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Market Day
Collective Events Management
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Checklist Take this with you Page of pages |
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Market Day
Collective Events Management
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Checklist Take this with you Page of pages |
Everything worth asking before you commit to a venue, in the order you would sensibly ask it. Take it with you when you go and look, and fill it in on the spot. Most of these cost nothing to ask and every one of them has sunk somebody's event at some point.
Venue |
Date visited |
Contact name |
Phone and email |
Visited by |
Event this is for |
Fill it in on the spot, not afterwards
A question you meant to ask later is a question you will not ask. |
Ask all of them, including the obvious ones
Every question in here has caught somebody out. The obvious ones catch
people most. |
Use one sheet per venue
Then you can lay them side by side afterwards and compare like for
like. |
Do not stand in the doorway and ask questions. Walk the building in the order the day will actually happen, and the gaps show themselves. Go at roughly the same time of day as the event, and take somebody with you, because two people notice twice as much.
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Venue name and full address
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Who owns or controls it, and who actually takes the booking
Not always the same person.
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Who has the authority to say yes
Ask it plainly. The person showing you around very often cannot commit the building, and finding that out in week nine is expensive.
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Our day to day contact, with a phone number and an email
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Is it available on the dates we want
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Is anything else booked in the building, or sharing the car park, that day
A shared car park and a funeral next door are both real.
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Is there a charge, how much, and is it per hour or per day
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Which hire rate applies to us
Standard, community or not for profit, or social. Halls often price the same room three ways, and the difference is large.
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What does the fee include, and what is charged on top
Cleaning, power, staff, after hours, key collection, heating or cooling.
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What is the exact total cost of the day, itemised
Ask them to send it in writing: hours booked and the rate, clean up, power, heating or cooling, staff, keys and anything else. This is the number that goes in the budget, not an estimate.
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Is there a clean up fee, how much, and is it hourly or a flat fee
And who does the clean: us, or their cleaners at our cost.
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What are the overtime fees if we run over our booked time, and how are they worked out
Pack up always takes longer than planned. Know the price of the extra half hour before the day, not after it.
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Is there a bond, what is the exact amount, has it been paid, and when is it returned
It is cash out that is not a cost, so the cashflow chart needs to know the difference.
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Is there a deposit, how much, and what date is it due
Write down both the amount and the date. This is the single biggest driver of how deep the cash position goes, and it lands before any money has come in.
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Are there any other fees we should plan for
Key bond, swipe card, late booking, after hours callout, emergency callout. Each one is small until three of them arrive together.
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Would they accept payment after the day rather than before it
Worth asking. It means we are never out of pocket before we know the turnout.
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Cancellation terms, how much notice is needed, and what happens if the weather calls it off
Their weather answer is our wet weather plan, whatever anybody else says.
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Which days are available, and how far ahead do we book
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Can we set up the day before
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Can we take down the day after
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Can anything be left on site overnight
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What time can we get in, and what time must we be out Four hours of market with one hour either side is a different day to plan. These four times are what the run sheet is built from.
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Who opens and locks up, and is it a named person
Somebody has to be there at 6am, and it is a person, not a building.
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Who holds the keys, and how do we collect and return them
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Does anyone from their side need to be on site while we are there
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Is there an alarm or security system, and who arms it
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This is the section everything else is worked out from, so it is worth the extra ten minutes. Ask for their site plan before you get the tape out. A lot of halls have one, and if it carries dimensions it saves you measuring the whole room.
Does the venue have a site plan or floor plan of its own
yes, with measurements on it / yes, but no measurements / no
If it has measurements, tick it and you can stop measuring.
Photograph it or ask them to email it, write below where it came from, and read the numbers
into the table from the plan instead of off the tape. You still fill the table in, because
what gets used later is the numbers, not the plan.
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Three things to check even when there is a plan
A plan is a drawing of the room, not a promise about the floor. Walk it and
confirm: that the figure on the plan is the clear floor and not the whole room, that every
pillar on the floor is on the plan, and that nothing has been built, bolted down or stored in
there since the plan was drawn.
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If there is no plan, or the plan has no dimensions on it, measure it yourself with the tape. Do not pace it, do not take the number off their website, and do not accept a number from memory.
Is this one room, or several rooms we could use
Measure every room you could use, separately. A hall plus a side room plus a verandah is three rooms, and the plan comes out differently for each one.
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| Room | Length m | Width m | Clear floor m² | Floor surface | Hard floor? | Outlets in this room | From plan or tape? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Y / N | Plan / Tape | ||||||
| Y / N | Plan / Tape | ||||||
| Y / N | Plan / Tape | ||||||
| Y / N | Plan / Tape | ||||||
| Y / N | Plan / Tape |
What is in the way of that floor
Pillars, how many and how far apart. A stage, and whether we can use the floor in front of it. Fixed or tiered seating. Anything else bolted down.
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The numbers to ask them for, rather than measure
Ask for their advertised area anyway and write it down. If their figure and your measurement are far apart, that gap is worth knowing about before you sign anything. The approved capacity is their number from their own approval, not a guess, and it caps ticket sales. Many halls already have an aisle condition, so ask rather than assume. |
Where are the fire exits, and is anything currently in front of them
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Which doors must stay fully clear, and can small stalls stand in front of the others
Main entrance and fire exits stay fully clear. Ask whether a table may stand in front of a secondary door, such as a terrace or store door, if a clear path to it is kept.
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Getting things in through the door Measure the narrowest point on the route a stallholder will actually carry a crate. A trestle that does not fit through a doorway is found out at six in the morning.
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Is there a step or a lip at any door we use, and if there are stairs, is there a lift or a ramp
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If the room is upstairs, what size is the lift
Door width, depth and weight limit. Will a 1.8 m trestle and a clothing rack fit?
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Is there a goods or service entrance for loading, and are there trolleys we can borrow
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Have you had a market or a fair here before, and did anything about the layout cause a problem
The most useful answer on the sheet, and it costs nothing to ask.
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Can the stalls and the seating share one room
If not, the event splits in two, which changes everything.
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How many trestle tables fit, realistically
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What outdoor space is there, and can we use it
Yard, courts, lawn, undercover area.
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Is there a stage, or a natural end for music and announcements
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Is floor protection required, and what must not be dragged across the floor
Trestles, trolleys and anything with a wheel.
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Is there a kitchen, and can we use it
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How big is the kitchen The kitchen is its own area in the floor plan, so it needs a number rather than a yes.
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What is actually in it
Oven, cooktop, fridge, freezer, urn, dishwasher, sink, hot water, bench space. Open every cupboard rather than asking.
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Can food be prepared on site, or only served
The single question that decides whether a kitchen service can exist at all.
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Does someone from their side need to supervise the kitchen
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Is food service permitted, and are there conditions on it
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Are there rules about selling packaged food on the floor, or giving tastings
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Can stallholders use the kitchen fridges, and is there a charge
Anyone selling fresh or chilled food needs somewhere cold to keep it all day.
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Can we cook outside, and where can a BBQ safely sit
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Are gas bottles allowed on site
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Is any food handling certification required
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Where can a drinks fridge sit, and can it run all day
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How many circuits, how many amps, and where are the outlets Amps decide coffee machines, fridges, a PA and whether a generator is needed. Outlet positions decide where the stalls that need power can go.
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Does running the power cost extra
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Can the building carry the stalls, a fridge, a PA and lighting at once
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Are extension leads allowed across floors, must they be covered, and do they have cable covers
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Is test and tag required on anything we bring
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Where exactly are the power points
Ask them to mark every outlet on the floor plan, including any floor boxes, and whether the floor boxes are live. It decides which stalls can have power.
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Are extension cords and power boards available to borrow
How many, and how long. Otherwise they go on the bring list.
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Is there wifi, and is it usable for card payments
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Is there mobile coverage inside the building and out on the site
Not sure is a real answer here and it is the default. It decides whether the scanner, the ticket page and the card reader work at all, so the paper backup stays on the list until somebody has stood inside the building and looked at their phone.
yes / no / not sure
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How many toilets, and where
Are they on this level? Are they included in the fee or charged extra, and who cleans them? |
Are there baby change facilities
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Is there a room suitable for a creche
Enclosed, one way in, no through traffic, and a door that shuts.
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Is there drinking water, and where
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Is there a first aid kit on site, and a defibrillator
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Are there tables and chairs on site, how many, and are they included
Hiring forty trestles you did not need to hire is a real mistake.
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Can we use the PA, microphone and any display screen, and is there a charge
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Are the toilets cleaned during the event, and is that included
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How many car parks are there, and how many are accessible
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Is there more than one way out
Matters at pack up, so nobody is stuck behind a hundred cars.
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Can vendor vehicles drive in to load and unload, and where
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Is there a drop off point near the entrance
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Is the path from the carpark to the door lit after dark
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Is there step free access from the carpark to the door
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Is there heating, is there cooling, and does running either cost extra
It is rarely included, and it is the line nobody budgets for until the week before.
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How long before opening does it need to be switched on
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Is there shade, how much, where, and at what time of day
Two of the bring list rules read this answer, so not sure keeps the shade hire line in the budget as an estimate rather than dropping it.
yes / no / not sure
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On our date, is this place likely to be hot, cold, mild, or could it be anything
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Are there noise limits, is amplified music allowed, and is there a curfew
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Can anything be attached to the walls, and with what
Pegs, tape, blu tack. It changes how every sign and every stall number gets hung.
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Can we put signs at the building entrance and out at the street
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Are any rooms or areas off limits
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Is alcohol prohibited
We do not serve it, but ask anyway so we know the ground rules.
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Are there restrictions on what can be sold on site
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Are raffles allowed
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Where can the entry table and help desk go
Inside the room, or in a foyer outside the main doors.
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What is the smoking and vaping policy
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Are assistance animals allowed
yes / no / not sure
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Are other dogs allowed
Two different questions with two different answers, and a visitor planning their day needs both of them before they drive there.
yes / no / not sure
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Does your insurance cover an event like this, run by us
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What level of public liability cover do you require from us
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Does your cover extend to our stallholders, or does each of them need their own
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Is there a hire agreement to sign, and can we see it in advance
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Any working with children requirements for creche volunteers
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Are any council or other permits needed
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Do they need a certificate of currency for our insurance, and by when
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Where are the emergency exits, and is there an evacuation plan
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Where are the fire extinguishers
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Does someone need to be the warden on the day
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Who do we call on the day if something goes wrong
A lockout, a power trip, the alarm. A name and a number, not the office line that closes at five.
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Any restrictions on where a BBQ or a naked flame can go
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What state does it have to be left in
Ask for it in words and write the words down. It is what the bond hangs on.
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Is a full clean expected, and do we do it or their cleaners at our cost
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Are there bins on site, and who takes the rubbish away
The commonest hidden cost, and the commonest reason a bond is not returned.
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Is there a handover or checklist we have to complete
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Who inspects it afterwards, and when
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Do they need final numbers, and by when
If yes, it becomes a checklist item with a date on it.
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Most of this sheet is a note. These are the answers that become real fields on the venue record, because something else in the plan reads each one. If a venue is later assigned to the day, these are what write through, so they are worth getting exactly right on the visit rather than approximately.
| Clear floor, per room, and the approved capacity | Section 4. The floor plan and the stall count are calculated from these two and nothing else, whether you measured them or read them off the venue's own site plan. |
| Hire fee, the exact total cost of the day, the bond paid, and the deposit with its due date | Section 2. They go into the budget as estimates and the deposit date drives the cash position. |
| In, open, closed and out | Section 3. The bump in window, the run sheet and every dated checklist item hang off these four times. |
| The three insurance answers | Section 12. One is read by the seller application, one by the readiness gate, one by the budget. |
| Kitchen: can food be prepared, and how big is it | Section 6. Together they decide whether a kitchen service can exist and where it sits on the plan. |
| Circuits and amps | Section 7. The power total, and whether a generator goes on the hire list. |
| Toilets, water, bins and first aid | Sections 8 and 14. Each one is a readiness item that blocks publication until it is answered. |
| Shade, mobile coverage, assistance animals | Sections 10, 7 and 11. All three hold yes, no or not sure, and not sure is a real answer that keeps the fallback on the list. |
| 1 | Ask what you have not thought of
"Is there anything about this place that catches people out?" The answer is usually the most useful thing you will hear all visit. |
| 2 | Take photographs
The room empty, the kitchen, the toilets, the carpark, and the doorway you will be carrying tables through. |
| 3 | Agree the next step before you go
Who is sending what to whom, and by when. A visit that ends with "we will be in touch" usually ends there. |