Britain’s car boot sales reborn as fashion-forward vintage hubs

On a crisp Sunday in south-west London, the playground of a primary school has been transformed into a bustling Balham car boot sale, drawing families, pensioners, fashion influencers and TikTok creators. Organisers Steven Lopes and Erin Murphy, who launched Balham and a sister car boot in Peckham in 2019, have deliberately reshaped the traditional field market into a more curated, inner-city event that keeps a family-friendly, nostalgic atmosphere while appealing to style-focused shoppers.

The reinvented car boot opens later than the crack-of-dawn sales of old and promotes a relaxed, social Sunday vibe. Murphy says attendance has grown from around 20 people in the early months to an estimated 1,000–2,000 every other weekend. A similar surge is reported at Manchester’s Rummage in the Range, where organisers describe queues of several hundred.

The rebrand blends car-boot bargains with flea-market styling, bringing together different demographics and price points. Social media and reselling platforms have helped fuel interest. Influencers who document their car-boot finds online, such as Becky Chorlton, have driven footfall, while the broader secondhand market has expanded — research cited in the market shows secondhand goods reached £4.3bn this year and average monthly spending on secondhand items has more than doubled over five years.

Key Topics

Business, United States, Culture, Car Boot, Secondhand, Vintage, Resale