San Jose pop-up vintage market satisfies an eager audience

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Maida Suta

Patrons explore the evening Vintage Market.

As music blasted through the venue, booths at the Pop-Up San Jose Vintage Market brought in hundreds of customers, boasting a variety of vintage products.

Hosted by the San Jose Flea Market, the market included over 40 vendors each day over during April 16 and 17.

“I was honestly just so excited to hear the news that they were coming back,” said Lia Kim, customer from Santa Cruz. “I attended the first event a few months ago, and I was ecstatic to see that I could look through some awesome vintage stuff even with the pandemic going on.”

Customers explored the stalls that sold plants, clothes and toys. A DJ played music and food trucks served Mexican and Japanese food, among other cuisines.

“They set the bar high because of how much fun it was,” said Michael McBride, co-owner of the store Fern and Lily. “Everyone was super friendly there and we met a lot of great people.”

The founder of Pop-Up San Jose Dre Lucero said he was equally excited.

“It’s been amazing,” Lucero said. “The vendors love it, the people love it (and) it’s something new for San Jose.”

Despite the pandemic, Lucero said that the event exceeded his expectations.

“I was worried no one would show up,” said Lucero. “So just the excitement of the community and everybody that you see here is just way beyond what I could have ever expected.”

Lucero said he plans to continue collaborating with the San Jose Flea Market and anticipates another pop-up vintage market in the future.

“We’re here for the community and we want to give something back to the city of San Jose and the South Bay Area,” said Lucero. “With the support of the community, that’s why we’re here and that’s why with the success that we have, we want to continue from.”