PHOENIX - It's one of Phoenix's most popular shopping destinations, but you may not have heard about it.
The Phoenix Park 'n' Swap opened in 1962 with three vendors and a drink stand, but last year the swap meet brought out more than a million people looking for items they can't find anywhere else.
The swap meet, held on the parking lot of the Greyhound Racing Complex near 40th and Washington streets, is a place where bargain shoppers can find almost anything. It's also where hidden talents and success stories co-exist side by side.
One vendor, Elsa Camacho, has been selling clothes at the park 'n' swap for 28 years. She said the vehicle to success for her and her two boys was the swap meet.
"The reason why I'm here is because I'm a single mom for 12 years and I have time to get my kids from school and then be with them every day," Camacho said.
Stories like Camacho's aren't uncommon as you pass by vendor after vendor. Some vendors have called this swap meet home for generations.
"Every Wednesday night, thousands of people come here to the swap meet, creating a truly unique shopping experience, you can find anything here, from clothes, to electronics, makeup, anything, even the kitchen sink," Katia Carrera said.
Carrera first started attending the swap meet years ago with her parents, who still own a couple of food stands. But now, Carrera and her husband own a popular Sonoran hot dog stand called Los Perrones.
"It's a fun way to say it's awesome, they're awesome," she said. "We have sauteed onions, we put tomatoes, ketchup, may, cheese, guacamole, jalapeno sauce."
And now these delicious hot dogs are paying for a bright future for Carerra and her husband.
"As for me and my husband, we actually do go to college and we do this on the weekends, Saturday, Sunday mornings and then Wednesday nights" she said.
So as the tents go up and the merchandise is laid out, thousands come through and help create success for the vendors.
The Phoenix Park 'n' Swap is open on Wednesday's, Friday's and on the weekends. For more information on the swap meet go to americanparknswap.com.