Fred’s Bar & Grill, the classic staple in LSU nightlife and student traditions, introduced a new concept Sunday with its first ever vintage clothes and arts market sponsored by Off-Campus Vintage Market.
Locally sourced vendors, pounds of crawfish and warm weather made this the perfect event for an afternoon of students browsing racks and showing off their new-but-old purchases.
The event opened at 2 p.m. with a long line of excited shoppers. Once inside the bar, the usual crowd was replaced by tents, clothing racks, shoes and even a refurbished bus filled with streetwear. By 3 p.m. the crawfish boil began, filling the space with an aroma perfect for the early spring market.
The customer base at Sunday’s event was mostly students, which meant the vendors had to come prepared. Bailey Dabdoub, owner of The Gilded Garden Vintage, said less than half of her inventory was on display and that she brought things specifically for what college students like.
“Graphic tees do really well with students,” Dabdoub said, “and I brought some linen and skirts to cater to the sorority crowd.”
Each vendor’s unique set-up reflected their personal style. Dabdoub said she acquired most of her clothes through thrifting or, in her words, “treasure hunting.” She said she just picks out pieces she likes with no particular reason.
One tent filled from corner to corner in purple and gold had a huge selection of vintage tiger apparel, from shirts celebrating the 2000 men’s baseball championship team to hats featuring the old LSU logo. Seth Davis, owner of Mecha Vintage, said he purchased a large chunk of the collection from a friend in the vintage space four months ago.
One customer, Maddie Peck, a junior studying kinesiology from New Orleans, bought two jackets from Davis. One was $60 and the other was $40, which were both prices she was very pleased with since she said other sellers would try to mark them higher.
Davis said he’s fair and welcomes negotiations with customers.
“I know what I’ve spent on everything in here. I know the wiggle room and then I know what they’re worth,” he said, “If they want to haggle, great. I’d rather move it than have it sit $5 over.”
Negotiation was a common practice at Sunday’s market. At Transit, a vintage streetwear pop-up set up inside an old Nova Bus, customers could negotiate over pieces with the owner, 17-year-old Valen Purvis.
One customer, holding two graphic T–shirts, asked if he could do both for $60 and a beer. Purvis politely declined but offered a coin flip deal instead, something he said he had been doing all afternoon. With heads for $75 and tails for $60, the coin landed on tails and the customer walked away happy with his purchase.
Purvis paid $2,500 for the unusual storefront location, which his family discovered for sale on the side of the street while on vacation. From the second he checked it out, he said he could envision a mobile store carrying streetwear. Although he’s traveled to Houston for similar events, this was his first weekend in Baton Rouge, with his dad driving.
Although most vendors stayed tucked inside their own tents, the vintage and arts scene in Louisiana is anything but isolated. Whether from previous markets, social media or word of mouth, most vendors are friendly with one another and know everyone within the space.
“When I first got started, I did a lot of research and contacted a lot of people on the scene,” said Purvis. “I was a rookie. I’m so glad they accepted me, and I just learned a lot from them.”
Davis also said his collection wouldn’t be nearly as good if it weren’t for the connections and community he has built in the space.
“A lot of these people I consider great friends,” Davis said. “The community is small, but once you’re in, you’re in.”
The sense of community extended beyond the tents. For LSU students, the event was a fun way to spend a Sunday and meet up with friends. Greta Barrett, a student celebrating her 21st birthday, said she saw the event on Instagram and knew that’s how she wanted to spend her day. She said it was a successful afternoon after buying a pair of pinstripe pants.
“I’ve been looking for pinstripe pants for a while, and when I tried them on, they fit perfectly, so I thought it was a sign,” Barrett said. “They were a birthday gift to myself.”
The event proved to be the perfect event for student entrepreneurs, too, including LSU freshman Anna Claire Diaz, who started her pin-making business, Just Pin It, after brainstorming ways to make money on campus. Diaz, who signed up for the market last minute, said that though she normally sells pins in Free Speech Alley on campus, this environment provided a way to expand.
She started out hanging a scarf from a hanger with a handful of pins. Now, she has a tent and a full setup. With creativity from vendors like Diaz, the space created a unique opportunity at the market for customers to receive a fully customizable product that represents them.
The mix of seasoned vintage sellers, student entrepreneurs and first-time shoppers created a special, uncommon atmosphere at Fred’s. The event proved to be more than just a Sunday afternoon crawfish boil, it became a center for business owners and vintage fanatics to bond, barter and share their finds.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source lsureveille.com ’
