Vendor checklist: what to pack for a craft fair, market, or festival booth

I grew up working my family's mini donut stand at fairs, farmers markets, soccer tournaments, and weddings across Humboldt County. A forgotten item at a market is rarely a disaster on its own. It becomes one when it is the tent weights on a windy afternoon, the change drawer when the first customer hands you a $50, or the seller's permit number the organizer asks for at check-in.

This checklist is for craft, holiday, and farmers market vendors packing for an event, first or fiftieth. It comes from two places. The first is what vendors told each other: 188 comments in 11 r/CraftFairs threads where someone asked what to bring, plus threads on tent weights, cash, and card readers. The second is what organizers require: the vendor rules of 349 holiday markets and craft events on Vendorbound dated October through December 2026. Every rule and number links to its source. Food vendors have more to pack than this list covers; the kettle corn guide goes through health permits and propane.

The short answer

• Paperwork goes in first. Of the 349 event listings we checked, 49 mentioned sales tax or a seller's permit and 49 mentioned insurance. Bring the permit number, the insurance certificate, and your acceptance email to every event.
• Weights are not optional outdoors. Events that set a minimum ask for 25 pounds per tent leg or more, and vendors who have lost a tent to wind use 40 to 50.
• Take cards and cash. A chip and tap reader costs $59 and in-person payments cost 2.6% plus 15 cents. Vendors report bringing $60 to $300 in small bills for change.
• Read the vendor packet before you pack. Whether a table, chairs, electricity, or a tent are included changes what goes in the car. Electricity is often an add-on, and you bring the cord.
• The small things are what people forget. In vendor threads, by our keyword count, the most mentioned items were signs and price tags, snacks, tape and zip ties, cash for change, water, and a card reader.

Before you apply

These come from the event's application and rules page, so check them before you pay the booth fee.

• Booth size and what's included. Booths are not all 10 by 10. The East Helena Christmas Stroll sells 8 by 5 foot spaces with no tables or chairs. The Comets Christmas Market gives each vendor an 8 by 6 foot space with one 8-foot table and two chairs. In our sample, 41 listings said tables are not provided or that vendors bring their own.
• Indoor or outdoor, and whether a tent is required. Some events supply the tent and some require yours. The Buckhead Handmade Holiday Market asks for a "weighted white tent," and vendors on Reddit say some events request white canopies so the rows match.
• Electricity. Sixty-two of the 349 listings priced power as an extra, from $10 at the Eudora Holiday Market to $50 at Tinsel & Treasures. Forty-four said vendors bring their own cords.
• Load-in and breakdown times. Twenty-eight listings set fixed windows or banned early breakdown. The Southern Sugarplum Market allows breakdown from 4:00 to 5:30 PM only, and the Holiday Art & Makers Market in Sebastopol wants booths staffed 10 minutes before opening.
• Product photos. Many applications ask for photos of your work and your booth. Keep a folder of current ones on your phone so you can apply the day a spot opens.

Paperwork

Put these in one folder or one note on your phone. Organizers ask for them at check-in, and inspectors sometimes walk the rows.

• Seller's permit or sales tax ID. If your state has a sales tax, the event is a sales location like any other. In California, sellers at swap meets, flea markets, and special events that make retail sales generally need a seller's permit, and a temporary permit for a location open 90 days or less is free. In Minnesota, an event operator must have proof that you are registered, or a written statement that you sell nothing taxable, before renting you space. That is why the Minnesota Merry Market asks accepted artists for a Form ST-19 with their sales tax ID by October 23, 2026. Check your own state's revenue department before your first event.
• Certificate of insurance. Twenty-nine listings in our sample required liability insurance. The Cherry Creek Holiday Market asks for $1 million in coverage naming the business improvement district and the market for the market dates. The Kentwood Holiday Market takes either proof of insurance or a signed hold harmless agreement. Our vendor insurance guide explains what a certificate is and what a one-day policy costs.
• Food, cottage, or health permits if you sell anything edible. Fifty-one listings named one. The Southern Sugarplum Market requires a cottage license for consumables, and Dance Palace food vendors need a Marin County temporary food facility permit. If you sell food at markets every week, our farmers market guide covers the permits.
• Acceptance email, booth number, and vendor map. Some events check you in by booth number and send the map only by email. Screenshot it in case there's no signal on site.
• Parking pass or unloading instructions. Many events let you unload at the booth and then move your car to vendor parking.

Booth and tent

• A 10 by 10 canopy, if the event is outdoors and doesn't supply one. One vendor's first market lesson was "don't buy a cheap gazebo": theirs collapsed the first time the wind came through. A steel frame holds up better in rain and wind.
• Tent weights, at least 25 pounds a leg. Twenty-one listings in our sample stated a weight rule. The Wolfforth Christmas Market requires 25 pounds per leg, one vendor's next event required 40, and another vendor's downtown now mandates 40 pounds a leg after a tent went through a federal building's window. A vendor who has done this for years gave this rule of thumb: "breezy is good for 20-25lbs per leg, windy is 40-45 and gusty is 50+ per." Another drew a hard line: "if I need more than 35 lbs on my tent legs, my tent ain't going up." In real wind even weights may not be enough, and the damage lands on your neighbors: one vendor lost nearly $500 of ceramics when "a tent with weights" came down on their booth.
• Sidewalls, and a plan for putting them up. A tip from a first-timer's thread: attach the sidewalls to the top before you raise the canopy. Practice once at home.
• A flame-retardant label, if the event or fire marshal asks. The model fire code most US cities adopt requires a permit only for tents over 400 square feet, so a single 10 by 10 usually doesn't need one. Local rules can go further. California's State Fire Marshal can require tents and fabric enclosures in places of public assembly to be flame retardant, and the Tres Amigos show in West Sedona requires all booth decorations to be flame-retardant. Keep the label on your canopy and the tag on your drapes.
• Tables, and covers that reach the floor. Bring your own unless the packet says otherwise. A floor-length cover hides your stock bins.
• A chair. "Folding chairs (forgot mine once, NEVER AGAIN)."
• A wagon or hand truck. "Not all craft events allow you to bring your vehicle to your setup area. Some distances are short, some are several hundred feet away."
• Extension cord and power strip, if you paid for power. The Crafts for Christmas show in Maumee requires 14-gauge cords, and the Meade High School craft fair bans cords across aisles. Bring gaffer tape to cover yours.
• Rain gear for the booth. Plastic tablecloths to throw over stock, a broom to push water off the canopy top, and pool noodles in the corners to divert runoff.

Display and signs

• A sign with your business name that people can read from across the aisle.
• A sign that says how you take payment. One vendor's two must-haves for a newcomer's list: "Business name sign and payment options sign."
• Price tags or price signs on everything. By our keyword count, signs and price tags came up in more of the 188 comments than any other item. Laminate them. "cardstock signs and price tags don't like moisture," as one vendor put it.
• A "tax included" sign, if your prices include sales tax. Minnesota's rule is explicit: if tax is in the price, the item must be marked "tax included" or a sign must say so. Many vendors round prices to include tax so they don't have to handle coins.
• Display risers, stands, and the tools that hold them together. A screwdriver, because "displays fall apart when being moved from market to market."
• Bags for customers. Small and large, plus tissue or wrap for anything fragile.
• Business cards or a QR code to your shop, social accounts, or email list.

Payments

• A card reader, charged. Phones can take tap payments, but vendors who tried say a phone reads cards more slowly than a reader, and in some rural areas the local credit union's cards don't have tap at all. Square's chip and tap reader is $59. In-person tap, dip, or swipe costs 2.6% plus 15 cents per payment, and typing a card number in by hand costs 3.5% plus 15 cents.
• Don't swipe chip cards. If you swipe a chip card and the buyer disputes the charge, the liability shifts to you. Vendors in one thread learned this from chargebacks.
• Offline mode turned on. Some venues have weak cell signal, and one vendor switches to offline mode before arriving at those. Square stores offline payments on your device and runs them when you reconnect, but they must reconnect within 24 hours, and no later than 72. Tap to Pay on a phone and hand-keyed cards don't work offline, and declined offline payments are your loss.
• Cash for change. Vendors in two threads reported floats from $60 to $300. Get it from the bank on Friday: one vendor who ran out mid-show found the banks closed on Saturday afternoon. Two common setups:
  • Prices in round numbers: "I bring $100 in change. I price it so that my items are mostly ending in "5" or "0"."
  • Busy weekend events where people pay with large bills: "I usually take $250... if someone buys a fair amount of stuff and only has $100.00 bill, I can break it."
• A money pouch or apron. Some vendors wear aprons and keep all the bills on them, with no cash box on the table.
• A counterfeit pen if you take large bills. One vendor's bag list includes a money marker.

The fix-it kit

One bin that never gets unpacked. By our keyword count, tape, zip ties, and clips came up in 26 of the 188 comments, as often as snacks.

• Packing tape, gaffer or duct tape, and double-sided tape
• Zip ties, binder clips, bungee cords, and safety pins
• Scissors, a small screwdriver, and a tape measure
• Sharpies, pens, blank cardstock, and spare price tags
• Power bank and charging cables for your phone and reader
• Trash bags. Some fairs have a "trash in and trash out policy."
• Wipes, hand sanitizer, tissues, and a roll of toilet paper
• A small first aid kit, painkillers, and bandages
• A notebook for sales, requests, and restock notes

For you

• Water, more than you think. Water came up in 23 comments, often with "outdoors."
• Snacks that don't leave residue on your product, and a cooler. Not every event has food on site, as one vendor learned.
• Sunscreen and a hat, even under the tent.
• Layers, rain jacket, and gloves. "Spring and fall show weather can change fast."
• A full change of clothes and shoes in the car. The most upvoted answer in a thread about unusual items to bring: "Not just shoes, bring a whole extra set of clothes including underwear."
• Comfortable shoes you can stand in all day.

The night before

• Check the wind forecast, not only the rain. Decide how much weight goes in the car. If gusts are forecast past what your tent can hold, call the organizer. One first-time vendor facing 40 mph gusts stayed home after the organizer chose not to cancel.
• Charge everything: phone, card reader, power bank, and any booth lights.
• Count the cash float and write the starting amount down.
• Load the car in reverse order. Tent and weights last in, first out.
• Do a mock setup the week before a new event or new layout. "The thing that helped me the most was doing a mock setup in my garage the week before the show."
• Download the vendor map, your permit, and your insurance certificate.

After the event

• Write down the day's numbers before you drive home. Booth fee, mileage, hours, starting and ending cash, and card sales. One vendor's reason: "Everyone remembers gross sales and nobody remembers the $60 booth + $18 gas + 7 hours." A food truck owner who skipped this all summer posted on October 1, 2026, that they could not tell which of 14 events made money when it was time to book the next season.
• Note what sold out and what nobody touched, while you still remember.
• Pack out your trash and check your space for zip ties and tape.
• File the sales tax return on time. In California, a temporary seller's permit return is due by the last day of the month after the location closes.
• Restock the fix-it kit from your notes before the bin goes back in the garage.

Where to sell this season

On October 2, 2026, the Vendorbound catalog listed 2,033 holiday markets dated November 1 through December 31, and 1,742 of them were accepting vendor applications. The Texas holiday market hub and Ohio holiday market hub show each one's booth fee, dates, and what the application asks for.

Frequently asked questions

What should be on a vendor checklist?

Paperwork (seller's permit, insurance certificate, acceptance email), the booth (tent, weights, tables, covers, chair, wagon), display and signs, payments (card reader, cash float), a fix-it kit (tape, zip ties, clips, chargers, trash bags), and your own water, food, and weather gear. Read the event's vendor packet first, because it decides whether you bring a table, a tent, or an extension cord.

How much weight do I need on each tent leg?

At least 25 pounds per leg, which is the minimum events like the Wolfforth Christmas Market set. Some events and cities require 40. Vendors use 40 to 50 pounds a leg when it's windy, and many won't put a pop-up canopy up at all in strong gusts.

How much cash should I bring to a craft fair for change?

Vendors report $60 to $300. Price items in $5 steps and $100 to $200 in ones, fives, and tens usually covers a one-day show. Bring more for busy weekend events or if your prices end in odd amounts.

Do I need a seller's permit to sell at a craft fair?

Usually, if your state has a sales tax and you sell taxable goods. California requires one for retail sellers at special events and issues temporary permits for free. Minnesota requires the event operator to see proof of registration before renting you space. Check your state's revenue department.

Do I need insurance to be a vendor?

Many events require it. In our sample of 349 holiday and craft events, 29 required liability insurance, often $1 million naming the event. See the vendor insurance guide for costs.

Can I use my phone instead of a card reader?

Yes, with tap-to-pay, but vendors report it's slower, some cards don't support tap, and Square's offline mode doesn't work with phone tap payments. A chip and tap reader costs $59.