Thousands turn out for Tauranga Women's Lifestyle expo

Jess Lowcher and Chris Hetem sharing their cookie goodness with the world. Photo / George Novak

Sweet lavender mist, tantalising limoncello and freshly baked bread were just some the smells that filled the air at this year's Women's Lifestyle Expo in Tauranga.

The two-day expo was held at the Trustpower Stadium on Saturday and Sunday.

Thousands of Bay women filled the arena, some with a goodie bag and many with shopping bags in tow to test a range of different products and even nab a deal.

There were more than 100 vendors with offerings including all things makeup, homeware, nibbles and much more.

One vendor that many noses were unknowingly dragged towards was the Sweet Dough Co cookie stand.

Run by two millennials from the United States, the stand sold frozen logs of cookie dough, with freshly baked sample cookies a tricky thing to reject for many.

The couple got the idea from the cookie dough phenomenon taking off in their home country.

After testing out their recipe on friends and family and constantly fielding requests for more, the pair thought they'd try making it into a business run from their Mount home.

Another exhibit using good old Kiwi ingenuity was the stall promoting Romoco natural healing creams, run by two Paeroa locals.

Maureen and Roger Kennerley had been making the creams for 30 years. Maureen said the expo allowed people to touch, smell and experience the creams which was something they could not offer online.

Roger (left) and Maureen Kennerley with their range of natural healing creams. Photo / George Novak

Anne Donaldson, owner of Anne's Knitwear, shared the same view - that touching her handcrafted Italian-wool children's knitwear was what made the difference for many customers.

Donaldson has been knitting for 35 years she and brought more than 100 pieces to the expo.

She said she would never be seen at home without her knitting equipment to hand, describing it as truly a "fine art".

Anne's Knitwear owner Anne Donaldson with her best-selling knit. Photo / George Novak