The Melrose Trading Post is a pioneering arts-based marketplace held every Sunday at Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, CA with 275 local creative small business vendors, delicious food booths and local live music.
MTP was founded in 1997 with a mission to champion small businesses, art and community. The market funds Greenway Arts Alliance’s arts education programming and provides employment and leadership development opportunities for students at Fairfax High School.
Every Sunday, the Melrose Trading Post offers a continuously evolving experience, including a curated selection of handcrafted artisan goods, eclectic arts and craft, vintage fashion, antique furniture and countless one-of-a-kind treasures.
The popular weekly market also features local performers including music, dance, theater and spoken word to raise much needed funding for Fairfax High School arts and leadership programming.
Through Greenway Arts Alliance, the Melrose Trading Post provides formal job and life skills training to large numbers of paid and volunteer students from Fairfax High School – the first real-world job experience for many. The market also serves as an incubator to promote small community businesses and budding entrepreneurs, many of them professional artists, by providing affordable retail opportunities in a prime, high-traffic location.
For the full details of what to expect when attending the Melrose Trading Post, click the button below to jump to the “Plan Your Visit” page.
Featuring local and traveling musicians since 2014
The Melrose Trading Post features local musicians, poets and performers on the Greenway Main Stage in the Red Section of the market.
MTP’s community arts programming has expanded to include Story Time in the Garden, vendor led art & wellness workshops, poetry readings and local musicians.
The Melrose Trading Post also provides performance opportunities for artists from the Greenway Court Theatre and for Fairfax High School students through the Greenway Institute for the Arts.
Outside community arts groups are also able to perform at MTP.
To participate, reach out to Martin, the Music Coordinator at music@melrosetradingpost.org.
Since 1997, locals and visitors alike love a Sunday at MTP!
MTP is consistently listed as a top Los Angeles destination by numerous tourism websites and featured in publications and media all over the world.
“There’s no better place to find hand-crafted, one-of-a-kind items” – Creative Future.org
“This flea-market-meets-people-
“…there’s a fleet of food trucks and a live-music stage that gives the whole affair a festive feel.” – LA Times
“…there’s something to surprise and delight almost everyone.” – LA Times
“The massive craft market features every type of vendor from vintage clothing sellers to furniture makers, jewelry stalls to textiles, and everything in between.” – Travel & Leisure
“Our perfect Sunday in LA looks like an early morning hike, brunch, and then spending the afternoon sifting through the racks for treasures at Melrose Trading Post. The weekly open-air market at Fairfax High School is a local favorite with vendors selling everything from vintage clothes to original artwork.” – Hotels Above Par Magazine
“Far more than your average flea market; it is an incredible arts-based, constantly evolving marketplace.” – Natasha Kayes for Onlyinyourstate.com
Greenway Arts Alliance celebrated 20 years of the Melrose Trading Post in 2017.
For our 20th anniversary, we hosted a community celebration at MTP, and made a commemorative magazine.
Check out the magazine’s digital version here:
Learn More About Greenway Arts Alliance
Since 1997, Greenway Arts Alliance has been connecting communities through performing arts, educational programs, and local commerce. Our model funds holistic arts education programming in public schools through a community market, the Melrose Trading Post. The Melrose Trading Post, is a cultural destination for thousands of shoppers every Sunday that funds Greenway Institute for the Arts, a flourishing arts program at Fairfax High School, and Greenway Court Theatre, a home for works from emerging and established artists.
Greenway Court Theatre was initially built by Fairfax High School students in 1939 as a class project and used as a Social Hall by both students and faculty. It sat unused for years until it was renovated into a professional theatre by Greenway Arts Alliance in 2000, to benefit both the school and the surrounding community.
Greenway Court Theatre has a rich history of presenting and producing diverse bodies of work, weekly open mic poetry, student showcases, festivals and world premieres that have moved to larger venues and toured across the country.
Greenway Institute for the Arts offers free in-school and after-school multi-disciplinary arts and leadership programs for Fairfax High and LAUSD students. With these valuable opportunities to engage with professional artists, young people can discover their individual voices and passions that can lead to careers in the arts. Students are exposed to creative collaborations through the Greenway Court Theatre, and at the Melrose Trading Post.