30 Oct 2010 Merchant looks forward to Dazzle Daze

“All women are in the same situation,” Alice said. “We’re all busy, but we still have to provide that meal.”

She adds that women want something that tastes like they have been in the kitchen all day even when they haven’t had time to do so. Her original mixes provide that.

“Our customers feel good about what they’re purchasing from us,” she said, adding that she uses wholesome ingredients and stays away from additives as much as possible.

The Reeds began attending craft shows in 1994, and they now attend 25-30 shows a year in Arkansas and the surrounding region. In the early years, Alice made salt-dough Christmas ornaments.

“I’ve always enjoyed working with my hands,” she said. “That came from my mother – it’s just like that gene passed to me; I sure enjoy it.”

An added plus is that attending craft shows, which are generally held on weekends, gave Alice the opportunity to attend her children’s school functions and to care for her father when he developed Alzheimer’s disease.

Alice slowly branched out into gourmet mixes, which allows her and Tommy to go to craft shows year-round and not just in the fall. The mixes became so popular that Alice no longer makes Christmas ornaments, much to the dismay of some of her customers.

Her customers have also given her a few ideas for new mixes. After tasting and purchasing her wares, a customer will occasionally ask: “Have you ever thought of …?”

“Often, I haven’t,” Alice said. “So I go home and work on it.”

Tommy serves as his wife’s “right hand man” at the craft shows, and the couple’s children – Keith, Rachel and Jesse – often lend a hand in the kitchen as well.  Indeed, Jesse calls himself “official food taster.”

All the gourmet mixes are prepared in Alice’s state-certified kitchen in south Little Rock.

Occasionally customers come by the Reeds’ Little Rock location to purchase mixes, but Alice says “it isn’t really a retail situation” because she and Tommy are away so often at craft shows.

“We love doing shows,” said Alice. “It’s a wonderful experience.”

Alice especially looks forward to Dazzle Daze ever year. “It’s like a little taste of heaven,” she said. Girls’ Nite Out on Thursday is especially fun, she adds. “You can feel the excitement; events are going on all the time.

“My hat goes off to those girls who put everything together for Dazzle Daze,” she said. “I just have a thankful and loving heart for them.”