It rained all day on Sunday, September 20. A steady curtain of rain that usually keeps people tucked comfortably into their homes. 
And yet, a few hundred of our neighbors packed the gym at Oxford Middle School anyway.
I spent the afternoon behind the Lucid Marketing Strategies table with a view of the whole room. Right next to us, Mark Raymond of TMI Realty was promoting his podcast, The Running Commode. Across the gym, Magdalena V’s was building custom charcuterie boxes on-site and letting guests choose their own cannoli fillings. Excel Christmas Lights had a bright display to give us some holiday magic a bit early.
Every corner of Oxford’s local economy, in one room.
The Room Where Oxford Happens
If you’ve seen Hamilton, you know “The Room Where It Happens.” Aaron Burr spends the whole song outside a dinner where Hamilton, Jefferson, and Madison strike a deal that shapes the country. He wasn’t invited, and it eats at him.
Small business owners know that feeling. The referrals and partnerships that move a local economy rarely start online. They start in rooms like this one.
This year’s Showcase felt different. Our new Chamber director, Jenine Sparks, along with a reinvigorated group of board members, volunteers, and exhibiting members, breathed new life into the event. Moving it from Boulder Pointe Golf Club to OMS was the right call, and attendance grew well beyond recent years despite the weather.
Some of the standouts in the room included Brian Morang of Advance Carpentry, who showed off his indoor and outdoor renovation work and chamber board member Jason Carter, who drew crowds of people with his table of custom wood floor finishes.
Natalie from Brick Financial and Melisa Counelis from Farm Bureau brought festive fall tables. OCTV even stopped by our table for an interview.
Here’s the Secret: The Room Is Only the Beginning
Getting in the room matters. But here’s the thing. Most of an event’s value is earned after you pack up the table.
These are the strategies I share with every client who exhibits:
- Follow up within 48 hours. A short, personal note that references your actual conversation beats a generic newsletter every time.
- Send booth traffic somewhere specific. A QR code that lands on an event page with a simple offer turns a quick chat into a measurable lead.
- Feed your Google Business Profile. Post event photos and ask the people you met for a review while you’re fresh in their minds.
- Partner with your neighbors. The business at the next table already serves your customers. That’s a referral relationship waiting to start.
The Next Room
Here’s what makes Oxford worth showing up for. Our Chamber and our Downtown Development Authority work together instead of stepping on each other’s toes. The DDA’s Scarecrow Festival fills downtown every October, and the Chamber’s Showcase is growing into its own fun, family-friendly day. Different rooms, same team.
Oxford is also growing. With home sales heating up, the Chamber is already filling Welcome Bags for new families, and those newcomers will search for local businesses long before they meet the owners.
And the rooms get bigger. Oakland Thrive, a nonprofit that partners with Oakland County, hosts countywide events built to connect small businesses with each other and with the resources they need to grow.
From early-morning idea sessions to business matchmaking, it’s where owners from across the county trade ideas and referrals. Bringing an Oxford perspective into those rooms, and bringing what we learn back home, is an advantage no analytics dashboard can give you.
Rooms Worth Being In This Season
- Oakland Thrive Spotlight Awards 2026 (Thursday, Oct 22, Pearls Event Center, Southfield, $85): a night honoring Oakland County’s small business community and the leaders behind it.
- Fish Tank (Oct 20, Nov 3, Nov 17, and Dec 8, Oakland Thrive, Pontiac): a morning series of honest conversation and fresh ideas for entrepreneurs.
- One Million Cups (weekly, Ferndale, Rochester, and virtual, free): an hour of coffee and local entrepreneurs presenting their businesses.
- Oxford Christmas Parade (Saturday, Dec 5, 1 PM, downtown Oxford): the whole community in one place, just outdoors this time.
The Bottom Line
Burr’s real lesson isn’t that the room is exclusive. It’s that you have to make your mark and show up. Bring something worth remembering. Then follow through so the room remembers you.
Know a local business, event, or neighbor who deserves the spotlight? Nominate them for our next Community Highlight.
And if you’re ready to make the most of the next room you walk into, connect with Lucid Marketing Strategies. I’d love to hear from you.
A
bout the Author | Erin Vezzetti is the President of Lucid Marketing Strategies, based in Oxford, Michigan. With roots in the Oxford community spanning more than 125 years, Erin brings a genuine, local perspective to every strategy she builds, blending small town values with big picture marketing expertise to help businesses grow where they’re planted.