On The Cover...Shop Local: Small Businesses Bring Big Variety to Spring Fling Event Twice a year, the City of Mason hosts Shop Local, an event that fills the Mason Community Center lobby with dozens of local businesses ready and eager to share their products and brands with the community.
Why Shop Local? The City’s first Shop Local event was held in 2010, with only 12 vendors. Now, the event—coming up April 26th from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.—brings out more than 40 vendors with products ranging from clothing and crafts to home goods and accessories. Shop Local is an important avenue for these businesses to promote their companies, meet other local business owners, and raise awareness of their products and services among community members. All vendors are small, local businesses, most of which don’t have a “brick and mortar” storefront. The City of Mason is pleased to host this biannual event to give these small businesses a boost in awareness and promote their products and services.
Shop Local Vendor Spotlight: The Brooch & Bangle The City sat down with local business owner, Margaret A. Kastner, artisan and creator of The Brooch & Bangle, to learn more about her business and why she participates in Shop Local. Q: Tell us about yourself. A: I am originally from Detroit. I graduated from Iowa State University with a B.S. in Business Administration and spent most of my career at Procter & Gamble in IT and managerial roles for its beauty brands, including deodorants and shampoos. I’ve lived in Mason now for about 30 years. Q: When did you start The Brooch & Bangle business? A: I officially started in 2013 and have been growing since then.
Q: How did you get started? A: For the last 15 years I have been collecting vintage jewelry; I have quite a few vintage brooches, too. When I retired I knew I wanted to open a small business of some kind, but I just thought it would be selling vintage jewelry. I took a metalsmithing jewelry class at the Middletown Art Center (MAC) where I learned to work hands-on with saws, pliers, and soldering tools on all kinds of metals including copper, sterling, brass, bronze, nickel, and pewter. After that, I fell in love with hands-on creation and decided to not only sell jewelry, but make it, too. Q: Tell us a little more about why you knew you wanted to start a small business. A: My whole family is small-business oriented. My mother, father, and grandparents all owned small businesses as I was growing up. Now, my husband owns his own custom home automation business right here in Mason. My daughter and son-in-law even have their own businesses. Small business is just in our DNA. I can already tell my grandkids will have the bug too. Q: Tell us about your jewelry. What are your hottest items? A: Typically our necklaces sell the best. People tell me they’re looking for something different, something distinctive, that they’ve never seen before. That’s a big reason people say they will stop at my table. Q: Why brooches and this type of jewelry? A: I was really shy growing up, so one of my little tricks was to wear some distinctive jewelry, typically brooches, as a conversation starter. Growing up I gained confidence, and I like to help others do that now. I think it is really important for women to be confident and
develop their own style, so we create jewelry that doesn’t follow any trends. I believe jewelry is a way to express yourself outwardly, and I’m passionate about creating jewelry that lets people do just that. Q: Do you handmake everything? A: Yes, my friend Chris Sanders and I make everything. When I start a piece, I lay my materials and stones out and something about them typically says how it ought to be. It speaks to me. We work with all different stones and materials—amethyst, lapis, jade, wood, agates, Czech glass, Swarovski, and so many more. Design itself can take hours plus another hour or so to put a piece together. Everything we make is one-of-a-kind. We’ll make duplicates of some of our bangles, but our necklaces, earrings, and brooches are all unique. Q: Is this your first year participating at the Shop Local event? A: I’ve done it for a couple of years now. But each year it’s gotten bigger, which is exciting to see. Every year I’ve participated I’ve had a lot of business. There are so many different types of vendors here, so typically we see most people stop at our booth.
Mason Community Center Activities
29 Family 29 Preschool 33 Youth 41 Teen 43 Adult 51 Senior REGISTRATION Mason Community Center Walk-in, online at www.imaginemason.org, or by phone at 513.229.8555 ALL PROGRAMS Registration Begins Premier members Open
Friday, February 17, 8 a.m. Monday, February 20, 8 a.m.
The programs and events in CenterPoint are brought to you by the City of Mason, which operates Mason Community Center. Mason Community Center, 6050 Mason-Montgomery Road, Mason, Ohio 45040, p 513.229.8555 f 513.229.8556
PROGRAM FEES
Program fees are set by membership and residency: PRE: Premier pass holder BAS: Basic pass holder MR: Mason resident (if you reside within the boundaries of the City of Mason) NR: Nonresident
Register online at www.imaginemason.org
Recreation programs and facilities presented by the City of Mason are open to all citizens regardless of race, gender, color, religion, nationality, or disability, including those who live outside of Mason and those who do not have a community center membership. City of Mason is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to supporting the Americans with Disabilities Act. Please contact us if you require special accommodations.
4 CenterPoint Spring 2017