Tri Cities Vintage Market to host market this weekend

The Tri Cities Vintage Market will host its first market of the year on Sunday from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Carver Park gym. Seth Moser, the founder of Tri Cities Vintage Market, started the organization in 2024 but he has been collecting and selling secondhand clothing since 2021 when he attended college at the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga. "When we moved up here there wasn't really a vintage clothing market or popup scene for the clothing vendors that were already up here," Moser said. Moser felt there was a need to bring a vintage market to the Tri Cities for vendors in the area and for the community. Since 2024 Moser has hosted more than seven vintage markets. Moser said the majority of customers stem from students that attend colleges in the area but he said there is something for all ages. "We have people 60 to 70 years old that enjoy coming out to our markets and are repeat customers because they enjoy finding comfortable clothes that maybe they wore back in the day," Moser said. "It's more of a nostalgia factor than a cool vintage clothing kinda thing for them." He said not only do the markets help his business grow but it allows growth for other businesses in the area. "On average its anywhere from 1,200 to 1,800 people on any … market Sunday," Moser said. The upcoming market will consist of 27 vendors and a lemonade and hot chocolate stand. Moser said that vendors travel from as far as Alabama, but most of the vendors are from the area. He said while some items may be priced high, majority of items are within the $15 range. "We try to keep a wide range of prices … so that we have a good price point that everyone can shop on any budget and any style," Moser said. Moser emphasized on the importance of shopping second hand to eliminate unnecessary waste. Clothing waste consists of 17 million tons of waste a year in the U.S. according to a study done by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2018. "Since I've been doing this for … 5 or 6 years now … I have been able to see the sheer volume of clothing that is out there," Moser said. "There's really no reason that we should have to go and one spend a lot of money on clothing … and two cause it to be more and more waste in clothing." Moser plans to host two more markets during the Spring but no location has been set. To stay updated on upcoming events, follow Tri Cities Vintage Market on Instagram and Facebook.