In the midst of a Chicago snowstorm, bloggers gathered on January 21st & 22nd for the 2nd Annual Kenmore Blogger Summit and I was proud to have braved a 3 1/2 hour drive in the brutal storm to attend. Halfway into my drive I almost turned around to go home. I thought I was nuts to keep driving in blizzard conditions during rush hour traffic just to attend an event about appliances. Let me give you a quick reference for how long the drive actually took – I returned home from the Summit in about an hour. But despite the stress involved in driving safely when all my van wanted to do was slide off the road, I’m glad I didn’t turn around. The 2012 Kenmore Blogger Summit is an event I am happy to say that I participated in and I would definitely do it again.
The Summit started on Friday night, the 21st with a reception and dinner at the Sofitel Hotel. We enjoyed a presentation from Google+, yummy food and got to chat with the bloggers we would be spending the next day with, hands on at the Kenmore Live Studios.
On Saturday January 22nd we enjoyed breakfast together at the hotel (oh how I miss those chocolate scones), and headed out to the Kenmore Live Studios.
Before I go any further, I want to talk briefly about Kenmore. Kenmore has been around since the 1920′s. That’s a long time! While they want us all to know that Kenmore is “NOT your grandmother’s brand” I think it is important to take note that they have a long-standing reputation and have come a long way adapting to changing technologies. They have adapted and grown and as you will see, have a lot of innovative features that definitely bring them full circle into the modern age.
You will also see that Kenmore has done something that very few brands have – engaged the consumer in a way that connects beyond just the appliance purchase. Through their Kenmore Live Studios they offer an interactive way to bring creativity and innovation to life in the studio and into our homes with a live video feed that broadcasts through the internet.
Kenmore Blogger Summit Attendees
There were 43 bloggers on the original attendee list but I know a couple were absent due to the weather. Flights were cancelled and it was beyond their control.
During the event I got to spent time with old friends and made some great new ones!
Kenmore Blogger Summit Activities
The event was hosted by Kenmore Live Studios’ in-house chef Kari Karch, and there were discussions, activities, demonstrations, healthy competitions and presentations. We learned about the history of Kenmore, their goals moving into the future and why they believe in the importance of sharing their message with bloggers. Not only were they interested in helping us learn more about Kenmore and their products, they were very interested in our feedback and ideas for future product innovations.
So, what did I take away from the 2012 Kenmore Blogger Summit?
I mentioned new friends already, but I wanted to reiterate that, but I also took away a new found respect for Kenmore. I admit that prior to the Summit I never would have given Kenmore a second thought. I had no idea they engaged the consumer (and bloggers, who are a great connection to the consumers) in such a thorough, creative manner, and I am impressed with the features they have implemented to help make our lives easier.
I also received a Kenmore Elite Stand Mixer as part of my attendance at the event. Isn’t it purdy? I actually gave the mixer to a good friend who is starting a cake making business. She promised me free cakes for life and so far she has used it once (on her own birthday cake) and said her icing tastes much better mixed in the Kenmore Elite!!!! The sad part is I have to wait til July for my birthday cake….
Another thing I took away from the 2012 Kenmore Blogger Summit is this:
Kenmore Elite 31 cu. ft. French Door Bottom-Freezer Refrigerator (AKA Grab N’ Go)
I am one of just two lucky bloggers who gets to review this amazing fridge and trust me that after the summit and the demonstration we got, the drooling you are doing right now is warranted. I can’t wait to get it so I can share with you all the amazing innovations Kenmore has put into this fridge and experience it first hand.
You get to take something away from my visit to the Kenmore Live Studios – through February 4, 2012 you can get 30% any Kenmore regular-price small kitchen appliances, cookware, bakeware & kitchen gadgets at sears.com and kmart.com with the code 30KENMORE.
Note: my trip and all expenses associated with the 2012 Kenmore Bloggers Summit were fully sponsored by Kenmore. Note: photos courtesy of Kenmore
About Kim
Good girl for sitting in the front row! It looks like it was a lot of fun! Maybe one day I’ll get to go to something like this. Also glad you were safe in your car!
Looks like you had an awesome experience! I hope you met my daughter, Sara, who also attended the summit. I would say that snowy, slippery, 3 hour drive was well worth it.!
It was so great to see you there! That snow storm was something else! I had a really good time there. Time to get my post done, too
I had a great time too, we need to go back so I can get more pecan pancakes LOL, I still remember how good those tasted! Plus we need a picture of you in your foil hat. I was hoping they would put those videos up but they haven’t.
You lucky lucky girl you! I think that’s the same fridge I was just looking at in Sear’s. Does it have like a second button on the fridge door where it just opens part of the fridge space so you can grab like just a jug of milk from the side without letting out the cool air?
Yes Cat it has that little door. The whole thing looks amazing!
I had such a great time!! I hope we get to go back next year! ;)
I can’t wait to hear about the fridge!
It was great to meet you Sara, it was a lot of fun!
Looks like a really fun time! I live 3 hours south of Chicago and the weather was bad that weekend! Glad you made it OK! Congrats on the new fridge! That is amazing, too!
Thanks Kasey, yeah it would have taken you like 7 hours to drive in! Brutal!