LEWISTON — Many exhibitors at Thursday’s Business to Business Trade Show at the Androscoggin Bank Colisee expressed cautious optimism about the area’s economic conditions as they greeted a steady flow of visitors past the networking event’s 200 booths.

This 16th edition of the annual event sponsored by the Lewiston-Auburn Economic Growth Council was expected to draw as many as 3,000 attendees. It is billed as the state’s largest one-day business networking and community event.

Calvin Rinck, LAEGC marketing director, said, “When business people get together, good things happen. That’s how business is done in Maine.”

Just over two months ago, Rinck succeeded Paul Badeau as LAEGC marketing director. Badeau had spearheaded the B2B show’s logistics from the beginning.

Lucien Gosselin, LAEGC president, said this year’s event was shaping up as another success. He said area projects “that had been on the back burner are resurfacing” and there are signs that area employment is getting back to 2007 levels.

Skip Lalemand, owner of DeSigns by Skip LLC, 144 Main St., Auburn, said it seemed to him that business people are optimistic this year.

“If you wait for something to happen, it ain’t gonna happen,” he said. Lalemand said he recently expanded his promotional items business to the Portland area, and local business has also been good.

John Stass, owner of Katahdin Studio Furniture, of Lewiston, said his last three years were challenging because of the recession, but it also was a period when he posted successes. He said he went from a one-person enterprise to hiring three craftsmen for his high-end, music-oriented furniture business. He said his fiscal year ends soon, but as early as February he knew this was going to be his best year ever, and he is expanding into production of other furniture designs.

John Pape, owner of Japelco, electrical contractors in Turner, said he visited last year’s show and “I saw a lot of potential for business.” He signed up for one of the limited 200 booths and around noon Thursday he said it was evident he would get a good return on his investment. He said he was the only electrical contractor among the exhibitors.

Another first-time exhibitor was PostalAnnex, a new enterprise at 25 East Ave., Lewiston. Lauren Snow was greeting people on behalf of her father, William Snow, who owns the business.

The show’s networking opportunities also included some fun and games. Community Credit Union ran a hula hoop contest, and it was a man who held the lead with nearly 40 minutes at midday.

Show visitors also enjoyed stops at the first-time booth of The Library Cafe at the Auburn Public Library, where owner Daphne Berta was passing out lemonade and roll-ups.

Josh Shea, publisher and editor of Lewiston Auburn Magazine, said his objective last year was to let people know about the new magazine, and this year it was “to let them know we are doing well, building and growing.” The L-A Film Festival sponsored several weeks ago by the publication was a big success, he said.

Lewiston Auburn Magazine had a large space at this year’s trade show, and they filled it with an inflated bouncing room for kids and the young-at-heart whose pictures might appear in the magazine’s pages.

“We wanted to show we have a sense of humor,” Shea said.

The morning’s kickoff breakfast featured a talk by Michael Austermeier, project manager of Lufthansa Technik’s Lockheed Super Star restoration at Auburn-Lewiston Municipal Airport. He said the company is hiring sheet metal workers for the project.

The 200 exhibitors at the Business to Business Trade Show included banks, health care agencies, municipalities and state agencies, social service agencies, accountants, various business supply concerns, communications companies and many other categories.