After 40 years, everything must go!

PHOTOS: People rummage for bargains at Riverfest liquidation sale

Anna Berkemeyer shows a Riverfest T-shirt to her grandfather Bob Selig as they shop Friday during the Riverfest sale in Little Rock.
Anna Berkemeyer shows a Riverfest T-shirt to her grandfather Bob Selig as they shop Friday during the Riverfest sale in Little Rock.

Cars and trucks haphazardly lined each side of the 9800 block of Mann Road for half a mile Friday.

Several people wheeled large trash cans along the centerline, while others lugged plastic tubs spilling over with Styrofoam cups, T-shirts and electrical cords.

After 40 years, the last remnants of Riverfest -- Little Rock's annual music festival -- are being parceled out in a two-day rummage sale at a storage facility in southwest Little Rock.

"We had people lined up down the road at 6:30 this morning," Riverfest Executive Director DeAnna Korte, who has worked for Riverfest Inc. for 20 years, said as she pointed to the chain-link fence bordering the property.

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Photos by Emma Pettit

The liquidation sale was open to the public from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and continues for the same hours today.

2x4 lumber: $1 each.

Red plastic bowls: 50 cents each.

Stainless-steel sinks: $250 each.

Each of the hundreds of pieces of merchandise had its part to play in the 4-decades-old festival that began in 1978 when the Junior League of Little Rock engaged the American Wind Symphony.

Millions of dollars in revenue and losses later, the festival's board of directors ended the event's run in July, citing rising costs and increased competition.

The organization's budget of $2.6 million made it difficult to book the bigger musical acts, causing the festival to lose money for the past few years. The 2017 event ended with a net loss of $300,000, Korte said.

Attendance at the event also was on the decline, especially after organizers in 2016 split the event into two festivals. Riverfest targeted the 18- to 50-year-old demographic while the new Springfest was aimed toward families.

About 125,000 people attended Riverfest in 2017, and about 30,000 people attended Springfest. At its height, Riverfest boasted 250,000 attendees.

Korte said Friday that while it was a bittersweet time, she was happy to see festivals from around the state take advantage of the sale.

Gates opened for a private pre-sale Thursday to the likes of the Arkansas State Fair and the El Dorado Musical Festival.

Towers of orange-and-stainless-steel chairs were sectioned off with rope Friday outside the warehouse. "SOLD" signs were attached with the buyer's name and the amounts: 75 -- Rich Neim; 400 -- Clear Channel; 192 -- State Fair.

Mary Margaret Satterfield, with the Conway Chamber of Commerce, scored a deal on kids craft supplies and sandwich boards -- plywood cut into two pieces and hinged at the top to create a sign on each side.

Satterfield's main purpose was to shore up the supply closets of Toad Suck Daze, Conway's annual springtime festival.

"But I'm doing a little personal shopping, too," she said with a mischievous grin.

Dozens of people at a time flowed through the warehouse, picking through boxes of Christmas lights, paper napkins and batteries. A stack of black cash drawers stood next to a pallet of box fans and a large, beige file cabinet with a $10 price tag. Black wires from a complete commercial phone system spilled over the sides of a blue plastic tote. A $100 price tag was stuck to the side.

Roger Wallace of Little Rock made a beeline for the back concrete pad of the warehouse, trying to get his hands on the $10 extra-large trash cans that were leaving the warehouse at a fast pace.

"I've got to get me one of those before they're gone," he said. "They're good for leaves and all kinds of yardwork."

Linda Allen pushed past the dozens of cans of Glade air freshener to pick up a tub of light bulbs. She looked on each side for a price tag, to no avail.

"I'm hoping these are about a nickle apiece," she said, laughing. "I'm just excited to see what they have."

Vernita Shaw of North Little Rock said the sale fed her yard-sale habit, which usually has her out on Friday and Saturday mornings searching for secondhand bargains.

"I'm just seeing what's available," she said.

For Felicia Wilbanks of Little Rock, the sale was more about getting a piece of history before it's gone. Of the festival's 40 years, Wilbanks said she missed only two -- one in 2011 when her husband was dying of cancer and in 2017 when she had to work.

She patted the bag of Riverfest T-shirts she was holding.

"I wasn't able to afford a T-shirt the first year of the festival, but I got one the second year," she said, then unfurled the commemorative Riverfest poster in her hand. "I'm getting a piece of history. It's so sad to think of it going away."

Korte said she was impressed with how "patient and nice" the shoppers were Friday despite the lack of air conditioning in the warehouse.

"It's gone so smoothly," Korte said. "I haven't slept in two weeks getting ready for this sale, but the volunteers and everybody have really made it great."

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Darvin Alford, with Tasty Chef Catering, leaves the Riverfest sale Friday after buying a trash can and other items he can use at his operation.

So what happens to the leftovers after the doors close for the final time today?

"It will be donated," Korte said.

State Desk on 08/19/2017

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