Berkshire Home Expo Returns To Mall This Weekend

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — The Chamber of Commerce's annual Home Expo is returning to the Berkshire Mall this weekend.

Starting at 10 a.m. on Friday, 50 local home-improvement businesses and related companies will display their goods and services. From windows to solar to landscaping, the expo brings an array of options for people looking for some spring projects.

According to Christine Hoyt, director of programs and events for the chamber, this year's expo will be the biggest one with 10 new exhibitors.

"We're really excited about the quality of exhibitors and the number of exhibitors," Hoyt said on Thursday. "This is the most we've seen in four years. Over the last few years, we've been in the low 40s."

The exhibitors will be at the mall from 10 a.m. until 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. on Sunday.

Forty of 46 exhibitors from last year have returned, some boasting big benefits from "getting their name out," Hoyt said, such as a landscape company that nearly booked its entire summer based on those few days.

"There are quite a few returning. It just continues to grow," Hoyt said. "It's also a good time of the year for a lot of these companies because it is before they get busy."

"They estimate a few thousand people come through," she said.

The business generated is also difficult to tell because sometimes a business won't see the benefits until months later. The chamber surveys all of the exhibitors asking about sales leads but those have been varied depending on the company.

"Home-improvement projects are not something people go into lightly, so it could be eight months down the road when they remember they met someone at the home show," she said.

Based on talking to exhibitors, Hoyt said the home-improvement business is picking up since the recent recession.

"They're starting to see more business come their way in the last year. They are seeing a change," she said. "While they are seeing people spend a little bit more money in home improvement now, it still isn't as great as it once was so they still have to get their name out there.

"It is a way to showcase our member organizations who fall into those categories."

Greenagers Founder Will Conklin Honored as Business Person of the Year

By Breanna Steele12:17PM / Saturday, October 03, 2026

Casey Pease of state Sen. Paul Mark's office presents William Conklin, right, with a state Senate proclamation.

EGREMONT, Mass. — The Southern Berkshire Chamber of Commerce honored a local businessman and nonprofit leader on Sept. 24 at Catamount Mountain Resort.

 

William Conklin was this year's Business Person of the Year, recognizing his work as founder and executive director of Greenagers, a nonprofit that helps youth and children engage in work in environmental conservation, sustainable farming, natural resource management, and vocational skills building. 

 

Conklin and his family also run Sky View Farm and he is a managing partner of Konkapot Tree and Timber, a small-scale forest products business.

 

"If you spent any amount of time in Southern Berkshire, chances are you've heard his name, whether you realize the connection at the time or not," said board member Sierra King Watson, who emceed the event. "You might be having a conversation about farming, a new barn or structure that was built, students learning hands-on skills in sustainable agriculture, or a family that receives donated firewood to help keep their home warm through a cold Berkshire winter, or maybe you're simply talking about one of those community leaders who somehow manages to show up, support everyone, and seemingly be everywhere all at once.

 

"Well, one name has a way of continuously popping up, and that is Will Conklin."

 

Board President Mark Rulison said the region has more than 1,200 nonprofits. One in four jobs in the county is in the nonprofit sector, which ranks 27th nationally for nonprofit employment. He said the economic impact on the community is huge, thanking those who help.

 

For the event on Thursday, Conklin requested that as much of the food as possible was sourced locally. Most of it came from Greenagers, Sky View Farm, Indian Line Farm and Fancy Feast Supper Club, creative dinner series.