It’s obvious – if you’re selling creative products at a market, you want your stall to look good, show your products in their best light, and catch the eye of passers by. However, so many times we’ve seen people at markets get this wrong!
We’ve put together 10 tips to make your market stall look great and we hope these help you to think strategically about your stall.
First thing’s first – think about the 3 igh’s – height, light and plain sight.
Height: Your stall should have height to draw the customers eye up down, and side to side. ‘The eye line is the buy line’ apparently – an old saying in the marketing world.
Light: You should always consider how you light your stall particularly when indoors or in the winter months, not every venue or gazebo can be kind on your products.
Plain Sight: Make your products easy to absorb as a viewer, be clear about pricing as customers don’t always want to ask. If you have layers to your stall this allows for more clear marketing opportunities.
Don’t overload your stall
It can be so easy to get overly eager to show all your products at once, making your stall crowded and chaotic can make passers-by feel intimidated or overwhelmed by the volume of products. Keep it minimal and showcase your best-sellers. If you see someone looking at a particular item and you have other colourways under the stall, then reveal them.
Showcase your Best Sellers
That being said, don’t make it so sparse that passers-by can see everything with one glance. You want enough products on display to entice them in for a closer look, without it looking crowded. This is easier said than done, but once you get a feel for selling at a market, you’ll know what works best in future. Use every market to watch how customers interact with your stall, make notes and learn to develop stall set up down the line. And don’t forget – tell people what your best sellers are! We love to follow the crowd.
Show your business name
A bold sign or banner is great for grabbing attention from passers by. One of the first things a passer-by and potential customer will look for is your stall name because actually they want to start building trust with you as they come over, so make it stand out! We particularly love an oversized logo at eye height!
Nova & Me
Utilise colour
Group your products into colours that make them stand out, or use a bright tablecloth as a solid background colour to showcase them and make your stall stand out. Products can get lost in patterned fabrics, so generally plain is best to make them pop. If your brand has a set colour scheme for your products, utilise that and carry it through to how you display your stall too.
Nail that sales pitch!
Sales pitch makes it sound icky – but ultimately that is why you are there so, build rapport with passers by. Be friendly and approachable, give (authentic) complements out about an accessory or item of clothing etc. Nobody wants a direct sales pitch, but if you keep products clearly displayed and your pricing is obvious then this will do the talking for you!! Then, you just have to be ready to tell customers ‘I’ve got more of this in the back…😅’, which leads to further conversation. Also, tell people your best sellers! We are sheep and love to know what has been selling well that day/week/month.
Label your products clearly
Make your brand name and prices easy to see with tags, labels or signs. This makes customers feel more comfortable, as they’ll know prices at a glance without having to ask.
Wear your products
If you’re selling scarves, jewellery, headbands or clothing, wear the items to make them more visible and easily spotted!
Free samples
If you’re selling delicious food or tantalising drinks, tempt your customers with a small free sample of your scrumptious delights. The smell of cooking will entice people in too, and they might just fall in love with it!
Quirky displays
Using a wooden ladder for scarves or candles makes them stand out. Consider the style, shape and colour of boxes you use to store things in, that can be used to both transport things to the market and display them as well. Here are some further ideas to make your stall memorable.
Interactive displays are a great idea too – the rise of the gum ball machine was popular in 2023. But think lucky dips, seconds boxes – the list in endless.
Get your brand name out there
If you use paper bags to pop customer purchases in, why not stamp or label plain bags for a spot of extra marketing? They will then carry the bag around and show your brand name off to others and remember it for later. If you haven’t heard of the fab Tiny Box Company – they will brand boxes and bags for you.
Want more tips on creating a stand-out stall? Check out the 4 key elements you need to know. I hope you agree these tips will all help you to make your market stall look great.
Product Ideas to Help out Traders
Here are some products that stallholders do need or may want to make their stall shine a little more.
Card Readers are an essential piece of kit for a stallholder, we often get asked which one works best. Some are happy with the simple model and the most common companies to use are Zettle, SumUp, Square. Most of these companies also have devices that have their own build in 4G and also a receipt machine. You need to decide what you want to use it for and how often.
Regular traders might have both versions in case the WiFi available is poor or if one stops working – not uncommon and very stressful at a market.
Lighting – rechargeable gazebo strong lighting or table clipped rechargeable lighting. This is to attach to your gazebo – so you will also need some cable ties.
Alternatively you have have this clip on USB rechargeable touch control lamp. A little more elegant than the gazebo lights but it also comes in a version with 3 light heads.
Clickable floor mats to stop the cold penetrating up through your boots. Once the cold has got to you, whether you have 30 minutes left or 3 hours, it is horrible. Take a few of these to a market and keep the cold at bay.
Powerbanks are an essential nowadays and this one has a great amount of energy storage and when you are running multiple devices is definitely worth invest in.
Stall covering – these won’t fit every table set up but if you want to put it on to hide your stock below it’s a great investment.
Did you know?
You can get tons of free tips and advice from our blogs – but our Stallholder Membership can give you even more benefits! Click here to see what you’ll get when you join Pedddle.
Got more questions about Pedddle, or our sister website, Tresstle? Click here to find out how Pedddle can help you, or click here for info on Tresstle.