North Shore Home and Garden Show Set for Westin Hotel

The North Shore Home and Garden Show prepares for its largest event yet, set to take place Saturday, Feb. 11 through Sunday, Feb. 12 at the Westin North Shore Hotel. This year's production is set to double in demonstrations and participants from its inaugural presentation in 2016.

Patch: Tell us about the North Shore Home and Garden Show beginnings. What was the initial inspiration behind its founding?

Hardesty: We have been producing home improvement shows for many years in the Chicagoland area, but living locally, it was clear to us that there was a substantial need for a quality event such as this to specifically serve the homeowners of the North Shore area as well as the rest of the quality communities in the area. Connecting with the amazing people at the Westin made for a perfect fit for this event, and its great success right from its very first show is the proof in the pudding.

Patch: What is the goal of the show? What do you hope to accomplish?

Hardesty: The goal is to ensure that every one of the thousands of homeowners who attends this event finds who and what they are seeking to improve their homes. The feedback in the past has been amazingly positive to say the least, so we are excited to return with even more diverse offerings for our guests. As far as what we’d like to accomplish, I’d say it’s to make everyone happy. We are hoping for another record in attendance this year as more and more homeowners choose this event for their home improvement needs, so when both the homeowners who attend and the businesses who participate are happy with the experience, I’d say we’ve accomplished everything that we’ve set out to do.

Patch: The North Shore Home and Garden show returns to the Westin North Shore Hotel & Event Center on the weekend of Feb. 11. How did you come to select this particular location as the show’s setting?

Hardesty: The Westin North Shore Hotel & Event Center is truly an icon in the community, so homeowners—not only from the North Shore area, but for miles around—are familiar with the location. It is an absolutely beautiful facility, and the staff has been wonderful to work with, so it has been the ideal setting for hosting our event.

Patch: What will set the event apart from previous shows?

Hardesty: Every year, this event has grown in both number of exhibitors as well as the number of homeowners who attend to use it as their tool to find the best company to fill their home improvement, remodeling and repair needs. This year’s event will play host to well over 100 quality businesses, highlighting hundreds of products and services to ensure that every homeowner who attends will find what they are looking for. We understand that everyone’s time is valuable, and we value every single one of our guests who attend each year, so we are pleased to provide the most complete event of its kind to serve the area.

Patch: What are some of the main attractions at the North Shore Home and Garden Show?

Hardesty: Besides our huge array of home improvement related companies, this year’s event will play host to a variety of fun and interesting attractions, such as hourly seminars, on topics such as “Trends in Kitchen Design” by award-winning Normandy Remodeling, Windows 101 by Renewal by Andersen, wine tastings and pairing education by PRP Wine International and artisan teas and sampling by Tea Canal, just to name a few.

One of our most impressive additions this year is the Spirio player piano that is being displayed by Steinway. It is absolutely gorgeous, and Steinway will be demonstrating its beautiful sound and advanced technology to show how anyone can have true concert quality sounds in their own home. Definitely something not to be missed!

Patch: How does the North Shore Home and Garden Show distinguish itself from other home shows?

Hardesty: There is truly no other event quite like this one in the entire Chicagoland market. Not only do we provide an event with a large selection of some of the finest home remodeling and service businesses, but hosting it at the Westin takes it to a whole new level of class and comfort for our visitors. In addition, we provide this event to our guests with free admission and free parking throughout the event to make visiting this event as easy as can be. This is definitely a quality home improvement event supported by quality businesses, but we’re simply not interested in “nickel and diming” our visitors who are already interested in investing in their homes. We invite all to join us, freely.

Another unique aspect of this event if that many of the businesses represented here do not participate in any other Chicago area events because they specialize in projects that fit the needs of the North Shore homeowner, so it’s an ideal venue to meet and speak directly with these experts who focus their efforts on helping homeowners in the local communities.

Patch: Tell us about your proudest Home and Garden Show moments.

Hardesty: Our proudest North Shore Home and Garden Show moments would definitely be that in just our first two years, this event has transformed into a truly unique and special event serving the North Shore communities and beyond. It has been beautifully embraced by the fine people of the North Shore, and from the responses and compliments we have received from these attendees, the feedback from their experiences at this event has been equally wonderful.

Patch: Tell us about some of the members of the Home and Garden Expo team.

Hardesty: The Home and Garden team is a family-owned and operated business composed of my wife, Sandy, and I, family members and friends who not only help us operate the day to day, but also assist at the events. We are definitely a close-knit team, all dedicated to the same goal of delivering quality events that we can be proud of, each and every time.

Patch: What is your outlook on the future of the North Shore Home Show? What’s next?

Hardesty: Each year, we strive to improve the quality and diversity of the event, not only by growing our exhibitor base to offer attendees a larger selection of products, services and local experts to discuss their home improvement projects with, but to also increase the variety of exhibits for a more unique and interesting experience for all who attend.

Patch: How can Patch readers contact you or otherwise learn more about the North Shore Home Show?

Hardesty: Patch readers can always find details about our company and our events on our website, though they can also feel free to contact our office directly for more detailed information or questions.

Learn more about the North Shore Home Show by contacting event management via info@freehomeshow.com or (630) 953-2500.

Photo credit: Oak Brook Home and Garden Show