Birmingham Vintage Fair draws huge crowds

• Mar. 7 by Katie Fox (2)

Birmingham shoppers attending the Vintage Fair at the Custard Factory yesterday were met with a colossal queue, as record numbers turned out for the event.

The queue stretched right around the complex and out onto the streets of Digbeth, as most eager bargain-hunters waited almost an hour to gain access to the event held in The Old Library.

One of the organisers manning the entrance desk said of the amount of people queuing, ‘it’s mad, it’s been so crazy’. Inside, the fair was much the same, with shoppers barely able to move due to the amount of people crammed inside.

One fair-goer said:

‘The fair was good, however it would have been better if there were time intervals for a certain amount of people to be let in, rather than queuing in the cold.

The amount of people that were in there once you’d paid was also a bit bad, I just wanted to get out it was so packed and I couldn’t have a proper rummage!’

Unexpected numbers of people also meant that some resources ran out.

Many members of the public complained that the travelling ‘tea boutique’, which accompanies the fair, ran out of their famous cupcakes.

Regarding yesterday’s fair, one of the organisers said:

‘There are talks of expanding it within The Custard Factory so we can have more stalls and more room.’

Success

The fair ran from 12pm to 5pm and held numerous stalls selling vintage and recycled clothes, accessories and more but despite the big turnout, there were still plenty of items left to purchase right up until the end of the day.

The large numbers attending the fair suggest an increasing public interest in vintage, recycled and ethical fashion.

Buying into these concepts means that the demand for the production of new clothes is reduced; this in turn benefits the environment.

Confirmation for future fairs

An organiser confirmed that the fair will return to Birmingham on June 12 and that event will continue to run four times a year.