The sun came back out over West Philly on Saturday morning after a rainy night, just in time for anyone looking for some art, maybe some vintage clothes, handmade crafts, plants, or a special trinket at a good price — and a chance to feel part of a community.
The meetup spot: the West Philly Bizarre, in Clark Park, right across from the farmers market. It’s there on many Saturdays from April to November, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Maureen Ndubuisi, an early customer, visits the market for its products and the sense of community. “Just seeing people around and a community feel, I think that does wonders for you,” she said.
Ndubuisi stops by the farmers market across the street every weekend, then swings by the Bizarre when it’s happening. “Some things here are actually cheaper than going into Center City. And it’s also easy access from where I live,” she said, noting she lives just a few blocks away.
This Saturday, she was on the hunt for her candle lady. In the meantime, she picked up three plants.
Some, like Ndubuisi, are regular customers, but the Bizarre also draws plenty of first-time visitors. Jay Smith and Morgan Kane moved to the neighborhood a year ago, and this was their first time checking it out.
“We always drive by it. We usually work on these days, with our retail jobs, so we had a morning off and saw everyone out and about, so we figured we’d wander out and see what’s going on,” said Kane.
They were drawn in by the energy of the crowd. “It was just the crowd of people who looked really happy,” he added. “Everyone seemed really happy about it.”
What is it about this market that makes people smile?
The Bizarre
The West Philly Bizarre is more than just a pop-up market (and it’s not a typo; we’ll explain shortly). It’s a grassroots nonprofit born out of a long-standing tradition of vendors gathering at Clark Park to sell crafts — a tradition that goes back decades.
The Bizarre is committed to promoting economic justice by offering low-cost vendor opportunities to underserved local artists, makers and culture creators in West Philadelphia. It relies on community support, and its organizers recently launched a fundraising campaign to secure the resources needed to sustain their work and expand opportunities for local vendors.
The journey started in 2023. At the time, the Bizarre’s current assistant director, Cade O’Keeffe, was working for Philadelphia’s Department of Parks and Recreation and was assigned to work with organizers to help address community concerns about vendors in Clark Park.
One of those volunteer organizers was Catherine Hofmann, the current director of West Philly Bizarre and a vendor at Clark Park since 2021. Hofmann noted that during COVID, when many people were out of work, more started coming to the park to sell their goods.
It was during that time that they started hearing some of the concerns. “Some of the organizations that helped care for the park, and people who were using the park, started saying things like, ‘Hey, there’s trash,’ or ‘Plants are getting trampled on,’ or ‘There’s too much weight on the tree roots,’ ” Hofmann said.
In April 2023, the city hired O’Keeffe, as a Clark Park engagement assistant, to assist the vendors in formalizing the market. “I was originally hired for a season. That’s nine months. So, they gave me nine months to create a nonprofit,” O’Keeffe said, laughing with Hofmann as they recalled the situation.
They needed to create an organization in order to apply for the city’s group permit to set up in the park. “An individual vendor couldn’t apply for a permit,” O’Keeffe said. “You need to prove that you’re in a community group either by forming a nonprofit or being some kind of entity that demonstrates you have a mission-driven system.”
The vendor organizers initially formed a coalition, but eventually decided to become a nonprofit instead. When it came time to choose a name, inspiration struck during a casual moment. “We were sitting on a park bench in Clark Park, and I was like, ‘You know what really embodies the community is that it’s bizarre,’ ” shared O’Keeffe. The name was also a play on the word “bazaar.”
In February 2024, West Philly Bizarre became an official nonprofit, fiscally sponsored by CultureTrust Greater Philadelphia. When O’Keeffe’s contract with the city ended, they stepped into the role of assistant director.
A space for everyone
The elevation to nonprofit status helped the organization formalize its status with the city, better organize responsibilities like trash collection, and gain access to insurance and fiscal sponsorship. It also improved the group’s dynamic.
“There are material changes that have improved the conditions of our community. For a little bit there, it was kind of cutthroat. People would get there really early in the morning to make sure they got their spot. Original vendors would be pushed out because of new vendors coming in,” O’Keeffe said.
Jen Ayres, a vendor at Clark Park since 2021 and a West Philly neighbor, appreciates the changes. “I feel safer,” she told Billy Penn. “I was able to park right in front today and have a parking pass. I don’t have to worry about squabbles with neighbors for territory because it’s already been assigned. So, I appreciate that.”
“Now that we’re licensed and have insurance and all our liabilities covered, I think it offers a sense of security and stability that wasn’t offered when people were just setting up on their own whim,” said Brendan Cook, a vendor since 2022.
But getting to this point hasn’t been without challenges. “Formalizing, no matter what you do, especially when you’re going from something that’s free to something people have to pay for, there’s always going to be that hurdle,” Ayres said. “The work Cat and Cade are doing is super important, and it’s really unglamorous.”
Now the market has assigned spots, with priority given to those who have been vending in the park the longest.
“For people who said, ‘Hey, I’ve been here all the time. Can I stay? This is the spot I want to be in,’ we’re like, ‘OK, yeah, this is your spot. You’ve been here for years. and we’ll make sure that these assigned spots stay yours, and you can vend as much as you were vending before this market started,’ ” Hofmann said.
That approach reflects the nonprofit’s commitment to protecting longtime local vendors from being pushed out. “It’s hard to say no to people, especially when they’re great vendors or they have a real need, but we have about 50 spots every week and a vendor list with more than 300 vendors on it. Unfortunately, we have to make some tough decisions sometimes, but we definitely want to stay true to our values and our promises,” Hofmann said.
Another key value for the team is keeping the market accessible. “ We have around five free spots per week. Those are given to people that have reached out to us and said, ‘This is inaccessible to me,’ and we try to prioritize folks that have different marginalizations as well. It’s really important to us to provide a space for folks that need this economic justice model to pay their bills,” O’Keeffe said.
The West Philly Bizarre team organized an end-of-year vendor survey after its first year and was proud to see that the market’s demographics remain inclusive. The results showed:
- In 2024, there were 26 Bizarres at Clark Park for upwards of 200 vendors.
- Of those vendors, about 54% self-identified as BIPOC and about 37% as LGBTQ.
- More than 15% of vendors were over the age of 55.
- 57% of vendors make less than $30,000 per year and 96% of vendors make less than $60,000 per year.
- 25% of vendors have a disability.
Launching West Philly Bizarre has also helped vendors reach new audiences. “Having a new name, a branded umbrella, is creating a draw from outside of the neighborhood,” Hofmann said. “Now, people who have never even really heard of Clark Park before are heading this way because they know there’s a vendor market that’s pretty cool.”
It’s also opened up more opportunities for them to vend at other locations across West Philadelphia. For instance, the group organized a retail pop-up throughout May at 40th and Market streets.
At that location, Şeyda Toprak, a vendor since 2024, hosted an ebru (paper marbling) workshop led by her mother, Aysel Toprak. At her West Philly Bizarre booth, Şeyda sells her mother’s artwork.
“I started with only one table, a small six-foot table. I brought some jewelry and keychains, that was the first week,” Şeyda said. “Then, the next week I brought some more things, and I saw people interested in what I sell, so I brought more every single time. And my business grew.” Now, her setup spans five tables.
It’s that mix of determination to stay true to the market’s values and the success vendors have seen in sales that has led to such a positive reception. “I think we’ve been able to reestablish not just that trust, but also a sense of community,” O’Keeffe said.
How you can help
West Philly Bizarre is launching its first crowdfunding campaign to help cover operational costs and provide more free or subsidized tables, ensuring the market can continue to serve as a platform for economic justice.
There’s no minimum donation required. Donors who give $50 or more will receive a limited-edition T-shirt or tote bag, designed by local artists, as a token of appreciation.
Stay up to date on upcoming events and the impact of your support by visiting West Philly Bizarre’s website.
