Vintage thrifting is like a treasure hunt if you ask Ryan Smith, founder of the Pensacola Vintage Collective and owner of Obsolete Heat, a store that sells vintage garments and goods inside of Bo’s Local Finds at 7201 N. Ninth Ave.

The find of his lifetime being a pair of 1950s Levi 501 jeans at the bottom of a yard sale bin that sold for thousands.

“You’re literally like a textile Indiana Jones,” Smith said. “That’s what it’s like. You’re out there digging in the trenches, and that’s how I found those jeans. Literally looking at the bottom of a tub at a yard sale that had nothing but junk-looking stuff in it, and those are on the bottom.”

Not only is it vintage clothes hunting filled with excitement, it’s also a way for people to express themselves through one-of-a-kind clothing.

Now, the Mecca of vintage clothing will be in downtown Pensacola this weekend for Sunday’s Pensacola Vintage Collective Vintage Block Party. The party, hosted by the Pensacola Vintage Collective and The Handlebar, will be held from 1-6 p.m. at 19 N. Tarragona St. There will be over 50 of the area’s best vintage vendors, food available by Sauce Boss Burger Co. and live music from band Disco Lemonade outside of The Handlebar. They are expecting over 1,000 people for the event.

Shopping second-hand is something that never goes out of style, as each new generation rediscovers the clothing and trends of those who came before them. Young shoppers are discovering that clothes made way back in the day were built to last in addition to having more unique characteristics, Smith said.

“A lot of the people now are against the fast fashion. So, in other words, you can go back and get vintage clothes that are better made and completely unique. I think one of the biggest aspects and keys is everybody wants to have their own personal style,” Smith said. “Everybody who is 25 and under in that demographic, they are really excited about this stuff. They’re not going to the malls to shop anymore. There’s a seismic shift in how commerce happens in the textile industry.”

Now the Collective has helped draw people to Pensacola from all over the region to interact with like-minded people who flood these vintage markets.

“The Pensacola Vintage Collective started up about four years ago and the idea was to have a place where people who are interested in vintage clothes could all meet … we’ve had 12 markets probably at least in the past four years, and they get bigger each time,” Smith said.

“I have people who come from Tallahassee, from Mobile, from Tuscaloosa down to Pensacola to vend and be a part of the vintage clothes thing that’s happening here,” Smith added. “We’ve gotten some notoriety, in all honesty, in what we have been able to do here. … They are like, ‘Oh, there’s a scene here in Pensacola.’”

In addition to the clothes available for sale from all walks of life, there will also be houseware, records, art, jewelry, baked goods and alcohol for purchase at Sunday’s event. Smith said his hope is that customers will fall in love with the vendors, then continue to patronize the businesses’ online shops and brick-and-mortars.

Robert Goodspeed, general manager of The Handlebar where the event is taking place, said that events like the block party tie in The Handlebar’s own goals of bringing the community together and allowing individuals to express themselves.

“Just looking kind of at the attire of people when they come in, it’s like super eclectic. You’re always just kind of wondering where that person picked that up, and I have to imagine a lot of that does come from thrifted items around town or from markets like this,” Goodspeed said.

Similar to how many of the musicians that play The Handlebar are up-and-coming artists, the event shines a spotlight on small business owners who are able to specialize in creative and eclectic goods. In the past, they’ve held everything from auto shows to street music festivals that have always had a shared goal of bringing people together.

He anticipates this Sunday’s free block party will be successful in sending visitors home with some solid finds and also providing exposure to the area’s small businesses.

“I think a lot of times when you when you go thrift and you go to flea markets, it’s kind of a tossup. But with this, it’s like a very focused group of like, ‘Hey, bring your best stuff.’ A lot of people were walking away (last event) very full handed with attire and new outfits and new stuff to bring home. So that’s exciting and I think that that’s a really cool thing for Pensacola and the people that are involved here,” Goodspeed said.

After the market wraps at sundown, live music will continue inside of The Handlebar to cater to the evening crowd.

More updates and information can be found on the Pensacola Vintage Collective Facebook page or on The Handlebar’s Facebook page.