The smell of scrumptious hot chocolates, pretzels and several other food and drink options create a satisfying aroma when walking around Carmel’s Christkindlmarkt. However, last year this family-friendly event was hard to enjoy while smushed shoulder-to-shoulder with others.

While attending Christkindlmarkt last year with my own family, I found it difficult to maneuver throughout the mass amount of people that came out to Carmel’s first ever German-style market. While there were many fun German style foods, shops and drinks, none of it mattered when you had to stand in line for 20 minutes crammed against someone who was just as cold as you were.

This year, however, Christkindlmarkt organizers announced increase in both space and number of vendors at the market. I consider this to be exciting news, especially due to the investment and possible return on that investment for Carmel.

According to the Indianapolis business journal, last year Christkindlmarkt cost $60,000 to operate. While this number may seem large, the market generated $1.4 million in sales. It’s unquestionable that this event is an investment for the city.

With the upcoming expansion for this years market, which will be open to the public tomorrow, Christkindlmarkt could prove to attract even more people. And that’s a good long-term investment.