Bele Chere began in 1979 as a way to get locals to bring life to Asheville's then
floundering downtown via local music, local art and local revelry. This intention is still central to the mission of the festival and more important now than ever in 2010. Bele Chere offers downtown merchants first shot at the opportunity to have a booth in front of their store if the space is part of a programmed area. We encourage all merchants to bring their presence to the street for the over 300,000 festival goers.
Many thanks to the 2010 participating Downtown Merchants listed below: