Here to make friends in Niles

My Friends & I, a 14-dealer co-op on Niles Boulevard in Fremont, CA is going the extra mile, marketing-wise, by having a gift basket drawing every month. You get a chance to win with any purchase. Gift baskets are a popular drawing prize, and the prospect of winning one assures that shoppers coming to the well-known Niles Boulevard antique row will likely include My Friends & I in their stops. 

Another marketing tool that takes a little effort but potentially could help attract more clientele is the blog that Carol, the store owner, maintains at www.myfriendsandiniles.blogspot.com. Blogspot is a free blog hosting site, and she posts anything from photos of newly-arrived items to open house sales like the one they held a couple of weeks ago, to uplifting quotes or even photos of special dishes being served at nearby restaurants...shoppers have to eat too, you know.

Here's a photo of the gift basket for the drawing in April.

A Day's-Worth of Browsing at Niles Antique Faire

One of the oldest antique street fairs in California is hosted the last Sunday of every August by the Niles Main Street Association in Fremont. The 51st Annual Antique Faire and Flea Market is set for August 30, opening at 6am and continuing until 4pm. More than 200 vendors will line the Boulevard, which is also the home of the famed Niles antique row. More than 80,000 visitors will enjoy browsing to the tune of live music by Big Sandy and His Fly Rite Boys —if you go, plan on spending the whole day! Admission is free.

There'll be special sales inside the stores, too. Check it out on Facebook at Niles Antique Faire

You always wanted to dress up as a flapper...

The Niles Boulevard Antique Row in Fremont, CA is going to be a blast from the past this weekend, April 14 and 15, when Les Belles Antiques holds their 35th Anniversary Party. They're planning to have live jazz bands, vintage cars, food and prizes for the best Roaring Twenties period costumes. If you've always wanted to "put on the Ritz" and dress up as a Flapper or Rudolph Valentino, here's your chance!

Fremont treasures its heritage as the earliest home of California's motion picture industry. From 1912 to 1916 the Niles district was the site of several movies filmed by Charlie Chaplin, the most well-known being "The Tramp." It's their Silver Screen heyday that will be the theme of Les Belles' anniversary celebration.