A total of 41 home-based businesses lined Oak Park Mall Saturday for the first Home-Based Business Vendor Expo.

Shan Kehret, marketing coordinator at Oak Park Mall, said she came up with the idea after a craft show in the mall attracted a few vendors.

“It’s a larger spectrum,” she said. “There’s a wide variety of different businesses.”

Kehret used to be a home-based business vendor — she used to sell Mary Kay — and she said she has many friends who are home-based vendors.

The show also brought people into the mall to utilize other services the facility offers.

“Hopefully, they’ll go into the other stores that are out there,” she said. “I just wanted an idea to bring people out. Right now everybody’s getting cabin fever itching to get out. I want to bring everybody out because there’s a table out here for everybody.”

Sherry Anderson had a booth promoting the Doo Crew, a business that cleans up yards after dogs.

While there weren’t any products to sell directly to customers at the mall, Anderson said attending the expo served as advertising and networking.

“It’s just getting our name out there,” Anderson said. “People aren’t really aware this place exists.”

Anderson said the prices for the services depend on the size of the yard and the number of dogs. Anderson owns the business with her husband, Ryan. The business is based out of Austin, but it also includes Rochester. Anderson said she and Ryan will attend a similar event in Rochester to promote the business.

“People don’t think about a business like this or even know it exists,” she said.

Alice Wangen sells Mary Kay products, but she said business expos don’t always offer the best opportunity for sales.

If she hosts a May Kay party at a house, Wangen can show customers how products work and even give them trial facials. This isn’t possible at a mall, she said.

Many regular Mary Kay customers typically buy from the same consultant. While that eliminates some potential customers, Wangen said the expo served as a way for to attract new customers or possibly a customer whose Mary Kay consultant is no longer selling products.

At the same time, Wangen said she had a good response from people at the mall Saturday.

Rebecca Voigt sold spices, soups and other meal products as a consultant for Homemade Gourmets, a company based out of Texas with suppliers across the country.

Voigt said business expo served as a chance for her to get the name out to the public and sell products. At the same time, the event could entice people to become Homemade Gourmets consultants.

“Everything we do here is designed to make your meal easier, make dinner quicker,” Voigt said. “And the main thing is to bring family back to the table so we can all sit down and enjoy a meal together.”

Amy Riley was at the booth with Voigt. Riley sells in the Austin area, while Voigt sells in Adams.

Vicky Hartle sold Arbonne fragrance free lotions and personal care products like hand lotion, shaving gel and baby lotion. Hartle said Arbonne’s products are unscented and offer health benefits for people with allergies.

The expo is a way for people to be introduced to products or services.

Hartle said such expos are important because they redirect people’s spending from the large department stores to other available products.

Kehret plans to host another expo next fall.

Eight additional vendors have contacted Kehret about participating in the next expo. Some businesses weren’t involved because Kehret said she didn’t want to double up on products.