For the second time, area small-business vendors will be on hand for the Craft N’ More Spring Show at the Total Turf sports complex on Saturday, April 1.
More than 100 vendors are expected, according to the event’s host, KJ Milewski South Jersey Craft. They include Vets In Training (VIT) from House Paws Mobile Veterinary, August Shade Laser, PaperPie, Glen Lake Soap and HLM Infinite Designs.
The day will also feature an egg hunt with the Easter Bunny, who will take pictures with kids. Total attendance at the free event is expected to be about 500.
“We’ve worked hard to add more variety in our crafting categories this time, so you won’t see, for instance, 10 tables with the same old jewelry, wreaths or tumblers on them,” said KJ Milewski co-founder Jay Milewski.
“We think outside of the box with our events to help them differentiate from other craft shows and we always foster a fun, kid friendly environment,” he added.
The first Craft N’ More Spring Show was held in May 2021 on a baseball field in National Park. Milewski’s wife Katie worked for a multi-level marketing company and attended as a vendor. Then COVID hit.
“We had to support ourselves and our 2-year-old daughter at the time,” Jay recalled, “so we started discussing the idea of hosting our own event to help all the crafters and small businesses that were in the same situation as us.
“Our thought was that if we couldn’t find an event to attend, we’d make one.”
Forty vendors showed up at that first show, more than the couple had anticipated, and the reception from visitors and vendors alike was positive. The Milewskis were asked to do another, that year, which turned out to be a fall craft show. The event went from an idea to a business, and the KJ South Jersey Craft Fair LLC was born.
“We have two young children now, and we both have full-time jobs outside of this,” said Jay Milewski, “but we continue as a mission to support and showcase all of the small businesses in our community. And we pride ourselves on creating meaningful relationships with our wonderful vendors.”
Hours for the Craft N’ More Spring Show are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and no registration is required. The Milewskis are the only organizers, so the couple is warning the public that there are scammers posing as representatives of the event to collect money.
