The Hester Street Fair: Come for the Food, Stay for the Shopping

Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for The Goods by Vox. You can also see what we’re up to by signing up here.

It's not like NYC is suffering from a shortage of outdoor markets, but the Hester Street Fair was packed Saturday afternoon nonetheless. The fair, which opened this weekend in the park at Hester and Essex, has garnered quite a bit of press for food booths from places like Sigmund Pretzel Shop, Mile End, and Luke's Lobster. But the non-edible browsing options were just as good.

The fair is smaller than the Brooklyn Flea, but the retail mix feels similar, if slightly higher-end. One stand was operated by a few friends, all avid shoppers, who had come to the fair to clean out closets stuffed with Alexander Wang, Isabel Marant, and Chloe. Most of the items on their racks were around $100, though we did try on a Marant top for $35. Lower East Side boutique Gargyle and hip shoe brand Devotte also kept the well-dressed crowd busy, while several vintage booths helped balance out the average price point.

Like all good street markets, the fair included jewelry designers (we especially liked Jessica DeCarlo's bamboo-inspired pieces) and antique vendors. It also had a few wild cards, like a booth operated by artist Stacy Ascibelli, who usually sells her work out of the front of East Village shop Elsa. Along with sweet printed skirts for $75 and $50 and a few $300 handmade leather bags, she was selling chain-mail headpieces.

Fair founders Adam Zeller, Ron Castellano, MTV talking head Suchin Pak, and her brother Suyhun Pak are meticulous about finding the perfect blend of vendors. And since the fair runs every Saturday and Sunday through December, we're expecting it to change and grow from week to week. Want to sell your own wares to a crowd of lobster-loving hipsters? They're still taking applications.
· Hester Street Fair [Official Site]
· RackedWire: Get Ready for the Hester Street Fair [Racked NY]
· Heads Up, Thrifters: The Hester Street Fair Debuts This Saturday [Refinery29]