Slovanska Podporujici Jednota Statu Texas (SPJST).
“Temple Area Builder’s Association is a non-profit association, so this is one of our biggest events of the year that we host,” Kacie Beevers, Executive Officer of TABA and Show Coordinator for the Home and Garden show, said. “We just want to make sure that the best of the best in the home and garden industry is available to you all. It’s just something that we do to bring money to the association and continue to fight for housing affordability.”
Moore Air, one of the event’s regular exhibitors, has been coming to the Home and Garden Show for the last eight years. The family business is run by Keith and Tara Moore, and they work with air conditioning, air purification, duct cleaning, unit installation and more.
“We look forward to this event. It allows us an opportunity to put faces to names with a lot of our customers, as well as to network with other vendors and really just put ourselves out there to ensure that we’re maximizing our exposure,” Tara Moore said.
“We’re here to gain business and for people to see our faces and gain trust in us,” Keith Moore said. “That way, when they pick up the phone and call, they know who they’re talking to. They feel like we’re friends; they know us.”
The variety of exhibitor booths ensures that every visitor will be able to find something they are interested in.
“We have a variety of folks, and those are ranging from TABA members that have purchased booth space, other folks that are bringing up home and garden related activities and products and services, and then a bunch of non-profits that we paired with as well to bring a different element to the show,” Beevers said.
During the show, the Expo Center was full of Central Texas residents looking to find new ideas, network with people and have a good time.
“In the past, we’ve had about 5,000 people buy tickets at the box office, and that doesn’t include the general population of the exhibitors and workers that are here in their booths as well,” Beevers said.
Two of those attendees were Ken and Jan Bartz, who have been to the Home and Garden show several times in years past.
“The SPJST car show is amazing. Plus, I love the classes that the master gardeners and the master naturalists give. It’s very educational, and you can just pop in and pop out,” Jan Bartz said.
“We build furniture ourselves—interior or exterior—so we come to get ideas,” Ken Bartz said.
People like the Bartz family are what drive Beevers and her team to make the Home and Garden Show a success each year.
“My favorite part is seeing the different people that come in and out of the show and the familiar faces that I’ve seen for the last five years – repeat traffic of folks that specifically plan their weekend around us,” Beevers said. “It’s a labor of love for me. It’s something that – pun intended – I watch grow from the ground up every year,” Beevers said.
If you missed the TABA Home and Garden show this year, be sure to keep an eye out for announcements about the 2021 show on the association’s website, http://tahb.org/events-homegarden.html.
