Chesterton’s European Market opened on Saturday to much fanfare and excitement from the community, visitors, and the wide array of vendors who set up booths in and around Thomas Centennial Park. Families basked in the beautiful weather while taking advantage of all the Market has to offer.
To see more photos from the event, click here!
“This is our 12th year hosting the European Market,” said Deanna Kasch, Market Manager for the Duneland Chamber of Commerce. “When it started we had around 10-12 vendors who would come out and set up booths but it’s grown a great deal over the last several years. Today we’ll have roughly 90 vendors which is amazing! The Market not only brings out families and friends but it also brings together the community. We have live entertainment every week and today we have Mike Beach all the way from Tennessee.”
Duneland Chamber President Maura Durham spoke about the Market, its impact on the community, and how it’s changed over the years.
“The European Market was started by a past Executive Director with a handful of vendors and has continued to grow and grow,” Durham said. “The Chamber maintains the Market and keeps in contact with vendors to assure that every year, and every week is a success. We’ve recently brought on some fresh faces to our staff who we want to touch base with local businesses to see how the Market affects them and how we can have a more substantial, positive impact on their business. It’s such a great event that brings a lot of people to Chesterton, and anyway that we can help promote these vendors and businesses in the community is so important.”
The European Market features a large variety of booths and vendors selling everything from food, drinks and sweets to crafts, wood workings and jewelry. Local honey, jams and salsas can be found from all over Southwest Michigan and Northwest Indiana. Also available are plants, flowers, herbs and trees, and, when they’re in season, fruit and vegetable stands will offer the best in local produce.
One local vendor, Cindy Slosman, was there promoting products from her company, Simplify, which is located in Hebron.
“Everything we have, from our soaps, lotions and body butter, is 100% homemade with goats milk which we get from a local farm.” Slosman said. “The European Market is just a wonderful place to come every year. We’re like one big family here and the people who come and visit every week are an important part of that family.”
Simplify also offers all-natural shaving products for men and as Slosman puts it, “only smart men who care about their skin use our stuff!”
Filling the air with the enticing smell of summer and barbeque was The Rolling Stonebaker of Beverly Shores. This unique local vendor transformed the bed of an old Studebaker truck to house a pizza oven which serves up mouth-watering wood fire grilled pizzas to anxious customers.
“We started making pizzas about five years ago and we’ve been a part of the European Market for the last four years,” said Vince Spina of The Rolling Stonebaker. “We have had a blast traveling around to different festivals and Lake-side events like these over the last several years.”
You can visit the European Market in Chesterton every Saturday from 8am to 2pm. The Market runs from now until October 31st.