The 2007 BBISD Annual Conference was a big success, with 27 inns participating and almost 50 innkeepers…that is over 50% of our membership. BBISD members arrived at the K Bar S Lodge in Keystone shortly after noon for the annual meeting.*(Minutes sent separately). In the evening we gathered in the dining room for a delicious meal followed by an interesting and informative presentation on “Niche Marketing” given by Robert Sharp, advertising and marketing company owner in Rapid City *(Notes sent separately). Following the dinner, guests were treated to delicious, decadent chocolates and spirited wine tasting. BBISD members Eldon and Sherry Nygaard of Valiant Vineyards Winery at Buffalo Run Resort B&B of Vermillion graciously provided the wine.

Saturday morning, members gathered in the gazebo lodge for a buffet style breakfast. Area BBISD members, Holly House, Double Diamond, Custer Mansion, Ghost Canyon, Emerald Pines, Peregrine Pointe, Jenny Gulch, The Anchorage, Buffalo Rock Lodge, Apple Annie’s, and Vixie’s Victorian Villa, prepared delicious dishes and shared their tasty recipes. Following breakfast, Eldon Nygaard, who is also a legislator, gave us some insights on the proposed liquor license for serving only South Dakota wines. We then broke into groups for round-table discussions. *(Comments sent separately).

The group then retreated back to the meeting room and enjoyed presentations by three of our BBISD member inns. Darla Loewen of Possibility Farms B&B near Huron shared her experiences hosting staff members of “Midwest Living” publications. Write ups, recipes, and pictures of their wheat harvest and buffalo herd have been featured in a special vacation issue of “Midwest Living” magazine, a Taste of the Midwest feature book, and a documentary on Iowa PBS-TV. Darla and Harold are members of their area Chamber of Commerce and work with SD Tourism.

Larry and Betty Swick spoke on their Wakpamni B&B, situated on land purchased by Larry’s family in the 1920’s. Guests from all over the world stay at their B&B and are very interested in our Native American culture (their niche). They are members of BBISD and PAII. Betty also enjoys her adjacent gift shop “which has expanded into the dining room”. Guests enjoy being able to buy souvenirs. Larry’s advice, “You must have FUN!”

Sara Steever of Steever House B&B in Lennox is managing and revamping our www.southdakotabb.com website. She is working on making our site more “search engine friendly” and is helping to develop our INN-Route information. Sara offered a great deal of information; we hope to hear more from Sara in the future’ and we are grateful to have Sara’s expertise helping BBISD.

For some members, it was time to depart. Other participants then caravanned to area B&B inns who welcomed us with a tour and more tasty treats! Each inn is unique in its décor, but each innkeeper shares the common attribute of being gracious and welcoming. The inns visited were, Vixie’s Victorian Villa, Double Diamond, Emerald Pines, Holly House, Custer Mansion, and The Anchorage. The day culminated with a light dinner at a restaurant in Hill City.

A big thank you goes out to all of the innkeepers and participants who made this 2007 BBISD conference a HUGE success!