Shoppers brave rain for Grayslake's first Shop 'n' Swirl

When the weather forecast called for rain on March 9, the day of the first Shop 'n' Swirl in historic downtown Grayslake, members of the Downtown Grayslake Small Business Group were more than a little worried.

The fledgling organization had sold 300 tickets for the event - making it an official sellout - and had purchased more than 72 bottles of wine, specially trained 16 volunteers in the art pouring wine, purchased more than 300 commemorative glasses, and signed up 23 businesses for the event.

A lot was on the line. But no one needed to worry.

A total of 284 umbrella-totting shoppers braved the conditions to visit shops along the town's historic Center Street, making the event a huge - though slightly wet - success and sparking conversation about repeat performances.

"I thought it was perfect," said Linda Scholz, owner of Uniquely Sweet and Something's Brewing. "Even the rain didn't stop people from enjoying themselves."

Shoppers started checking in for the 3 p.m. event at the Heritage Center at around 2:45 p.m. They were met by 11 volunteers. Within 15 minutes, the community room and the front hallway were filled with shoppers; 224 in the first 15 minutes, organizers said. Most of them carried umbrellas and wore a variety of foul weather gear as they walked off with green wrist bands and red bags filled with coupons and official Shop 'n' Swirl wineglasses.

"The rainstorm that came through coincided almost exactly with the time frame of the event," said Michelle Poe, executive director of the Grayslake Heritage Center and Museum. "It started raining as I dropped off raffle bags and stopped as I picked them up."

Mellysa Sherony Kaniok, owner of Closet Traders and a founder of the downtown business group, said organizers wanted "to host a fun event for residents and promote the businesses in our downtown."

"We heard very positive feedback through the event," she added. "Even though the weather was terrible, people were out laughing and having fun. The residents of Grayslake were excited to participate."

According to Scholz, one shopper wished the event could have run longer.

"She didn't have time to shop (all) the stores," she said. "All in all, I give the event an 'A++.'"

Kaniok said organizers are already thinking about next year.

"We are planning future events," she said, "and expect to have another wine walk next year. We hope to accommodate more businesses and participants. We purposely kept this event small as we didn't want to oversell and underdeliver."

Visit Grayslake, the group that has come together to support and promote small businesses in the Village Center, contributed to the event.

"Our group is so excited by the positive response we've received from the community," she said. "It has truly brought us all together for a common cause that we are all very proud of."