Vendors at 2-for-1 event in Myrtle Beach are counting on buyers

Heather Cooper of Columbus County, N.C., went to the 2011 Home & Boat Show on Friday ready to get specifics for fixing up her house.

The house was owned by her fiance's parents, but now it's theirs. And it's about to get a mini-makeover - from fresh paint to a pool and new landscaping - with her fiance, Anthony Ransom, doing most of the labor to cut costs.

"We are getting ready to do a lot of work," she said, pushing her 8-month-old son, Colin Ransom, in a stroller through the booths at the show. "It has to be done. ... It's just time to change the colors, make it our own."

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Vendors at the first combined home and boat show at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center this weekend are relying on people such as Cooper, who are buying, not just browsing. But most vendors - many of whom consider themselves the lucky ones to still be in business after the recession claimed many of their competitors - aren't oozing confidence that buyers will be back in bulk this weekend.

"We're definitely thinking positive," said Chase Thompson, a salesman for Marine Services Center in Little River, which had 27 boats on display. "Right now with the discounts, promotions and extended warranties, it would make sense to take advantage of them if you could."

The lagging economy has taken its toll on the home and boat shows as much as the businesses and consumers - prompting the two shows to combine this year. Years ago, each show could fill up the convention center's exhibit hall on their own, with the boat show even spilling into the parking lot.