Summer Nights and Winter Days

EXTENDED: Please complete this form by Monday Nov 14 at the latest, thanks :)

We had a couple of reeeally hot market days last summer, and our current plans for mitigating the heat include shifting the stall layout slightly towards the trees and park, trialling mist fans, and setting up tables and chairs with umbrellas.

In the survey we asked for your thoughts on moving the traditional Sunday day market to Saturday Nights in December and January. Unfortunately, the results were pretty evenly split between ‘great idea!’ and ‘no, please keep it consistent!’

So we are coming back to you now for more details - this time we really need to know who would come in each scenario.

Please note that Summer Nights is a different idea from the Night Market we are aiming to do quarterly - the ‘Summer Nights’ idea is moving our usual day event on the 3rd Sunday of the month to the afternoon and evening of the Saturday before.

Event detail:

Sydney Vegan Market - Summer Nights

  • 3rd Saturday of the month

  • Replacing the day market in December and January

  • Trading hours: 2pm or 3pm - 9pm

  • Bump in starts: 11am or 12pm

The Summer Nights dilemma:

Generally, the public love a Night Market, but the downside for us is that fewer stalls book in, so it’s been challenging to break even.

Sooo, there are some clear pros and cons about shifting to an evening event in summer:

Pros of Summer Nights

  • Less heat for:

    • People waiting in lines in evening

    • Stalls with temperature sensitive products

    • Stall holders/volunteers/staff

  • Better attendance?

    • People avoiding the daytime heat?

    • People who love the Night vibe?

  • Could attract a new audience for when we resume the daytime event in Autumn

Cons of Summer Nights

  • Concern re the event breaking even

  • Stall holder/volunteer issues

    • Lose trading hours if we start later than 2pm, which is still pretty hot

    • Bump in during the heat in the middle of the day - hard for stalls and volunteers

    • Would volunteers give up their Saturday evening?

    • Some current stall holders are unavailable on Saturdays

    • It’s a pretty late night for everyone

  • Attendee issues

    • Lack of consistency re event day and time

    • Confusion between Summer nights and our current Night Market

    • Less appealing to families? Although many families did attend the last Night Market at Sydney Olympic Park

    • Despite consistent effort, Google’s processes for timely updating our location and timing are the opposite of nimble

So - please let us know by 5pm Monday November 7!

To ensure the market remains sustainable, we need to make realistic, informed decisions. Let us know what you would actually do if the markets remain during the day or switch to afternoon/evening over summer. Bear in mind we can only go ahead if we have enough stalls to break even.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts again, and we can’t wait to see you again soon!