A popular pre-loved fashion market was abruptly shut down by police on Sunday morning over an ongoing trespassing dispute, leaving stallholders to chase refunds with organisers.
Officers were called to the Mount Gravatt Showgrounds about 6.30am on Sunday in response to trespassing complaint, a police spokesperson said. They arrived to find about six stallholders setting up for Her Wardrobe Markets, a second-hand clothing market that charges more than $90 for a single stall.
One customer, Hayley, who was a stallholder at a previous market and did not want to provide her full name due to ongoing discussions, was on-site for about 30 minutes and heard police advising attendees they needed to pack up or risk “further actions”.
This masthead was told by police that organisers and stallholders had “no authority” from venue management to be on the premises.
Market organiser Natalie D’Alessandro later explained on social media that there was “a lot of back and forth on site” before police were called, and they were awaiting the showground’s trust to “engage with the formal notice we’ve sent”.
The venue, Mount Gravatt Showgrounds, also provided an update on social media, writing on Facebook that the event did not have approval to operate on site and that the space was an “active work zone” at present.
In a statement provided to this masthead, a spokesperson for the trust said D’Alessandro was informed in October last year to stop using the space.
“Since that time, the trust has provided multiple communications confirming that no approval exists for any further use of the site,” they said.
“Despite this, an attempt was made to conduct an event without authorisation.”
The venue admitted to having placed equipment on the grounds to “stop the operator from continuing activity”, and said they engaged the police.
The dispute between the market and the venue had been ongoing for 18 months, according to D’Alessandro’s post on Instagram about Sunday’s incident.
She had issued a formal notice to the trust as an escalation of the matter, citing “operational failures, safety concerns” and “financial losses” in that time.
“It is no longer appropriate for [Her Wardrobe Markets] to remain confined to operational discussions with site management,” the notice read.
Her Wardrobe operates a number of second-hand market events in south-east Queensland, including Tugun, Newstead and Mount Gravatt.
Due to the uncertainty of the markets, the showgrounds had contracted another pre-loved fashion market to use the space on Sundays.
Jessica McNeven, who runs Fab Finds Markets, said they would be hosting their first Mount Gravatt market on May 10, where stalls would cost $40.
Her Wardrobe Market, however, was hopeful the relationship could be repaired, telling customers online that “this isn’t the end of the road for us”.
Her Wardrobe Market planned to host a rack market event in Newstead on April 26. No additional Mount Gravatt dates had been promoted, but stalls had been sold.
One customer, who wished to remain anonymous who had sold at two events in the past, said she was seeking a refund as there was no clarity over whether the event would proceed.
D’Alessandro and Brisbane City Council were contacted for comment but did not respond on record by deadline.
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