STALLHOLDER NEWSLETTER
Welcome to Bellingen Community Markets 16 December 2023
Summer has arrived and doing her best to heat our part of the world, so I trust you have stayed cool and kept your cool. Please come prepared for another hotty and possibly light rain on the day.
Once again we have a very full market with many artisans attending. Heaps of second hand stalls applied this month so we opened up G section where stalls will be under the shade of the trees near the skate-ramp, off Creek Lane.
I’m so sorry to those who didn’t get in and hope we hear from you again.
With Christmas around the corner, it’s a busy time and our market is a great opportunity to do some Christmas shopping and find something special. It’s also a great opportunity to help those less fortunate than ourselves. Some people are doing it tough and Christmas brings on new challenges. Therefore we ask stallholders and visitors to please donate something nice, where The Bellingen Neighbourhood Centre will organise into gift boxes and give out to those in need over the Bellingen Shire. Thanks so much for your generosity and support.
Don’t forget we have a prize for the best dressed X-Mas stall. Please make the effort to dress up and look bright and colourful. One lucky stallholder will get a free stall next market and a write up in our next newsletter and on Facebook.
Listen to cool music with talented brother and sister duo Geoff and Xanthe Littlemore. They have been singing together since small fries and know how to entertain. See more below.
OzGREEN is our community group of the month and will be on the gates welcoming all, so please support them and their valuable youth projects. They will also have an Eco gift wrapping stall on west of oval, so go along and find out how you can wrap sustainably. More information below.
Santa couldn’t make it this year but we have a couple of lovely fairies wandering through the market sharing bubbles, music and joy along with a few face-painters over the market. The Sundara Tribe belly-dancers will be moving and shaking on stage around 11am, and brilliant buskers at every angle.
May you get the time and energy to have a look around our amazing market and meet the good people who make it the special place it is.
Thanks for reading and complying to our market rules and directives (as below). and thanks for communicating promptly, and clearly. It’s good to be on the same page, where everyone knows what to do. It all helps make our day flow safely, smoothly and enjoyably.
I look forward to seeing you all soon. In the meantime, have a great week and keep smiling
Kaz Selbie
Bellingen Community Markets Manager
MUSIC ON STAGE 9AM – 2.30PM
Geoof and Xanthe Littlemore
Geoff and Xanthe Littlemore grew up playing music together. The Beatles, David Bowie, Bob Dylan, John Prine, Tim Buckley, Joan Armatrading was the soundtrack to their childhood. The duo sing and play guitar, bouncing off each other’s voices and guitar licks with that special bond that only family share.
Geoff’s influences include Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix and Buddy Guy. He has done concerts with luminaries such as John English, John Mayall and Canned Heat. He has toured with lots of his bands around the East Coast of Australia.
Xanthe has done concerts with Bob Dylan, Tommy Emmanuel and Paul Kelly. She won Australian “Songwriter of the Year” with her song “Space to Be”. She has gigged all around Australia, the USA and Europe.
Geoff and Xanthe play mostly Bob Dylan and John Prine songs along with a selection of their own original songs, plus their version of other well-loved classics.
Playing on the main stage from 10am – 2.30pm
COMMUNITY GROUP OF THE DAY
OzGREEN
OzGREEN are on a mission to create sustainable communities. They deliver programs, events and resources to increase wellbeing, build capacity and facilitate action and employ and mentor regional youth (because young people are the future) to help us deliver: youth wellbeing camps + clubs, waste reduction at major events, tree planting projects, nature connection, bushwalks, bird walks, kayak tours, sustainability skills workshops, and citizen science.
They will be on the gates welcoming all to our market while asking for your support. Please give where you can for this valuable cause.
As mentioned above OzGREEN also have an Eco friendly gift wrapping stall on the west of oval, helping the community rethink the way we approach gift wrapping.
Did you know that due to its plastic coating, most Christmas wrapping paper is not actually recyclable, in an effort to address the prevalent issue of non-recyclable Christmas wrapping paper, OzGREEN will be running an eco-wrapping stall to enlighten market goers about the environmental impact of conventional wrapping materials, all while offering a more planet-friendly gift wrapping service which will be available by donation to wrap your market goodies in things such as fabric, recycled paper and newspaper!
Christmas can be a really wasteful time. Last week, work experience student, Marie Black, from Bellingen High School worked with local environmental charity, OzGREEN to create an educational resource to tackle this issue in our community. The resource steps people through ten fun and easy ways to reduce waste this Christmas, everything from presents, wrapping, food, decorations and wreaths. The resource will be available at Bellingen Community Market and is being distributed to cafes and shops throughout Bellingen now, and is also available online. Look out for the resource when you’re next in town or visit https://www.ozgreen.org/rethinkwaste
Sundara Tribe belly-dancers
The Sundara Tribe belly-dancers are a collaboration of troupes and soloist dancers from the Mid North Coast of NSW. They will be moving and shaking on stage around 11am.
Market day procedures
Thank you for reading and following the below. Your support will ensure a smooth and enjoyable day for all. Thanks.
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- Have you read our “stallholder’s terms & conditions” ? You did agree to this when you booked.
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- Please listen to directives of our crew – be patient, flexible, friendly and respectful.
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- Arrive at the correct time at the right gate.
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- Permanents enter at 6.30am and casuals at 6.45am.
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- Unless prior notice, anyone arriving after 7.30am may loose their position.
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- Remain quiet when lining up in morning to consider sleeping residents.
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- When in the park, do not reverse and please drive one way.
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- Always drive at walking pace and NEVER drive on football oval.
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- When entering, drive in and park close to your stall so other cars can pass.
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- Quickly unload and take your car out before returning to set up.
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- The above helps alleviate traffic congestion.
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- Park a couple of streets away so your customers can park closer.
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- Cars must be out of park by 8am and no cars to stay in the park unless agreed with Manager.
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- Fees are collected at 10am so please have the correct change ready. Don’t rely on sales to pay your fee.
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- We are a plastic free market, so no plastic products and nothing covered in plastic.
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- All eating utensils must be biodegradable
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- All stallholders must take their rubbish home. Please don’t use out skips bins.
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- This is especially important for food vendors – take home all your food scraps, ideally composting them.
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- Smile for the camera. Photos are often taken and uploaded to Facebook after the market.
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- Gates open again at 2.30pm for cars to enter for pack down. Do not enter before this.
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- Again please drive at walking pace.
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- All stalls in E and F section must line up on west side of Ford St at 2.30pm, so you don’t cross a busy St.
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- Report any incidents to your section coordinator or Manager.
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- Please be out of the park by 4pm latest.
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- NO DOGS ALLOWED
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- Have the best market day and thanks for your support and cooperation.
Casuals please note:
You need to fill out the booking form every month to apply and it’s best to do this 2-4 weeks before each market, held every 3rd Saturday of the month. Filling out the booking form every months allows you to get our newsletter and market updates.
Please finalise your booking ASAP by replying to the booking email with site number, confirming your attendance. We often have people on a waiting list, so please confirm early.
To become permanent casuals attend regularly for 6-12 months and all going well, will be invited to be permanent.
E & F Section casual stallholders line up on east side of Ford St, and wind around to Mary St in the morning and permanents line up on west side of Ford St. ALAS in the afternoon, both casuals and permanents line up on west side of Ford St, so you don’t cross a busy street at this time. Thanks for your assistance on this.
Thank you
A big thanks to all our wonderful stallholders, patrons and groups for supporting Bellingen Markets over the year. We LOVE spending one day a month with our market family sharing and caring.
We wish you and your families the very best over Christmas and New Year.
Peter and Marie Thomas from Shelf Respect, lovely and longstanding stallholders, have called it quits. After years of selling a diverse range of books they have completed their last chapter of market life. Peter has a illness he is positively managing But it was their crazy van who helped make the ultimate decision when the mechanic told them it was unrepairable.
We wish Peter and Marie all the very best in their future endeavours and look forward to seeing them as visitors to our market.
In the meantime, they have some gear for sale:
8 long tables, a Gazebo with a new roof and awnings
If interested please email us and we will pass on their contact.
If you haven’t already LIKED us on Facebook, what are you waiting for? It’s the best way to get the latest notifications and know what’s coming up. It also would be super terrific if you could LIKE and SHARE our posts with friends and family. Thanks for your support.
Santa by Kara Kotsya
Bellingen Community Markets…. not just a marketplace but a great place to be !