BY LOGAN HURSTON
FOR THE OBSERVER
AUBURN — Vintage clothing is a rising trend among young people, and a local company, Heavy Heart Vintage, on March 26 announced it would host a vintage market at Auburn University. The Auburn Vintage Market took place on April 4 in the heart of campus, Haley Concourse, and featured more than 25 vendors from across Alabama and the South. It was the first event in what was supposed to be a reoccurring market for the Auburn community.
Vendors began setting up at 6 a.m., and the market officially started at 10 a.m. It was supposed to last until 4 p.m., but at 10:30 a.m., vendors were told by representatives of Auburn University that they would have to shut down the market and clear their stuff out by 11:15 a.m.
Though most of the vendors were local, some of the vendors drove for hours to sell their inventory, losing days full of work and gas. Most vendors were contacted via email or direct messages by the account asking if they were interested in participating in the market for a fee between $100 and $300. Matt Railey of RaileyVintageFinds drove down from Huntsville and paid for a hotel for the night. Railey, along with many of the vendors, were expecting record sales.
“I was told by Auburn University representatives that it had to be shut down because it didn’t meet safety expectations and wasn’t fully approved by the university,” said Eli Huston, an AU student who owns New Rags Apparel Co. and was one of the vendors at the market. “I was told by the coordinator of the market that everything was approved, and I believe him. There seemed to be some miscommunication by Auburn University staff and the market coordinator. The market coordinator is a really good guy that wanted the best for everyone, so I am sad it couldn’t work out.”
Via social media, Auburn Vintage Market offered an explanation for the market’s abrupt closure.
“To explain for what happened yesterday… We did get approved by the school to do that market on campus,” read an Instagram post. “We had a lady who was in the events department who was filling in the spot for the lady who is usually there, and the lady that we had been working with was telling all this was set and ready to happen. We were told we were all clear to come on Friday, and that all the departments had approved the event, and we filled out all the things that they had told us to do to have a market. So, sadly because of disorganization on the department, we paid the price. In the end we still did our job… The vendors were all reimbursed… Thank you to everyone who was there to support us. We as a local business support the vendors that were there but also respect the university’s decision. Moving forward we would like to work with the university and make a legitimate market happen in the future.”
For more information on future Auburn vintage markets, follow @auburnvintagemarket on Instagram.