SMASHFEST 2026! 11.27!

OK but what IS Smashfest?

SmashFest began at the Scrap Exchange in 2011. We left our home on Foster Street when the roof collapsed, and our new space was in disarray. After first moving across the street and then across town, there were barrels of mixed up materials, dirty fabric, crumpled cardboard boxes, not-so-clean industrial discards, and THINGS everywhere! It all needed to be sorted and made ready to open the Scrap back up to the public (and  fast!). Hindering progress were all the damaged items and non-sellable breakables underfoot and hiding everywhere.

The idea to just have a party and smash all these lingering albatross items began half as a joke, but due to the sheer amount of them floating around and the general disappointment simmering from having to move, SmashFest became a reality. “Black Friday” was chosen as the day for the event as a way of using the destruction of these items not only for some tension relief but also to highlight our society’s habit of overconsumption. The darkness of the season perfectly matched the feelings which needed to be purged.

From its scrappy beginnings with metal bands, fire barrels, cheap beer, and some boxes of breakables, SmashFest has become a parking lot sized event attended by thousands over the years. Each year the event grew, and the need for it was ever increasing. The year the infamous HB2 was signed, we dropped a flaming toilet from 20 feet in the air, we created a Glass Ceiling smasher, flaming conquistadores, and many other spectacles. It’s art meets destruction meets therapy meets family fun for all (kids LOVE SmashFest).

SmashFest is now The Scrap Exchange’s best known annual fundraising event, raising more than $20,000 per year and drawing ever larger crowds (1000+ visitors annually!). Attendees buy tickets and use them to select from thousands of chipped or damaged items donated to our thrift store, which you can then smash by the method you choose.  The event now features Smash Specials as well as the infamous Smash Wall, and an additional way to Support The Scrap via Smash Teams. Drop a bowling ball on your breakable item, use a giant hammer to crush it or a guillotine to slice it. Who knows what comes next? Come celebrate our version of Black Friday and experience the giddy pleasure of destroying things with your friends, your family, and your community.