Indie Flea returns to St. Pete on Sunday with over 200 vendors
/Indie Flea will include more than 200 vendors, making it the largest Indie Flea to date, and will once again feature plentiful food and live music to keep shoppers well fed and entertained | Photo by Becky Rudolf
The arrival of cooler autumn weather heralds the return of Indie Flea, a series of festive indoor/outdoor flea markets, now in its 11th year, to St. Petersburg.
Indie Flea will set up shop at The Factory, 2606 Fairfield Avenue South, on Sunday, November 5th, from noon to 4 p.m., for the first market of its 2023-24 season.
According to Jamie O’Berry, Indie Flea’s brand and marketing manager, the market will include more than 200 vendors, making it the largest Indie Flea to date, and will once again feature plentiful food and live music to keep shoppers well fed and entertained.
“It’s a craft fair/flea market that focuses on small businesses,” O’Berry said in an interview with St. Pete Rising. “Basically, it will have everything you could wear or put in your home, and we want to find the best vendors.”
Indie Flea features the best in local handmade goods, vintage housewares, decor, vintage clothing, plants, collectables, food, drinks, music, art, and so much more! | Photo by Becky Rudolf
Some of those vendors include Nah Dogs, which will be serving its Yo Soy Dog, the winner of an award from PETA, and Gabby Bakes will be back for the first time since opening her brick-and-mortar store in Tampa. Catalyst Creamery, meanwhile, will provide delicious vegan snacking cheeses, and Cipolla Rossa Pizza will be there with a wood-fired pizza oven. Vegan and gluten-free pizza options will be available.
Only Child Coffee, a mobile coffee vendor, will be appearing at Indie Flea for the first time. Bandit Coffee will also be there and will serve breakfast tacos. Other food vendors include St. Pete Ferments, which will offer a special menu of fermented pickle and veggie plates and artisanal vegan sandwiches, and Dude Pancakes, which bills itself as a pancake sandwich food truck.
“We have the most food vendors we’ve ever had,” O’Berry said, “and a lot of vegan options. We’ll have a little food court of 10-20 vendors.”
Another returning vendor this year is Botany Cats, a Lakeland-based organization that operates a mobile cat adoption service and sells cat-friendly, non-toxic plants.
“We’re really excited to have them back,” O’Berry said.
Daddy Kool Records will provide music for the event, with DJs spinning everything from post-punk and 1990s hip-hop to disco, glam, Brit pop, and more | Photo by Becky Rudolf
The location at The Factory St. Pete is a new one for Indie Flea, which in the past has held markets near 18th Street and Central Avenue in St. Pete, under Interstate 275. O’Berry said the new location will allow Indie Flea to offer both indoor and outdoor space for shoppers and vendors.
According to the Indie Flea Instagram page, Sunday’s market will feature “the best in local handmade goods, vintage housewares, decor, vintage clothing, plants, collectables, food, drinks, music, art, and so much more!”
Daddy Kool Records will provide music for the event, with DJs such as local favorite Jayda Abello spinning everything from post-punk and 1990s hip-hop to disco, glam, Brit pop, and more.
Admission to Indie Flea is free, and it’s billed as a family-friendly event. If you can’t make it to Sunday’s Indie Flea, don’t worry: The market will be back on the first Sunday of every month until the return of summer weather: December 3rd, January 7th, February 4th, March 3rd, and April 7th.
Another returning vendor this year is Botany Cats, a Lakeland-based organization that operates a mobile cat adoption service and sells cat-friendly, non-toxic plants | Photo by Becky Rudolf
Indie Flea will also be at 1920 East 7th Avenue in Ybor City on the second Sunday of each month from November to April.
According to O’Berry, Indie Flea is worth a return visit, on either side of the bay, because of the rotating cast of vendors.
“We have about 100 vendors that return every month, and then the other 100 are getting their feet wet and trying it out. Every time you come, you’re going to see a lot of new things.”
Indie Flea is worth a return visit every month because of the rotating cast of vendors. Around half of the 200 vendors will rotate month to month | Photo by Becky Rudolf
New this year is “Tales From the Flea,” which isn’t a vendor, per se, but rather an onsite podcast production that will record guests’ stories. The new podcast is hosted by Max Blowers, who also hosts the “Under the Influencer” podcast which interviewed the owners of St. Pete Rising in June.
“Anyone at Indie Flea can go visit Max,” O’Berry said. “He’ll ask some questions and you can tell a story and get a chance to be on his podcast that he’s going to put out weekly.”
For more information and updates, follow Indie Flea on Facebook and Instagram.
