{"id":34783,"date":"2025-11-05T20:12:11","date_gmt":"2025-11-05T20:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/34783\/"},"modified":"2025-11-05T20:12:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-05T20:12:11","slug":"the-15th-annual-shopapalooza-is-americas-biggest-small-business-celebration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/34783\/","title":{"rendered":"The 15th annual Shopapalooza is America’s biggest small business celebration"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a><\/p>\n

Shopapalooza Festival<\/a>, one of the biggest shopping events in the Tampa Bay region, is back for its landmark 15th rendition this Thanksgiving weekend. Taking place on Saturday and Sunday, November 29 and 30, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the free vendor market will be held on the waterfront at St. Pete\u2019s Vinoy Park (701 Bayshore Drive NE).<\/p>\n

Kicking off on Small Business Saturday, Shopapalooza provides the perfect opportunity to support local vendors, with the 350+ small businesses represented making it the nation\u2019s biggest Small Business Saturday (and Sunday!) event. Organized by LocalShops1 Founder Ester Venouziou and supported by the City of St. Pete, the event celebrates small businesses across Tampa Bay.<\/p>\n

In addition to the hundreds of local vendors, the festival will feature outdoor food halls, live entertainment, activities, beer and wine gardens, an adoptable pet fashion show, a \u201cKidpreneurs\u201d zone, pictures with Santa, and much more \u2013 all for free. As LocalShops1 points out, you can save your money for shopping. The event is family-friendly, open to all ages, and welcomes well-behaved, leashed pets.<\/p>\n

\"People\"People<\/p>\n

Shopapalooza: The biggest local shopping event of the season<\/p>\n

While shopping is the big draw, don\u2019t skip the food, drink and entertainment. Four different food halls will showcase 40 local chefs, restaurants and food trucks, while the beer gardens offer refreshment along the way (with sales supporting nonprofit Jump For Kids). Plus, there\u2019s live music all day, all weekend.<\/p>\n

And when you\u2019re ready to sit and relax, stop by the 10,000-sq-ft Glam Outdoor Lounge. With plush seating and the breeze coming in off the water, it\u2019s the perfect spot to chill.<\/p>\n

For families, a kids zone will be available with crafts, play and learning stations, as well as photo ops with Santa. The area also includes yard games, a crafts table, food and dessert trucks, animal rescues, and vendors offering gifts for children and parents.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s Kidpreneurs Zone will also be a must-visit, where you can meet 30 amazing young entrepreneurs. From handmade goods to creative services, these kid-run businesses are full of talent, passion, and big ideas.<\/p>\n

While RSVP is not required, those who register in advance can win exciting prizes like personal shopping assistants and shopping sprees. Learn more and register for free here.<\/a><\/p>\n

Additionally, attendees can enter to win a shopping spree by registering<\/a> online in advance<\/a>, with two winners selected each day of the festival. This year\u2019s nonprofit partners are Jump for Kids and St. Pete Youth Farm. The festival is co-sponsored by the City of St. Pete.<\/p>\n

\"A\"A<\/p>\n

Food halls, kid zones, and more at Vinoy Park<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re thrilled to celebrate 15 years of local love,\u201d says Ester Venouziou, founder of LocalShops1 and Shopapalooza. \u201cShopapalooza is more than a festival \u2013 it\u2019s a movement. Our local makers and businesses are the heartbeat of Tampa Bay, and this is the perfect time to support them. Come enjoy 11+ acres of pure local awesomeness!\u201d<\/p>\n

Parking is available at garages throughout downtown St. Pete, and free trolley rides to and from Shopapalooza will be provided from the Southcore Parking Garage, located on 2nd Street South between Central and 1st Avenues.<\/p>\n

For more information about the vendors and event details, visit the Shopapalooza Festival\u00a0website<\/a>. Stay updated with LocalShops1 by visiting their\u00a0website<\/a>! Of note for vendors, Shopapalooza is full, but applications are being accepted for 2026.\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Shopapalooza Festival, one of the biggest shopping events in the Tampa Bay region, is back for its landmark…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":34784,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[202,204,203,199,201,200],"class_list":["post-34783","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-st-petersburg","tag-st-pete","tag-st-pete-headlines","tag-st-pete-news","tag-st-petersburg","tag-st-petersburg-headlines","tag-st-petersburg-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34783","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34783"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34783\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34784"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34783"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}