When MaKenzie Huchthausen’s car exploded containing her inventory as a full-time clothing seller, she didn’t give up. Instead, she’s given sellers, makers and buyers a welcoming place to shop, sell and just hang out.
Asking herself, “what am I going to do now?” and not finding many other markets happening in the Milwaukee in 2020, she was motivated to create 414Flea, a vintage and makers market that also offers creative workshops and events.
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The car explosion came right after Huchthausen went through a breakup and moved from Oshkosh to Milwaukee, the first place she found a roommate. Originally from Two Rivers, a small town about 40 miles north of Sheboygan, Huchthausen has been reselling thrifted clothes since she was in high school. Her mother, who passed away last year, was also a seller and introduced her to the business. Huchthausen says she still sees the work as a way to stay close to her.
The now 22-year-old is closing her individual reselling shop, Apt. 206 Thrifts, to focus on management of 414Flea, which has grown steadily since it started in 2021. People were shocked by the market’s immediate success – maybe nobody more than Huchthausen herself. “I cried,” she says.
In the past three years, 414Flea has regularly hosted markets with 30-80 vendors. Last summer, 414Flea took over Zócalo Food Truck Park in Walker’s Point the first Sunday of every month.
Vendors apply to participate in the markets through 414Flea’s website. The ratio of feminine and masculine vintage clothing sellers – 20 years or older – to makers who create items by hand is 50/50. Having a diverse lineup of sellers is important for avoiding a repetitive experience for customers, Huchthausen says.
Maker-led workshops, like Anna Ellie Art’s pendant painting class, are one of the ways 414Flea helps makers grow their craft beyond providing them a space to sell. The workshops are something affordable and fun for people to do and a source of income for the artists, who receive over half of the proceeds.
Creating a “third space” outside of work or school and home is one of Huchthausen’s central goals for 414Flea. She wants it to be somewhere people can come, feel welcome, and hang out all day with reduced financial barriers. She’s inspired by the community-based nature of Girls Who Walk Milwaukee, which 414Flea collaborated with for a free art night in August.
Huchthausen says prices at her events are on the lower side compared to other markets to make them accessible for everyone. Her markets are free for customers to enter, and a sliding scale where vendors pay what they can to participate in the markets is another initiative she plans to incorporate within the next year. Half-booths have previously been offered for vendors who cannot afford an entire space.
Another affordability and sustainability effort is organizing clothing swaps, which are held quarterly. All leftover clothing is donated to local nonprofits. At a pay-what-you-can clothing swap and book drive at Anodyne Coffee in July, leftovers were given to Pathfinders, Father Gene’s and the South Milwaukee Public Library.
Huchthausen’s intentional inclusivity is the key to 414Flea’s tight-knit network. Some vendors attend every single market.
“I’ve heard from vendors that it’s created a really big sense of community,” Huchthausen says. “Vendors look forward to doing these events because their friends are all there now, and they made friends specifically through this market.”
414Flea’s community has caught the attention of public figures city and nationwide, from Milwaukee Bucks player Giannis Antetokounmpo who posed with Huchthausen in a Facebook post to TikTok influencer Alix Earle, who Huchthausen says bought an item from the market in summer 2023.
414Flea’s next event is Scrap and Yap, a free community crafting evening for folks to work on projects and mingle, on Feb. 19 at Sugar Maple. Follow along on Instagram for future event announcements.
