Chickfest 2017 draws long lines and deals to Charles City

By Thomas Nelson, tnelson@charlescitypress.com

A line stretching from the Charles City Chamber of Commerce, past I Don’t Care and close to Ferguson Street preceded a day of shopping at Chickfest 2017.

The line was made up of first-time Chickfest attendees and veterans of Chickfests past.

More than 138 people stood in line Saturday morning waiting for the chance to be among the 150 people to get a gift bag full of retail deals around Charles City.

Chickfest is a Charles City Area Chamber of Commerce event and the largest annual shopping day in Charles City.

“It’s kind of weird because we never really have bags left over,” said Erica Wipperling, Charles City Community Development event coordinator.

The 12 bags left were picked up by 9:15 a.m.

“We got everyone through the line in six minutes,” Wipperling said.

Penny Obermeier came for the crafts. This was Obermeier’s first time at Chickfest, and she was hoping to be able to go to Rustic Corner and Otto’s Oasis.

Chickfest had 18 Charles City businesses officially participate this year: Charles City Electronics, Comet Bowl, Darbe and Co. Boutique, First Citizen’s Bank, Hy-Vee, Kim’s Cupcakery, Lidd and Cordray, LuLaRoe Retailer Hannah Pogemiller, North Iowa Coins, Otto’s Oasis, R.M. Granet , Saxony, Schiller Fine Art Gallery and Framing, Schueth Ace Hardware, Stitches, The Furniture Barn, The Rustic Corner, and Tupperware by Shazam! Enterprises!

“We do it every year,” said Allie Novak. For the past four years Novak has gone with her daughter to Chickfest.

Novak arrived at 8:30 a.m. with her daughter, who was hoping for candy deals.

“We like to go out to Otto’s Oasis and see what they have. She likes the fairy gardens out there,” Novak said. “We do it because its good mom-daughter bonding time.”

The first person to arrive at 7:15 a.m. was Robin Schwickerath. This was Schwickerath’s second time being the first in line, as she has come earlier before.

“We will hit Aroma’s first to warm up. I’s a little chilly,” Schwickerath said. “You try to go all over and try to miss where the large amounts of people are.”

For Schwickerath, Chickfest is a family affair. She came with her son and daughter to go shopping in Charles City.

“This my sixth year,” she said.

Schwickerath does Chickfest because it’s nice getting out after the end of winter and seeing the stores, she said.

Not just women were out for Chickfest. Jay White came out to collect the gift bag for his family and to let them sleep in.

White wasn’t planning on using any of the deals found in the gift bags himself unless it was something he wanted.

“I’ll find out. It’s pretty cool,” White said.

After receiving the bag, Tracy Walker and her daughter Sierra Walker went outside and joined several Chickfest attendees going through and seeing what the day’s deals were.

“Usually we barely make it through everything before 3 o’clock,” Walker said. “It’s always a good day.”

Walker was hoping to go through as many places as they could before the businesses closed for the day, she said.