Holly and Laurel Franklin.
Boorowa’s main street was full of Christmas spirit at their first Jingle Mingle on December 4 from 3:00 pm, with market stalls and activities that brought holiday cheer. Kids got prizes for best dressed, along with face painting, and a car display from the Boorowa Car Club was also at the event.
An organiser, Kim Rogers, said, “It was a Business Chamber initiative, and it was obviously to promote more spending locally and in town. We actually pulled it together in about eight weeks with no funding, no money.
“We had around 24 stallholders, a lot of little local businesses, and it allowed them to sell things. Some people came from out of town. We had people travel to come shopping from Crookwell, Harden, Young, and Canberra, which is pretty exciting.
“This is the first time in a long time that something like this has been done, but we’ve had really great feedback from it, and it is just what little towns need.
“They need support from residents, from travellers, to shop local or to travel to a little town and to an event like that, rather than the big department stores, which helps the little businesses. It is really important.
“I wouldn’t like to put a figure on what I thought was turned over for the night because I haven’t spoken to enough people, but I think it would have been a significant boost to the town’s economy.
“We spread the stalls in the CBD down the two main streets because we had shops open as well, so from IGA, the Op Shop and then down Marsden Street, the Courthouse Craft Shop, Information centre was even open, so we had stalls all the way along and then open shops scattered in between. At one point, I was up one end of town, and the stallholder was saying, Look at all the people, they’re all down there. Nobody’s up here. A little bit later, I was down that other end of town and that stallholder was saying, Look at all the people up the other end of town, they’re not down here.
“At the end of the night, I was up at the first end of town, and she said, I actually had a really great day, they had a great afternoon. People had spread all around by the end.
“The really exciting thing, and several people have said this to me, was that people were catching up with each other. They were standing and chatting and enjoying the afternoon and evening, making a nice family catch-up time of it.
“We are already planning for another one next year. We would like to do maybe two next year. We might do a Mother’s Day one, so something in early May, and then we’ll definitely do another Christmas one.
“I’m thinking a Christmas in July type one might be nice, July or August, but I’m not sure how we will go with the weather for that, but we could just go on the other side of the street. This time we had to be on the western side so that you’re in the shade in the afternoon.
“Watch this space. It will be bigger and better next time. We’ll have way more time to get ourselves organised and planned.
“Anyone who would like to have a stall should give me a call on 0412 622 249 or Sarah on 0448 393 888.
“Thank you to everyone who was involved, and for everyone supporting and for those shops that did stay open. We did appreciate that, and we would love you to be involved again next year. It’s good for us all.
“It was Small Business Month in October, we listened to a small business specialist from Business New South Wales here in the Riverina, and the key thing I got from that was we need to link arms. We need to work together, and that’s what I would say for the town. For the town to prosper, we’ve got to work as one. We’ve got to work together, support each other, and we’d love you to be part of it next time.”
– Jack Murray
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