A walk around the Fredericton flea market
Features, This Week's Edition Monday, November 1st, 2010Come Sunday morning, Kings Place mall in downtown Fredericton is hardly recognizable, at least, once you step inside. A modest chalkboard sign sits on the sidewalk, inviting people on the street into the Fredericton flea market.
Anthony Wade sits at a table with his laptop and his cashbox, patiently waiting for his next customer. A sign reads “admission $1.” His parents are around the corner, at a table lined with stacks of video games they sell every week.
“I’ve been doing this for seven or eight years now, so – big part of my life. I come out every Sunday and hang out,” Wade said.
Beyond Wade’s table are several others, piled with artwork, spices, records and DVDs, among many other things. He calls it a collection of “odds and ends.” The tables line the hallways, one exit to the other, in what appears to be a student’s haven.
Wade says he sees a rush of students come fall, when the school year has just begun, but things die down after a few weeks. Aside from ads on Kijiji and in the city newspaper, he says most people find out about the market through word of mouth.
Mike Richards is a geology student at UNB. When asked about the flea market he said “I used to go every Saturday,” confusing it with the Boyce farmers market on George Street. He later clarified, saying he’d been to the Sunday flea market only once.
“I know a few people that know about it, but I’m not really sure how they found out,” he said. “I guess it’s just a lack of advertising.”
Richards said he preferred the Saturday farmers market for its fresh, local and often cheap products. He described the flea market as a “glorified yard sale.”
The flea market could grow in customers if it had a stronger online presence. We don’t see it advertised on Facebook or Twitter, where most students would be exposed to it.
For some, the market has been a great resource to make some extra cash. Wade said he sees mostly the same vendors set up each week.
Patrick Nelson is one of them. He runs a small independent business called Greater Universe Art Productions, and has been selling his paintings at the flea market for a year now.
“I come out every Sunday, you know, to get my name out there, my artwork, my skills, and now I’m just making extra money for Christmas.”
Nelson uses acrylic paint because it’s environmentally safe. He spends as much as 12 hours on a single painting.
“As soon as I wake up in the morning I’ll get inspired and so I’ll keep painting until it’s finished.”
Ken Milburn is another vendor. He’s been selling Louisiana spices at the market for the past three years. For him, it started with hurricane Katrina.
“We were there, saw the devastation first hand. We brought spices back and friends were enjoying them and one thing led to another. I contacted companies down there and they set me up as a distributor.”
It’s a jungle of electronics, books, condiments and collectables, but Wade says most vendors will stick to what they know best.
“Once somebody finds something they can actually keep pushing then they usually stick with that and that way they make a steady business.”
The Fredericton flea market is held every Sunday in Kings Place mall from 10:30 AM to 2:30 PM. For more information, visit:
Short URL: http://www.newbrunswickbeacon.ca/?p=8488
Posted by Natalie Jarvis
on Nov 1, 2010. Filed under Features, This Week's Edition.
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