Vancouver Etsy Co returns to Robson Square for 3rd year

Vancouver Etsy Co will host its Fall Pop-Up Market at the Robson Square Ice Rink in downtown Vancouver on Sept. 27 from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm. 

The free event will feature over 90 vendors showcasing handmade goods from local artisans, designers, and creatives. Items for sale include jewelry, home decor, ceramics, clothing, food and beverages, among other items. 

This year’s event will also feature paid workshops on candle-making, designing tote bags, and more with four vendors: Eunoia Naturale, Freshly Fruity, Ollie & Co., and Radish Designs. Registration is required for the workshops. 

“We’ve always wanted to do workshops,” market co-organizer Valerie Braacx says, adding the workshops offer vendors an opportunity to teach and highlight their services along with marketing their product. 

Some other vendors at the market include BAK’D Cookies, Slothee Coffee, SIND STUDIO, LA Designs, Canvas Candle Company, Mayer Ceramics, Gracias Clothing, and more. 

After a brief hiatus following the COVID-19 pandemic, the market returned to Robson Square in 2023 and is now entering its third year.

Braacx and co-organizer Anita Chow met as vendors at an Etsy market in 2016 and became friends. Since then, both have carried on the tradition of organizing a market annually as a way to mark the new year.

“I love reminiscing over how we became friends because that’s how I see a lot of friendships begin as vendors,” Braacx says.

Braacx, who is a scarf vendor herself, says she won’t be selling products at the event because she’s a distributor for the market and wants to create an opportunity for new and growing vendors to expand their business and connect with other distributors. 

This year’s market will also feature a “too cute” selection of vendors. Braacx says the genre is something her and Chow experimented with earlier this year by featuring a range of cute aesthetic and colourful merchandise in a separate section. 

“It was definitely a different demographic — a younger demographic of people who really appreciate that type of art.”

Braacx says the market will also include an illustrated live photo booth in partnership with Dream Collective, a gift shop in Vancouver. 

“Our scope of jewelry is so wide from beautiful, beaded jewelry by Lily Designs, to classic, timeless, simple pieces by Kaju,” she says. 

The pop up will also feature nine “mini-makers,” who are vendors under the age of 16, selling their creations at the market. 

“We just like to encourage entrepreneurship from an early age. There is a young man from the Sunshine Coast who crochets stuffies, and they are so great.”

There will also be a pet-friendly corner at the market with pet yogurt. Braacx says the market offers an opportunity for people to not only attend and shop for crafts but also participate in creating crafts through the workshops. 

“It’s our signature event — like our Big Bang,” she says. “It’s downtown and it has such a great community feel.” 

Braacx says in light of U.S. tariffs, it has become more imperative to shop and support local businesses. She adds she likes supporting local makers through the market. 

More than 2,000 people attended the event last year, Braacx says. She hopes the market provides attendees with insight and awareness about each of the local vendors and keeps them in mind as the gift-giving season approaches. 

“I want the community at large [to] see the faces behind the things that are being made and make those connections. I think that’s really huge when you can make that connection with the things you purchase,” she says. 

Proceeds from this year’s market will go towards two charities: the Mom2Mom Child Poverty Initiative and Renfrew Collingwood Seniors Society. Since the event isn’t ticketed, Braacx says the market will be selling tote bags and accepting donations at the button-making station in support of the charities. 

“That’s a huge part of our mission.”

For more information, visit www.bit.ly/robsonmarket.