Today, we’d like to introduce you to Angie Gavin.
Hi Angie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Established in 2016, The Baltimore Vintage Expo is a highly curated one-day-only, bi-annual event celebrating the thriving community of exclusively vintage & antique sellers in & around the MD/DC/VA/PA areas.
You can find reputable dealers selling quality vintage clothing for all genders, antiques, collectibles, jewelry, decor & furniture. THE BVE HAPPENS BI-ANNUALLY AT UNION BREWERY, UTILIZING THEIR SPACIOUS TAP ROOM AND AUXILIARY EVENT ROOM, AND SPILLS OUT INTO THEIR OUTDOOR BEER GARDEN.
The event is free to the public from 11 am-5 pm, but you can purchase early bird tickets for early access from 9 am-11 am!
The Baltimore Vintage Expo was the brainchild of Baltimore vintage retail shop owners Angie & Kate of Milk & Ice Vintage and Mo of Bottle of Bread. In 2015, when we began brainstorming ideas for this event, there were no other vintage-only events in Baltimore. While we love maker markets, we wanted an event that focused on the community around collectors and vendors who specialize in selling antiques and vintage. In the last 8 years, the BVE has grown into a highly curated one-day-only showcase celebrating the thriving community of exclusively vintage & antique sellers in Baltimore and beyond.
This event is now hosted by Angie & Kate, but Mo is still involved as a beloved friend of the event and participates, representing her beautiful vintage retail shop, Bottle of Bread.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Our current event has been hosted at Union Craft Brewery for about six years, but we began at a smaller location, the now defunct Ideal Theatre in Hampden, which we quickly out-grew after two years of hosting. Union Craft Brewing is a huge location and allowed us to nearly triple the number of dealers we can showcase, so it’s been a great fit.
Struggles still arise, though, as with any large event. Logistics regarding layout and placement are always difficult. Union Brewery is essentially a giant warehouse, so transforming it from a retail brewery operation into a marketplace for 50+ dealers is always challenging.
Organizing communication between our vendors and making sure they feel seen, heard, and represented is also important to us because, without them, the event would not be so special.
As the event has evolved and the community of vintage dealers in our area has grown (during and post-pandemic, the number of folks deciding to pivot their hobbies of buying and selling vintage into legit small businesses have skyrocketed), we have had to re-think our mission and make sure this event is inclusive to a wider variety of vintage dealers and perspectives.
Returning and new vendors apply to participate in the Baltimore Vintage Expo, and our least favorite part of the selection process is having to deny dealers or put them on a waitlist because there are a limited number of spaces and more than double the number of applicants.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
One of the things that we believe sets our event apart from other markets or pop-up events in Baltimore and beyond is that we showcase a wide variety of dealers selling some truly incredible collectibles. All of our dealers, past and present, have a true passion for vintage and are dedicated to living and breathing all things vintage (whether this focus is on the sustainability of vintage, the style, or the sheer rarity aspect of it).
We host vendors with retail businesses and those who only do markets or have private studios or showrooms. We also have dealers who sell such specialized pieces that are only available online or so exclusive that without presenting at the BVE, the general public would never get a chance to see or purchase their special pieces.
We have dealers who specialize in antique and vintage textiles, clothing for all genders, jewelry, fine art & collectibles, and furniture & housewares. We are proud of the reach we’ve been able to make over the years and now have many vendors traveling from out of state to sell at the BVE. Patrons are getting a truly unique experience and can shop for incredible collections from reputable dealers in one event that they’d never have a chance to know otherwise.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
Baltimore is best. We love it. We are two local business owners who live and raise our families here, so we’re deeply invested in this city. We are volunteers in a community & economic development organization in the area where we live and where our shop resides (shout out to Hamilton Lauraville Mainstreet Association!)
We care deeply about sharing what a rich, creative community we have here in Baltimore, as well as the vintage community as a whole! Baltimore is a rare city where artists can still afford to live and do their art. We love hosting an event with out-of-town participants (whether vendors at the BVE or patrons) because we hear things like, “Everyone here is SO FRIENDLY!!!!”. We do think that, in some ways, Baltimore is a secretly incredible city. We hide in the wings, and our beauty is often overshadowed by news reports or drama on TV, but when you come here and experience what the creatives and communities are doing, there’s a lot of love.
We are proud to host this event in Baltimore. Why should NYC and LA have all the fun? Come to Baltimore. We don’t have time for the pretension of other cities.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.baltimorevintageexpo.com/
- Instagram: @baltimorevintageexpo
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/1373243716723264
- Other: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/baltimore-vintage-expo-may-19-2024-early-bird-tickets-tickets-862140123317
Angie (L) & Kate (R) by Micah E. Wood in our Lauraville shop.
Image Credits
First image is Angie (L) & Kate (R) by Micah E. Wood in our Lauraville shop.
The rest are by photographer Jill Fannon at the Spring 2023 BVE
Additionally, heres a link to a piece BMORE ART did in 2021 with photos by E Brady Robinson : https://bmoreart.com/2021/11/
