LUMBERTON, Miss. — Lumberton residents looking to turn their skills and products into small businesses will soon have a low-cost place to sell their work.
The Lumberton Flea Market is set to open Sept. 12 at 100 Industrial Parkway, offering weekend booth spaces starting at $30. Organizers say the market is intended to give vendors an alternative to the cost of opening a traditional storefront while putting a largely unused 150,000-square-foot industrial building back to work.
Market organizer Frances “Nell” Lawrence said she has watched residents struggle to find affordable places to start businesses during her roughly 20 years in Lumberton.
“You couldn’t afford to put a business in because you had to buy the buildings just to open a business here in town,” Lawrence said. “This way they can have a little mini store right here in Lumberton.”
The market will offer indoor and outdoor vendor spaces in several sizes. Vendors can set up on Fridays, and the booth price covers both Saturday and Sunday, according to property owner Kannan Nagarajan.
The market is expected to operate every weekend throughout the year, including holidays.
Nagarajan said many residents already have products or skills that could become businesses but lack the resources to rent commercial space.
“A lot of people in the town have talents. Some do embroidery, some do custom T-shirt, some do leather work, some are very good bakers, but they don’t have the resources to go rent commercial space,” Nagarajan said.
Lawrence said helping those residents was a driving force behind organizing the market.
“I was trying to help my town,” she said. “I was trying to bring money for them in town or allow them to open businesses that they couldn’t normally open.”
Organizers plan to hold a dry run during the weekend of Sept. 4 to identify potential problems with parking, booth placement and other logistics before the official opening.
The flea market is part of a larger effort to reuse the 35-acre property, which also includes a used-car dealership and a construction materials business.
Nagarajan said he purchased the property about six years ago after the industrial building had gone unused for more than a decade. The property previously housed a transformer manufacturing facility operated by Cooper Power Systems, which closed in 2010.
Nagarajan said he has since invested in restoring the property and bringing portions of it back into use.
“I don’t want to be in business for myself. I want the community to grow with me,” Nagarajan said.
Lawrence and Nagarajan hope the property eventually becomes a gathering place beyond the flea market. Future plans include adding food vendors and live music on Friday nights.
“We want it to be a community thing where they look forward to coming,” Lawrence said.
Organizers are seeking vendors, food vendors and musicians. Those interested in participating can contact Lawrence at 601-419-1543 for information about spaces and participation.
For Lawrence, the market’s success will ultimately be measured by what it provides for the community.
“It’s not about making a million dollars,” Lawrence said. “It’s about seeing Lumberton look happy.”
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