Obuse City Free Market

 

Obuse Free Market Bonanza!

This Sunday, Obuse held it’s semiannual Free Market where local residents could sell their unwanted items rather than dump them on the already overburdened refuse system.  I think Recycling is a “good” way to reduce the waste stream, but Repurposing through such markets is a “great” way.  A friend and I agreed to set up a booth this weekend to “test the waters.”  Overall,  things went well, despite a few hiccups in pricing and setup.  When I sold an item to another person, it felt good knowing that I had made them happy by not throwing that item away… and, of course, it felt pretty good making a little money on something that was previously just collecting dust.  Pictured above is ¥17,450 or about $145 I grossed this weekend from selling my son’s bike, some outgrown clothes, kids’ books, and old toys and games that haven’t been touched in years.  Sure, the money wasn’t anywhere near what I paid for the stuff originally, but what did I get in return? I got a chance to spend the morning working the booth with an old friend, and I wound up meeting a whole bunch of interesting people.  Watching kids walk off wearing broad smiles after getting bargains at my booth was worth a lot more than any profit I could have made.  I am definitely looking forward to my next Obuse Free Market adventure this fall, September 27th.  Drop by the booth and say “hi” if you get a chance!
#obuse #japan #freemarket

Leave a Reply