Pittsburgh Summer Event Opportunities

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For those just getting in to the open air markets for extra cash and experimentation of retailing products, or are fully fledged seasonal caravans of scaled product lines and banking wholesale accounts; between May and December you’re getting busy or booked.

Pittsburgh has seen a surge of outdoor markets expand and new venues come to life.

PGHretail has been blessed enough with the opportunity to assist in developing markets and connecting commerce players: consumers + makers.  Cedar Arts Market began as an assistance to the flea market that had been slowly picking back up through volunteer organization in the Allegheny Commons East Park.

Through CAM, we joined the Deutschtown Music Festival for their annual July show full of free music provided by 150+ bands, street vendors, beer gardens, and community engagement for the last two years in the same park.  Now in their fourth year, the festival organizers are calling all artists to join them this year.

http://deutschtownmusicfestival.org/vendor-booth-request/

Last August, CAM sponsored the Pittsburgh VegFest in their first-ever event in Allegheny Commons. With their loyal and eager audience, the all-vegan experience has expanded with twice as many vendors and is also in July for 2016. Vendor spaces are strictly for vegan friendly products and

https://pittsburghvegfest.org/vegfest-2016/

Having moved to organizing a new workshop series after the 2015 CAM outdoor market season closed, PGHretail helped to connect I Made It! Market to the Northside at the new Nova Place (Allegheny Center).  With their partnership, the annual IMI! for the Holidays was held for the first time on the Northside. The breadth of artists that Carrie Nardini, owner and organizer, works with is inspiring and central to how IMI! (and Neighborhood Flea) is able to expand and be part of almost every neighborhood in Pittsburgh.

New markets for IMI! this year are: Wholey’s on the weekends, Open Streets,  and Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank Feed More Festival.

http://imadeitmarket.com/events/

Specific to the Northside and not a regular selling opportunity; the Block Party Pgh hosts a once of month outdoor block party! The organizers are looking for hyper-local artists and crafters interested in holding a table with kids and/or adult art and/or craft projects.  These interactions can be viewed as practice talking about your art, using member participation to build your art, or providing a canvas for public art for the community.

http://blockpartypgh.com/

Interested artists can contact: ben@blockpartypgh.com

If you’ve made it through to this sentence, you may have ascertained that Cedar Arts Market has been placed on hold for 2016 as we make room to work on other projects and allow our partners to expand on the collective networks built to support communities, in common interest and on common ground.

Stay tuned for the next announcement!

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Crowdfunding For Free Skill Sharing Events

As of today, we need just $96 more dollars…

to unlock our matching funds and reach our ultimate goal. Each donation, no matter how large or small, will receive an emailed report on all events in the series that you get whether you can attend the workshop(s) or not. Support this programming by donating a small investment of your own at:
https://www.ioby.org/project/cam-growing-micro-entrepreneurs


NEW! CAM: Growing Micro-Entrepreneurs
Register for the first workshop here: http://goo.gl/forms/wuCWnFRlMG

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Pittsburgh Retail worked with community groups on the Northside of Pittsburgh to bring another year of Cedar Arts Market to Allegheny Commons East Park.  With the help of a supporting grant we were able to sponsor and introduce the first Pittsburgh VegFest this past August.

When offered the opportunity to raise funds for an extension of the program, it was a great time to begin a different series of events that offered skill-sharing for organization and fundamental bookkeeping by using the best available mobile and tech applications out there.

Micro-entrepreneurs aren’t a new thing, what is different though, is the latest technology.  Now more than ever are individuals easily able to make a quick investment with rewarding outcomes.  Software companies are releasing new partnerships daily that overlap functions to streamline user access, time, and return value on often free programs.

That is where CAM’s new series, Growing Micro-Entrepreneurs, is focusing on and highlighting specific applications, benefits, and tips to streamline the back-end of your retail business.  Hey Baby! Boutique owner, Karyn Pope, who creates, markets, and sells her wares throughout Western Pennsylvania has set up a system based on her knowledge and past experience as an accountant.

These workshops are open and free to the public, are intended for beginners and seasoned retailers.  If you are new to, or interested in learning more about, mobile POS systems,  preparing business taxes, utilizing applications and updated features of favorite office tools like, Google and Excel, then this workshop series is for you.

New Allegheny Market House in the North Side Opens 11/21/13

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Visit the New Allegheny Market House in the North Side this holiday for your gift shopping!  Located in a the Historic Deutschtown at 503 E. Ohio St.  and open Thursday 11A – 6P, Friday 11A – 7P, and Saturday 11A – 6P.   A unique shopping experience featuring local North Side artists, artisans, and makers.  Come out and support your local economy while exploring an up and coming shopping district!

Second Saturdays in Brighton Heights

In addition to the California Markets, our neighbor Emmanuel Christian Church, is also hosting second Saturday Flea Markets right down the road from us!  Here’s more information about their event, lots to do while in Brighton Heights on Second Saturdays!!!  So, hit up the Junk in the Trunk Sales early then come on down to the California Markets for artisanal goods,  great food, and community activities!

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Thanks for the write up Northside Chronicle!

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Check out our write up with Kelsey Shea, the editor of The Northside Chronicle, about the California Markets and its’ mission for the Brighton Heights’ business corridor.

Read the article here.