Whether you’re looking for collectible Hot Wheels still in their original packaging, used and new power tools, a missing piece of Royal Albert china, vintage concert posters, costume jewellery, a signed piece of Canadian art or even a naked Kewpie doll, chances are that you might be able to find it at the Vancouver Flea Market. Standing the test of time, Vancouver’s iconic flea market remains relevant and necessary as the city’s landscape for secondhand markets continues to evolve and change.

Over the last few years, it has become increasingly difficult for secondhand, and especially antique dealers, to find places to sell their wares. Even though there’s been a surge in vintage and retro shows, these markets attract a younger generation with a very specific aesthetic. As wonderful as it is to welcome this savvy crop of new vendors and shoppers to the world of resale, old school dealers and collectors have been feeling the pinch as their items don’t quite fit the look and feel of these new markets.

Yet the demand remains as treasure hunters are still looking for specific collectibles, memorabilia, vintage dolls, china, jewellery, silver, art, antiquities and antique furniture. As a result, many antique dealers have found a home at the Vancouver Flea Market. Open every weekend, the flea market attracts over 1000 shoppers on a daily basis. The space is vast with over 40,000 square feet for 360 vendor tables and booths.

Vendors at the regular flea market vary, selling just about everything you can imagine and initially only a few antique dealers would rent space, but then that began to change. “We found that there was a need and now have about 60 regular guys on the weekend selling antiques,” says Building Manager Fabian Rumeo. As interest grew, Rumeo started offering regular antique shows about 15 years ago, and dealers can now get a table for only $45. “We initially held the antique shows in the main part of the flea market,” says Rumeo. Nine years ago, they decided to create a separate room for the antique shows and now offer them four times a year. According to Rumeo, “This works out better as there is more of a divide, but people can still go back and forth between the two rooms.”

The separate room is rustic and compact, with space for only 50 tables. “The best thing,” says Rumeo, “is that even though there’s not a lot of quantity, there’s amazing quality from jewellery to art.” Dealers at the antique shows are also an eclectic group, selling everything from oil paintings, Native art, ephemera, antique weapons and Tiffany brooches to military, farmhouse and advertising collectibles. According to Rumeo, “There’s always something that magically appears and one lucky person finds it.”

Reprinted with permission from Canadian Antiques & Vintage magazine. For subscription information to Canada’s only national antiques and vintage publication, please call toll-free 1.866.333.3397