St. Petersburg’s shop local festival kicks off with hundreds of vendors

2023 Shopapalooza festival in St. Petersburg

The festival is the Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving at Vinoy Park.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The 2023 Shopapalooza festival hosts a big weekend celebration for small businesses across the Tampa Bay Area.

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The festival will bring over 350 small businesses to Vinoy Park. The event includes vendors serving food, entertainment and goods. One vendor, Jessica Merker, said the event is great for the community.

"You can't beat it. It's the biggest small Saturday event in the country," Merker said. "There's going to be over 350 local vendors, people coming in from all over. It's a one-stop shop for the best weekend you can add to your Thanksgiving."

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The festival will support the hundreds of local businesses that attend. It is oftentimes the biggest day of the year for some vendors. More than 20,000 people are expected to show up to the event.

Shopapalooza kicks off in St. Pete

Regina Gonzalez reports.

The festival is also great for businesses without a brick-and-mortar location. While owners said Amazon and other online retailers are great, it's nicer for them to connect with customers in person. Pippa Mpunzwana, who runs a business without a physical location, said the event is especially important to her.

"This opportunity to be with Shopapalooza is amazing," Mpunzwana said. "It is the biggest event of the year. It's the biggest event in the county for local businesses."

Shopapalooza is open both Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving. The festival is free to attend.

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