The San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce’s Mixer Showcase was a huge hit that drew an estimated 6,000 people last week, the largest crowd ever. The trade show usually attracts about 5,000 people each year.

“We haven’t seen that many people at an event in probably three or four years,” said Clint Pearce, vice president at Madonna Enterprises. For the first time in its 19-year run, the Mixer Showcase was moved to the Alex Madonna Expo Center where it allowed for a more traditional trade show layout and more exhibitor space and parking.

“There seemed to be such a huge participation not only with the vendors but also with many members of the community,” Pearce said. “It was a great way for the Chamber community to come together en masse.”

The annual Mixer Showcase is the largest and longest-running business-to-business trade show on the Central Coast and usually features a fun theme every year. This year’s Mixer Showcase was held on May 18 and its theme was New York, New York: From Broad Street to Broadway. More than 140 member booths were featured, which was more than ever before.

“The exhibitors really went all out decorating their booth space with a New York theme,” said Kristin Mehiel, director of membership services for the Chamber. “When you change the venue for something that has run so long in one location, there are bound to be some hiccups. But the Madonna staff was beyond amazing and this year was better than I could have hoped for. And while more booth space was sold than ever before, the high quality of vendors this year was outstanding.”

Mehiel, along with Director of Marketing Lindsey Miller, organized the event. A special thank you goes to the major sponsor for this year’s Mixer Showcase was First California Bank, and additional sponsors including KSBY, The Tribune, Madonna Inn, and Itech Solutions.

To see a photo slideshow of the Mixer Showcase, visit The Tribune’s website.