West Columbia is getting a new flea market, and it’s air conditioned

Treasure hunters and heat haters, rejoice: West Columbia is getting an indoor flea market.

Treasure Island Indoor Flea Market will open its doors at 8 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 29, and every weekend after that, to offer 20,000 square feet of air-conditioned shopper’s paradise as relief from the elements.

Owner Jennifer Jones said shoppers can look forward to more than 80 vendor stations, ranging from yard sale items to baked goods and local produce, crafts, antiques and photography.

Jones got the idea for the market while selling scented candle products and costume jewelry to earn extra cash. Her mother, Frances Pindak, a longtime flea market lover, helped Jones develop the idea and both worked to bring it to fruition. They thought it would be great to have one place where more “upscale” vendors come together with small businesses and other locals on a consistent basis.

And because flea markets attract people from all age groups and interests, Jones said she tried to curate vendors that are as “diverse” as possible, so there’s something for the grandma, the uncle and the 3-year-old child.

“I’m wanting to make it different and fun, a place where everybody wants to come shop,” she said.

Outside the market, Treasure Island will have food trucks, balloon twisting and face painting in the parking lot. Jones said she wants to make it “an event” every weekend, and she plans to do giveaways and raffles in the future.

Treasure Island, beyond being a yard-sale-craft-farmer’s-flea market mash-up, is a dream come true for Jones. She and her mother, along with Jones’ husband and son, have done all the leg work over the past several months to open Treasure Island by fall.

She said she always wanted to own her own business, and so she wants to help others with similar aspirations. The market only charges a flat rate for renting a booth or table, so businesses have a place to reach potential customers without the overhead of a full brick-and-mortar store.

Tamara Brown will be one of the first vendors market-goers will see when they enter the building, and she was the first vendor to sign up for Treasure Island.

Brown started JAK’s Essentials, a line of homemade, all-natural skin care products — “if you wanted to eat it, you could, that’s how natural it is” — about three years ago. She creates, packages, labels and distributes all products herself.

She said she started the line after her three children suffered from “severe” conditions, such as eczema and child acne. She got tired of using ineffective steroid treatments on their skin so she decided to make her own products. But most of her customers are online, so she saw the market as a chance to connect face-to-face with customers and bring them into what she calls the “JAK’s family.”

Her three kids are not only the face of the line, but they help her run the business, too. Her eldest son, 14-year-old Ashod, will sell the products at the market, Brown said, and her two younger children, 5-year-old Jalen and 6-year-old Kay’Leigh, will help box up the products.

“I’m teaching them to run their own business,” Brown said.

Like Jones, Brown works a separate full-time job as a store manager of a retail store. She said she’s looking forward to opening day and the opportunity Treasure Island will give her business, and she is ready to blow customers away with her products.

“The pressure is on for me to turn out something outstanding,” she said.

Jones said she hopes the market will become a community center, a staple for locals and a place for business owners to come together and meet their goals.

“Others can come and pursue their dreams, too,” she said.

Want to go

Treasure Island Indoor Flea Market is located at 2702 Emanuel Church Road in West Columbia. The market’s grand opening will be from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 29, and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 30. It will open those same hours every weekend after that.

This story was originally published September 19, 2018 at 2:37 PM.