It’s big. And busy. About 800 vendors can fit into the meet, which takes up 19 of the 33 acres. Huge parking lots accommodate the 5,000 to 10,000 people who come in through 12 different entrances over the three days it is open every week, Fridays through Sundays.
Everything one could possibly want can be bought at the swap meet: clothing, cars, beds, comic books, appliances, shoes, handbags, knick-knacks, dishes, art, tools, swords, phones — the list goes on. Some vendors have permanent buildings on the lot — those start at $440 a month. That can, at times, make it seem more like a mall than a grassroots swap meet. But most load and unload every weekend, plunking down $15 for a basic space for each session, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
The entertainment isn’t limited to shopping. There are movies and rides for children. A climbing wall. Live music. Dancing. And quite possibly the best people watching in the state.
“We’re trying to keep a fresh atmosphere so that people don’t get bored,” says Linda Fiore. “People don’t want to see the same thing every week; we constantly try to attract new sellers.”
Fiore and her family hang on to the early lessons they learned about running a business.
“I’ve learned what it’s like to put your heart into something, and about attention and pride in work and how important it is to have the feeling of belonging to something,” says Ken Fiore.
“That means a lot.”
