With few snags, Nashville Flea Market opens in new space – Tennessean
The Nashville Flea Market opened in its new space Friday morning with more than 500 vendors in 1,350 booths selling all kinds of goods through Sunday.
Vendors and customers had a few complaints, such as cellphone service issues, traffic coming into the fairgrounds in the early morning and customers having difficulty finding their favorite vendors.
But overall, the opening seemed fairly smooth.
“Be patient,” flea market manager Mary Ann Smith told some customers who were trying to find a certain vendor.
“We have some things to work on,” but overall vendors and customers seem pleased, Smith said.
“I like it, but it is going to take some getting used to,” said Sylvia Franks, of Antioch, who has been a flea market shopper for decades. “It has been a little hard to find the vendors like we used to.”
Jim Reed, who has been selling upholstered furniture at the market for more than 40 years, said the load-in at the new location is much easier with the doors next to his space. “It took 20 minutes, where it used to take close to an hour.”
The new $37.5 million Expo Center replaces the sprawl of sheds and aging exhibit buildings that housed the flea market and other events for 50 years.
The new venue is still inside The Fairgrounds Nashville, just down the hill from its former home.
The new digs, which will also be used for other events through the year, include three adjoining brick-and-metal air-conditioned buildings, with a total of 130,000 square feet. There are also two large sheds, space for dozens of vendors in the show arena and some outdoor booth spaces under canopies.
There are also areas along the perimeter of the property where vendors set up shop.
Much of the flea market experience is the same as always: Admission is free, the number of vendors is about the same, and the array of merchandise is similar to what frequent flea market shoppers are accustomed to.
More: The Nashville Flea Market debuts its new Fairgrounds location in September. Here’s what to know
The September flea market runs through Sunday. Hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Access is from Wedgewood Avenue and from the Bransford/Benton Avenue side of the property. Parking is $5.
Reach Ms. Cheap at 615-259-8282 or mscheap@tennessean.com. Follow her on Facebook at facebook.com/mscheap, and at Tennessean.com/mscheap, and on Twitter @Ms_Cheap, and catch her every Thursday at 11 a.m. on WTVF-Channel 5’s “Talk of the Town.”
Published 4:51 PM EDT Sep 27, 2019
