UPDATE 2015: The 3rd Annual Girls On Gartner is slated noon to 7PM on Wed., May 6, at Naperville Plaza, the popular shopping destination located on the southwest corner of Washington St. at Gartner Ave.
For starters, be sure to stop by First Community Financial Bank to pick up a “swag bag” and a punch card. Simply follow directions, tour the shopping plaza and when the card is punched by participating merchants, the card can be dropped off at Walker’s Charhouse for a chance to win one of three valuable gift baskets now on display.
“Many of the favorites from the first two events will return, including the Naperville Trolley with free rides and tours,” said Mary Jane Leisten, one of the event’s organizers. “Just be sure to start at First Community. We’ll provide the handy swag bag to collect all the giveaways from participating merchants and present you with a punch card.”
A new feature will be a live broadcast from WONC radio, so stop by to watch and listen.
Family games and activities, in-store demonstrations, special treats, giveaways, along with raffle prizes are sure to provide fun for the entire family and a showcase of “shopportunities,” organizers said.
In addition, the 2015 Girls on Gartner is the first of many events this year to mark the 140th Anniversary of Oswald’s Pharmacy. Stop by Oswald’s for the latest news about upcoming festivities to celebrate the occasion.
Oswald’s shelves are filled with gift items for all the spring holidays, including Mother’s Day Sun., May 10. 2014 PN File Photo.In case a trivia question pops up, note that 2015 also celebrates the 100th year that the pharmacy has been named Oswald’s. Back in 1915, owner Bill Anderson’s great grandfather Louis Oswald purchased the store from his great-great grandfather W.W. Wickel and changed the name from Wickel’s Drugstore to Oswald’s Pharmacy.
Participating 2015 merchants in alphabetical order include Casey’s Foods, Celidan Creations, Colonial Café, Empress Nails, Eye World, Fantastic Sam’s Hair Salon, First Community Financial Bank, Great Harvest Bread Company, Language Stars, Massage Green, OrangeTheory, Oswald’s Pharmacy, Peterson’s Spirits and Fine Wines, Rocco’s Pizza, Salon Elite, Sherwin Williams, Succulant Seafood, Trader Joe’s, Walker’s Charhouse and Weight Watchers.
New this year for Girls on Gartner is the “Wine Down” at Walker’s Charhouse. Cheers!
UPDATE 2014: Girls on Gartner returns for round two on Wed., May 7. This year’s event offers more of just about everything! From Casey’s Foods around the bend to Oswald’s Pharamacy to First Community Bank and over to Walker’s Charhouse, more than 20 merchants are getting set to roll out the red carpet treatment for the afternoon event.
Billed as a time to “Eat, Drink and Shop,” the spring social designed with women in mind is a time experience all the good things and types of new arrivals that attract loyal patrons to the popular shopping venue every season.
Organizers invite the public— women, men and all ages— to stop by to enjoy live entertainment by the Peotones and Josh T. Magic. Or take a tour on the Naperville Trolley.
Visit the USPS counter in the back of Oswald’s Pharmacy to enter the Naperville Plaza prize raffle. Check out other prizes from Oswald’s, too.
Participating merchants in alphabetical order include Casey’s Foods, Celidan Creations, Colonial Café, Empress Nails, Eye World, Fantastic Sam’s Hair Salon, First Community Financial Bank (FCB will make a $1 donation to the Naperville Area Humane Society for each filled punch card returned.) Great Harvest Bread Company, Language Stars, Massage Green, OrangeTheory, Oswald’s Pharmacy, Peterson’s Spirits and Fine Wines, Salon Elite, Sherwin Williams, Trader Joe’s, Walker’s Charhouse and Weight Watchers.
Note that in order to receive all food discounts you must have a swag bag, available at First Community Bank where everyone needs to stop first for a schedule of all the activities.
Stop by First Community Bank to pick up your yellow swag bag to begin the tour!
“For 2014, we’ll have three large gift baskets for our raffle, each one worth more than $500,” said Mary Jane Leisten of First Community Bank who is helping to organize this year’s Girls on Gartner.
Arrive early to enjoy all prizes, live music, wandering magician, treats and give-aways while supplies last.
PREVIOUS POST / 2013: In 2013, May Day was set aside to introduce a new seasonal tradition at Naperville Plaza, designed especially for women. Oh! What a beautiful morning it was to kick off “Girls on Gartner”!
Earlier this spring merchants at Naperville Plaza announced their first “Girls on Gartner” would be held May 1, an event packed with activities, musical entertainment and refreshments from opening to close.
Inspired by downtown Naperville’s very successful Girls Night Out, the daytime event was designed to showcase the plaza as an another fine shopping destination in the Western Suburbs. Live music, trolley rides and a gloriously sunny warm day attracted nearly three times as many women as organizer Nicki Anderson had expected.
Anderson, who handles marketing for Oswald’s Pharmacy, spearheaded the festivities that included 17 participating merchants. The intention was for everyone who visited the shopping center to visit each of the participating stores or eateries with a swag bag to collect giveaways and to become familiar with their merchandise, menus and services.
At Casey’s Foods, for example, cooking demonstrations and raffle sign-ups were ongoing all day inside the store.
“I had ordered 200 yellow swag bags and by mid-afternoon they were gone,” said Anderson. “Casey’s, First Community Bank, Orangetheory and Colonial pitched in some of their swag bags so we’d have enough for everyone to play.”
Girls on Gartner were invited to pick up a bright yellow swag bag with a punch card at Oswald’s Pharmacy and then visit each merchant for a punch. After the card was filled with 17 punches, the cards were returned to Oswald’s to be part of the 8PM drawing for a humongous basket packed with $2,000 worth of gifts.
“For every person who stops by our bank for a punch on her card, First Community Bank will donate one dollar to Family Shelter Service,” said Mary Jane Leisten, a personal banker at First Community Bank Naperville. Leisten also encouraged punch-card participants who stopped by the bank to guess the number of gold-wrapped chocolate coins in a piggy bank.
When asked about the prize for guessing the right number, First Community Bank President Pat Benton said, “The winner gets the bank. I mean, the piggy bank.”
Refreshments, giveways and goodie bags were plentiful as patrons strolled from merchant to merchant throughout the shopping center armed with swag bags.
“It’s like summer today in Naperville,” said visitor Camille Balla from Green Trails. “I got my card punched at all the participating stores to be eligible for the drawing tonight. Fun! I like being a ‘Gartner Girl’! Thank you, merchants.”
Trolley Chick Annette Wehrli along with her designated hostess Sue Koranda provided free trolley rides throughout the shopping center and nearby neighborhoods, even venturing downtown and to North Central College.
“Naperville Plaza is where I do all my shopping,” said Wehrli. “It’s my neighborhood. I told Nicki I just had to do something for this event.”
At 8PM, a handful of onlookers watched as all the punch cards were emptied into a shopping cart, then the winning punch card was drawn. Noting the punch in the upper left corner had cut away part of the last name on the back side, Nicki Anderson said, “The winner is Barbara H. from Lisle!”
One gentleman who had entered Oswald’s to pick up a prescription was curious about all the action. When the Girls on Gartner theme was described, he was prompted to ask, “When will there be Guys on Gartner?”
The $2,000 Prize Basket!
On Thursday, the winner will pick up her prize basket chock full of merchandise and gift certificates provided by participating merchants—Peterson Spirits and Wines, Orangetheory, Oswald’s Pharmacy, Weight Watchers, Trader Joe’s, Colonial Cafe, Massage Green, Badlands, Eye World, Celidan Florist, Casey’s Foods, Salon Elite & Spa, Walker’s Charhouse, Sherwin Williams, Great Harvest Bread, AnaBanana Kids and First Community Bank.
Naperville Plaza is located just south of downtown Naperville at Gartner Road and Washington Street. The plaza has enjoyed great growth in recent months with the addition of some unique new merchants including Orange Theory, Weight Watchers and Eye World. Earlier this year, First Community Bank Naperville relocated to Naperville Plaza, too. These enterprises along with anchor stores historic Oswald’s, Casey’s Foods, Trader Joe’s and AnaBanana Kids make the Plaza a great alternative and addition to shopping elsewhere in Naperville.
