The newly-opened I-75 Flea Market on Connection Drive in Catoosa County, Ga., near the state line at the East Ridge exit occupies the building most recently used as the Kinder Furniture store.When Wade Fowler took over his parents' furniture store, he knew he wanted to make changes.
Only after a few months of research did he realize the biggest change would be trading in aisles of furniture for booths in a flea market.
Fowler converted the old Kinder's Furniture to Four Day Furniture when his parents retired and constructed some of the extra space into a flea market.
The former furniture mall is one of several retail centers in the Chattanooga area recycled into new uses including flea markets.
The I-75 Flea Market opened about a month ago. Fowler focuses on security, cleanliness and advertising and said his strategy has been successful, drawing 8,000 to 10,000 shoppers each weekend.
"Everybody's looking for a bargain, looking for a value, and I think that's the reason that it's taken off," he said.
The I-75 Flea Market, near the East Ridge exit at 400 Direct Connection Drive, houses about 500 vendor booths with 70,000 square feet of room in which to expand. Each weekend since the market opened more vendors have signed up, and Fowler hopes it will be full in the next few months.
A large number of those vendors are casual sellers, paying between $10 and $50 a weekend depending on booth location to turn a quick buck after cleaning out the garage, but many other vendors' livelihoods depend on the market.
"You'd be amazed at how many people I have in there that that's what they do for a living," he said. "I have a lot of vendors coming from all over the place."
Vendors have traveled from as far away as Sweetwater, Tenn., Crossville, Tenn., and parts of Alabama for access to potential customers hopping off I-75.
Ginger Long, manager of the smaller East Ridge Flea Market at nearby 6725 Ringgold Road, said vendors come to where there are customers.
"They can't go out and start a business on their own, so we pull the traffic," she said. "It's up to them to sell."
Long's flea market, which was formerly a big-box shopping center, houses 250 booths and draws about 5,000 people a weekend. She said the opening of the I-75 Flea Market has helped business - people who pull off the interstate to check out one flea market are likely to stop at another.
Adam Ryan is benefiting from flea market traffic. He and his friend, Jaden Maxwell, started up Chattanooga Magic Factory, an I-75 Flea Market-based magic trick and gag gift shop, to pocket some extra money while increasing interest in their hobby.
"Say we just had a magic shop in its own little building - it's only going to get people who think they're interested in magic. At a flea market, there are so many people just walking by," Ryan said. "It's just a great way to make some extra money."
Ryan sees about $700 of revenue each weekend, he said - not bad for having fun doing tricks and talking to people from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
"That's why we do it. You meet a lot of neat people and you have fun performing," he said.
Ronnie Wood, who sells repaired fishing reels and the odd bulk-purchase item, said he makes about as much money at the market as he does on an average day of work.
Talking to other vendors ensures the weekends are interesting. He said he learns a lot - old McDonald's toys are more valuable if they're in their original packaging, but just having the packaging alongside the toy can increase value - and always has a good time.
"Other than the vending machine running out of diet sodas, it was great," Wood said. "But that's a good sign, because when the Coke machine runs out, that means people are walking around and buying stuff."