HAMPTON-Bodacious Bazaar will host its award-winning holiday market November 12-14 at the Hampton Convention Center. After last year’s hiatus due to the covid-19 pandemic, the company’s owner, Sandra Gardner, is thrilled to present this year’s three-day shopping extravaganza.
Vendors are hand-picked by Gardner to provide a high-quality and diverse show. “I have all kinds of vendors, from diamonds to fudge,” said Fudge. “There will be artists, crafters, good food, coffees, and wine.”
She looks forward to seeing familiar faces from years past and says her bazaar attracts many repeat customers. “It’s become like a reunion,” said Gardner. “We have mothers and daughters who’ve made pacts to attend the event together every year as a tradition. And it’s not just locals, we’ve had buses arrive from Pennsylvania as well.”
Bodacious Bazaar offers free booth space for non-profit organizations to promote their causes and permits the organizations to keep the profits. The American Cancer Society, American Red Cross, and Veterans of Foreign Wars are a few of the non-profits that will be in attendance.
Gardner, a longtime nurse, runs a seven-city blood drive the week prior to the event. Anyone who donates blood during the drive receives a free admission pass to attend the three-day event.
“For the event’s previous year, we received over 400 units of blood, and the blood stays in our area unless there’s a disaster,” said Gardner. “Being a nurse, that’s important to me.”
Bodacious Bazaar received the 2015 Best of Hampton Award in the gifts category and was recognized by the 2016 Coastal Virginia Magazine Best Of Readers’ Choice Awards.
The three-day shopping event will be held from 10am to 7pm, Friday, Nov. 12, and Saturday, Nov. 13, and from 10am to 5pm, Sunday, Nov. 14, at the Hampton Convention Center. One-day tickets cost $8 and two-day tickets are $12. Children’s tickets for ages 12 and under are priced at $5 each, and those riding in strollers are free of charge. A blood mobile will be available onsite Friday for last-minute donations.
For more information about Bodacious Bazaar’s 10th Annual Fall Extravaganza, click here.