Story by DeMarion Burns
The annual Prison City Crawfish and Music Fest took place last Saturday in downtown Huntsville at 1203 University Ave, bringing together small businesses and patrons into an environment filled with shopping, food and fun.
This marked the festival’s fifth year, according to the President of Huntsville’s Downtown Business Alliance Program, Pam Conner. The program’s purpose is to provide support and create events, gaining attraction around and for downtown businesses located on the square through alliance members, which are other businesses around the city of Huntsville.
“We are a growing festival that gets bigger every year,” said Conner.
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This was Conner’s third year as the alliance program president, and she expressed that she highly enjoys bringing the community together.
Although Conner is the president of the alliance program, she also owns a business on the square called Bargain Box. A staple in the community, which has been open since 1988, the buiness specializes in resale clothing. Or as she states, clothing for the whole family.
Through the HDBAP’s website, vendors were able to purchase slots to sell and promote their products with spaces ranging from $125 to $200.
As a part of the festival, patrons were able to shop from a wide range of vendors, listen to loud music from guitarists and primarily enjoy crawfish.
The Big E-Z Crawfish & Oyster Bar, owned by Erik and Reba Van Dorn, is a local restaurant that specializes in seafood and Cajun cuisine. They were the only crawfish vendor at the fest, but also the festival’s main attraction.
According to waitress and server, Samantha Doyle, their line remained steady from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., with an occupancy of 40 to 45 people at a time.
The restaurant is going on its eighth year, and the business’ local popularity and sponsorship with the alliance program have made them a staple in the community.
Vendors from Huntsville, Conroe and the Houston area filled the square with a variety of products. Josh and Melissa Steindl, the owners of Houston-based company Our Simple Things, vended in Huntsville for the first time.
“Our kids struggled with eczema. Josh needed something to soothe acne under his beard that didn’t smell like a spa or sting like alcohol,” said Steindl.
Steindl stated her goal was to help people use more natural-based ingredients in their skin care routine instead of harsher chemicals. She plans to return to Huntsville for more vending opportunities in the future.
Like Steindl, other vendors had a personal story for their products and saw this as an opportunity to promote and become closer with the community.
Nebula’s Design Shop, founded by Sam Houston State University alumni Adrienne Luera and her partner, Danii, showcased their handmade stationery jewelry and leather-made goods. Nebula is the name of their pet cat who inspired the idea for their design shop.
“We have a lot of love for Sam Houston and the Huntsville community, and it has helped us grow our small business on the side,” said Luera.
