Milestone Market
Photos by Emma Highfill, Rose Wheat Photography
The Milestone Market has one goal in mind: to promote a community of elite event professionals to take the industry to the next level in Topeka. Abbey Brown created Milestone Market to give event professionals in Topeka a better way to market their services. Located at 3935 NW 25th St. in Topeka, Milestone Market provides a physical location for event professionals to collaborate with colleagues, meet with clients, and show off their talents and skills. In the event services industry, much of the work and planning is done behind the scenes, so visibility to clients can be a problem.
“We have phenomenal event professionals in the Topeka area and after working with them closely for over five years, I have become invested in their success and growth,” Brown said. “The Milestone Market allows for 365 days of exposure, community and education specific to event professionals.”
At Milestone Market, event professionals can test the waters with a monthly lease, and pricing varies depending on how much they utilize the space. Being a part of Milestone Market means greater connection to the events community and an opportunity to collaborate with colleagues. Brown also facilitates a Facebook group that is available for any event professional to join, free of charge. The group features monthly trainings and industry support articles. Businesses can also share ideas with the group and receive feedback or share information on projects and happenings, so that members of the group can all help promote.
“The entire business model is built on lifting each business up and providing a community of professionals with an abundancy mindset focused on growing each other’s business,” Brown said. “Providing the opportunity through a physical location or online community to connect with other industry leaders helps break down the barriers to entrepreneurship and allows for open conversations about the business and industry we share.”
Brown also features event professionals on the Milestone Market podcast. Brown started the podcast in response to pandemic restrictions, and it quickly caught on.
“In its short existence, we have had over 25 episodes with a mix of industry interviews and solo episodes, averaging over 500 downloads,” Brown said. “This also provides a new piece of content for our event businesses to share on their social media channels, websites and other marketing avenues.”2020 has been a year of challenges, but Brown has seen the Topeka business community rally together to survive and even thrive.
“The event industry has risen to take this pandemic head on,” Brown said. “The business owners in this space have fought for their businesses as well as the health and safety of the community. There is a true balancing act that must ensue. I have seen teams share resources, so they do not have to lay off their beloved staff. I have seen random acts of kindness such as buying gift cards, flowers, and other items to support each other’s businesses on a particularly hard week. I have seen the distribution of business relief education in the form of businesses sending specific PPP guidelines, grant applications to other business owners. It has been truly incredible.”
Looking ahead, Milestone Market will scale down on retail to dedicate more room to event industry co-working space and a new event venue. In 2021, Milestone Market will offer event space to rent for showers, engagements, birthdays, graduations and more, along with experts on site to help you plan a perfect party.
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