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Case Study 004

I broke two of my own market "rules" for this, was it worth it?

Michelle Moore's avatar
Michelle Moore
Jul 30, 2025
∙ Paid

Thank you for joining me here on my series: Case Study. We’re going to dive into the details of recent pop-up markets and events - talk numbers, and learn the ins and outs of running a small business. My hope is that over time, we can learn together what makes an event a success - learn from mistakes, see what works, or what needs adjusting down the road.

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Last weekend I headed on down to Portland ( again ) this time for the Portland Flea. I have done this market before - but not since 2019 ( pre-pandemic! )

Since 2023 I’ve had two hard and fast rules: no outdoor markets that require a tent and no markets that include the word “flea”, “rummage” , or “garage sale”. The first rule is simply because I don’t own a tent anymore and I don’t want to deal with a tent. I will do outdoor markets when a tent is provided, or rentals are available - but dragging around and setting up a tent is exhausting and something I would rather conserve my energy on. The second rule is to avoid events where there will be people looking for a bargain, price haggling or “just browsing”.

So why did I choose to break my own rules and head on down to Portland for the flea?

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