Local vendors showcase services at Ferdinand prom and bridal expo

More than 40 wedding-related businesses gathered at the Ferdinand Community Center on Jan. 7 for the 23rd Annual Ferdinand Prom & Bridal Expo, offering planning resources, food samples, and prize giveaways to couples and families across Dubois County. The event ran from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and aimed to make wedding planning more convenient while keeping dollars circulating among local vendors.

Attendees toured booths staffed by florists, bakers, caterers, photographers and other specialists, sampling cakes and catered foods offered by area providers. Organizers handed goody bags to the first 100 brides in attendance and awarded a range of prizes throughout the three-hour show, creating incentives for early arrival and sustained foot traffic that benefit small businesses in Ferdinand and neighboring towns.

As the event’s 23rd iteration, the expo serves as an annual marketplace that links couples directly with service providers, reducing the need to travel to larger cities to compare vendors. For bakers, caterers and event planners, the expo provides visibility and live feedback from prospective clients, while venue and rental businesses gain opportunities to showcase setups and pricing in real time. The Ferdinand Community Center’s role as host highlights how municipal and community assets can support local commerce and civic life by offering a central, affordable space for small-business promotion.

For Dubois County residents planning weddings, the immediate value was practical and financial: the chance to sample local offerings, gather contact information, and compare prices without multiple long drives. For vendors, the expo functioned as a concentrated networking event that can drive bookings for the spring and summer wedding seasons. The concentrated nature of show days like this also has spillover effects for nearby restaurants, shops and service providers that see increased patronage when events bring in crowds.

Community organizers encouraged attendees to follow the event Facebook page for updates and future details. The expo’s longevity reinforces the role of local gatherings in sustaining the county’s wedding economy and preserving small-business relationships that often last beyond a single event.

The takeaway? If you’re planning a wedding in Dubois County, hit future expos early to grab goody bags and make face-to-face connections with vendors. It’s an efficient way to compare services, support local businesses, and keep wedding dollars working here at home.