Market stall
- Outdoor: weather matters
Book a site at a weekend or community market and sell baking, crafts, plants or pre-loved goods.
Typically raises
$400
$100–1,000 per eventest.
About $44 per organiser hour
Based on one stall for one market day
Is it right for us?
- Money
- Under $500
- Work
- A few evenings
- Helpers
- 3–6 people
- Lead time
- 1–2 months
- Red tape
- Some
Common: community markets are full of school and club stalls
- People
- 3-6
- Organiser time
- 6-12 hours (estimate)
- Lead time
- 2-6 weeks depending on market (estimate)
- Up-front cost
- $60. Stall fee plus float; example community site fees $10-$28 (school and Rotary car boot sales)
- Risk
- Low-medium: stall fee is lost if the day is quiet.
How it works
The money, as an example sum
Take about $460, pay about $60 of costs, and you keep about $400 per event: the typical result for one stall for one market day.
From the typical figure on this page. Your result will differ.
Where the money figure comes from
Estimate. an NZ fundraising guide advises not rebooking a market that does not clear its fee twice over.
Last checked October 2026. Ran this? Tell us what you raised and we’ll use real results to improve the figures.
Step by step
- Visit the market on the same weekday first and count the crowd.
- Book in writing with site number.
- Check council food or trading permits.
- Choose stock with many small price points.
- Display well; label prices.
- Take card on a phone and bring a cash float.
- Record sales and the weather to decide on rebooking.
Getting the word out
Even a well-run plan fails if nobody hears about it. There are two asks, and the first one goes out first.
- Ask for help
- Families to bake, give stock or take a shift on the stall.
- Ask people to buy
- People to come and buy on the day.
- When to start
- Ask for helpers first, as soon as the date is set. Start the public ask about 3–4 weeks out, and book newsletter and paper notices before that: small newsletters close early.
Where to put it
- School, club and church newslettersYour own newsletter is free and read by the families most likely to say yes. Check when it closes.
- PostersPosters at the school gate, the clubrooms and shop windows, with the date, place, price and how to pay.
- Local Facebook pages and community groupsPost in your town’s community page and local groups (check their rules), and share from your group’s own page.
- Billboards and roadside signsYour school’s or club’s own sign by the road, a banner on the fence, or a sandwich board on the day for passers-by.
The full guide to getting the word out: every channel from flyers to the evening news, with lead times and costs.
What you’ll need
- Place
- NeededA public space (park, street, beach)
- Landowner’s permission
- NeededYes, in writing
- Council permit
- CheckCheck with your council
- Food rules
- CheckNo registration if you sell food to fundraise for a good cause up to 20 times a calendar year. It must still be safe and suitable, and your council may need a stall permit
- Alcohol
- Not neededNo alcohol sold
- Gambling rules
- Not neededNot gambling
- Insurance
- CheckCheck your cover
The market organiser usually holds the market licence. Auckland Council asks fundraising food stalls in public places for a fundraising licence and street-trading approval about four weeks ahead; other councils vary.
Make more from it
$100-400 (estimate)
weekend market crowds buy plants
$100-300 (estimate)
many low price points move fast
$20-80 (estimate)
draws people to the stall
Stack it: on its own, about $400. With the 3 priced add-ons above, roughly
$900est.
What you can get donated
Goods to sell from members; stall fee waived by market organisers for charities (ask).
Tips
- Ask the market coordinator for a charity rate.
- Check mobile reception before relying on card payments.
Watch out for
- One expensive product and a quiet crowd.
- Not knowing your break-even.
Market stall: checklist
0 of 16 done
Before
On the day
After
The market organiser usually holds the market licence. Auckland Council asks fundraising food stalls in public places for a fundraising licence and street-trading approval about four weeks ahead; other councils vary.
* General fundraising information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Money figures are examples and estimates, not promises. Check current official requirements before you commit. About this guide