As I am in the process of planning my first ever on site flea market, I’m reminded of all the markets I’ve attended over the years as a shopper and especially as a vendor.
The work to prepare was insane. Weeks and weeks of sourcing, cleaning, fixing, painting, pricing and organizing to load up and then unload and set up. Usually by the time any market started I was too tired to care about details which is why I preplanned details ahead of time. Things like how to price, what tags to use, how to curate collections in my booth to showcase furniture and small items. Smalls are essential when you’re doing a flea/vintage market because a lot of people won’t buy a piece of furniture but they will buy things they can slip into a bag.
For most markets I tried to have a theme of colours or eras. Of course there are things that go outside of that but it always is so much more pleasing to the eye to have a booth that has coordinating pieces. This also helps in the area of sales.
If I were to give advice on if a flea or vintage market is worth it, I would say that yes, it is at least once to see if it’s something that you enjoy and is profitable.
Things to consider:
- Distance to venue
- cost of booth
- Is the focus on vintage, antiques and handmade? (You definitely don’t want to do the shows that allow all kinds of multi level marketing products and commercial sellers)
- well promoted?
- other vendors that compliment your booth?
- are you willing to put in the work to have a well stocked booth?
Over the years , I was privileged to be a part of some amazing vintage and flea markets.
Country Acres Antiques and Vintage Market by Maclean, SK
Queen City Vintage Market, Regina
Prairie Attic Christmas Market, Steinbach, MB
The Red Market Barn , Kenosee, SK
byCurated Market, Saskatoon
I usually sold more than half and often 70% of my booth. You have to go into it prepared to sell meaning you price your stuff to move. Sometimes the cost of hotels and gas to get somewhere was a chunk of the profits but I did it, especially to Manitoba, for the experience and the value added to my own inspiration and creative journey. It makes a big difference in how you approach future markets to be able to see how others set up their booths.
In those years my husband had covered trailer and truck we used and between he and I , it was a doable venture. Unfortunately, when he was diagnosed with MS in 2018 and ultimately had to leave his job, we lost all of that.
So here I am, now on a property that allows me to stay put and have other vendors come to me.
But I’m still my own best customer and shopper. And I still curate displays with the market mentality of pairing like items together and staging things to be attractive to the impulse buyer.
If you’re thinking of joining in as a vendor for an upcoming flea market, I hope some of this information was helpful. And if you’re a vintage and antique seller or collector in my area, consider joining me this fall for our first of many Flea, Farm and Vintage Markets on Sept 14.
