BRADENTON BEACH – Coquina Beach Market vendor Christine Barrett loves her new office.
“Look at this,” she said. “My ‘office’ has the most beautiful view. What could be better than this?”
Barrett, of Five Acre Woods woodworking crafts, was at one of 80 vendor spots at the long-awaited Oct. 5 opening of the market on Coquina Beach.
“It’s been fairly busy today,” said Barrett, adding that she had been a vendor at the “old” Coquina Beach Market, located north of the current Manatee County-run market, but pulled out because of the construction at the beach.
Marketgoers perused offerings of clothing, foods, decorative items and jewelry on opening day. A ribbon-cutting will be held at the market on Wednesday, Oct. 11 at 10 a.m.
The market will be open on Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 6 p.m.
Nancy Ambrose ran the market for 10 years before Manatee County took over operations in August 2022. Originally slated to open in November 2022, the market was delayed by damage from Hurricane Ian and parking lot construction.
Vendors who would like to participate in upcoming markets may visit Coquinabeachmarket.org and text name, company name, product and email address to 941-840-0789 or email the information to info@coquinabeachmarket.org.
