Software for Christmas markets
Updated 10 October 2026
A Christmas market is a once-a-year sprint. Applications open months ahead, the best sites are gone in days, the whole thing happens over a weekend or two in December, and then it's over — which means there's no "we'll fix it next month". Whatever process you run has to work the first time.
Sold as a run, not as days
Most seasonal markets want stallholders for the whole event, not whoever fancies the Saturday. Selling a stall as the full run keeps the site full on the quieter day and stops the admin of half-booked pitches.
Demand outstrips sites
A good Christmas market gets more applications than it has room for, and a few approved stallholders always drop out once they see the invoice. A waitlist that moves on its own is the difference between a full site and a December spent chasing replacements.
Shoppers plan ahead too
Christmas shoppers decide which weekend to go weeks in advance, and a multi-day event raises the question of single-day versus whole-weekend entry. If you charge at the gate, selling both lets families pick.
How StallsApp fits a Christmas market
- One-off markets
- Create the market as a one-off event with its own dates, rather than a recurring schedule you have to switch off afterwards.
- Stalls sold for the whole run
- Tick "Stallholders must book every date" on a one-off market and the run sells as one booking — stallholders book the event, not individual days.
- Payment windows and an automatic waitlist
- Approval opens a payment window (seven days by default — set your own). Unpaid holds are released and the next waitlisted stallholder is offered the spot without you touching anything.
- Single-day tickets and multi-day passes
- Sell entry by the day or as a pass for the whole event, scanned at the gate by QR. Ticket giveaways let you hand complimentary tickets to sponsors, media or volunteers from the same inventory.
- Day-before briefings
- Reminder emails go out the day before trading, in your market's timezone, with each stallholder's details — so the bump-in questions are answered before they're asked.
- A site that looks like your event
- Theme, colours, fonts, logo and extra pages on your own market address — a home for the event that you can point every poster and post at.
Setting it up
- Create a one-off market with your event dates.
- Tick "Stallholders must book every date" so the run sells as one booking — decide before the first booking, because it locks once bookings exist.
- Add stall types and prices; set a payment window that fits your timeline.
- Open applications early and keep booking on request-to-book so you can curate.
- Add ticket types — single-day, a weekend pass — if you charge entry.
- Assign sites once bookings are paid, then let the day-before emails do the briefing.
Run your christmas markets on StallsApp
Applications, approvals, stall payments, ticketing and market-day tools in one place. Free to start — no card required.
Questions organisers ask
Can a stallholder book just one day of a two-day market?
That's your choice. On a one-off market, leave it as day-by-day booking, or require stallholders to book every date so a booking always covers the whole event.
What happens when an approved stallholder doesn't pay?
Their hold expires at the end of your payment window and the spot is offered to the next stallholder on the waitlist automatically.
Can I give free tickets to sponsors and volunteers?
Yes. Ticket giveaways generate complimentary tickets from a ticket type's inventory — emailed to recipients or printed — and they scan at the gate like any other ticket.