6 Things Every Flea Market Shopper Should Know

Springtime in Minnesota isn’t just about everything going from brown to green and finally getting rid of that nasty white stuff known as “snow”. Springtime in Minnesota means that the flea market/junk show season has finally arrived!

I have been wanting to go to one particular junk show that comes to Minnesota for the last few years. Last weekend I was finally able to attend the Junk Bonanza with my mom and sister. We slipped on our comfy footwear, loaded up the kids and our cash, and hit the show for a fun mom’s day off!

It was my first big junk show, and boy did I learn a lot about the fine art of flea market/junk show shopping.

If you want to nab the best finds, shop early.

You know what they say, the early bird gets the worm. Especially when you are attending a highly popular show. The more time passes, the more picked over the selection will get.

If you hate crowds, shop late.

When we arrived at the Junk Bonanza, I was a tad overwhelmed with how large the crowd was. It almost made it impossible to shop. There were so many vendors that the aisles weren’t very wide, we ran into quite a few “traffic jams” where we just had to stop and wait for the crowd to funnel through.

Be prepared to pay full price if you’re shopping early.

Vendors aren’t as willing to wheel and deal if you’re shopping during the first few days/hours of a sale. They would rather take their chances on a full price buyer coming along than to sell it for a discount right away. You might get lucky and find someone willing to work with you, but the chances are pretty slim.

Score the best deals if you’re shopping late.

Vendors are more willing to give you a deal towards the end of a sale. Most times they would much rather sell off their stuff, even at a discount, than to have to load it back up themselves.

If you find something you love, buy it now.

As I was purchasing my vintage plate that said, “It’s my house and I’ll do as I darn please.” the vendor mentioned how lucky I was that I snagged it. Multiple people had taken photos of it and mentioned that they were going to “stop by later to buy it”. Then I came along and nabbed it. With the unique nature of antiques, if you want something you better go ahead and buy it because “later” might never come.

Bring cash.

Depending on the sale that you’re attending, vendors may or may not have the option to pay by card. Some might also charge a processing fee if you’re paying by card. Come with a wad of cash and save yourself from either disappointment when you have to leave behind your newly found treasure or paying extra fees.

It was so nice taking a “day off” from the daily grind of being moms and dance studio owners. It’s hard for us to drop everything to take some time for ourselves away from the studio, especially when our phones are constantly blowing up with emails and notifications from dance parents. I’m glad that we set aside the day to get away from the studio and just enjoy our time as a family. And we only “talked shop” for like, 10 minutes 😉