Oak Brook Home and Garden Show Expects Record Turnout

The Oak Brook Home and Garden Show prepares for its largest event yet, set to take place Saturday, Jan. 21 through Sunday, Jan. 22 at Oakbrook Terrace's Drury Lane Theater. This year's production is set to feature a record near-150 business.

Patch: Tell us about the Oak Brook 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 Oak Brook area as well as the rest of the quality communities in the area. Connecting with the amazing people at Drury Lane 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 attend this show find 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 Oak Brook Home and Garden show returns to the Drury Lane Theatre on the weekend of Jan. 21. How did you come to select this particular location as the show’s setting?

Hardesty: The Drury Lane Theatre & Convention Center is truly an icon in the community, so homeowners, not only from the Oak Brook 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: This year’s event promises to be the largest. What will set it 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 close to 150 business, several dozen more than last year, highlighting hundreds more 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 the thousands of homeowners who attend each year, so we are pleased to provide the most complete event of its kind to ever serve the area.

Patch: What are some of the main attractions at the Oak Brook 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, gardening advice by the University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners, wine tastings by PRP Wine International and tea sampling by Tea Canal, just to name a few.

Patch: How does the Oak Brook 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 Drury Lane 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, free covered parking as well as complimentary valet parking throughout the event to make visiting this event as easy as can be, regardless of weather conditions. 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 some of the businesses represented here do not participate in any other Chicago area events, 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 Oakbrook Home & Garden Show moments would definitely be that in just our first three years, exhibitors have referred to this event as the best in Chicagoland. And from the responses and compliments we have received from 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 Oak Brook 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 and services, as well as 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 Oak Brook 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.

Photo courtesy of Oak Brook Home and Garden Show