Information for Community and Information Stalls

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Thank you for expressing interest in joining us as one of our valued Stallholders.

This information pack details the information required for applying to run a Community Stall or Information Booth at the 2019/20 Woodford Folk Festival (WFF).

In its 34-year history, Woodfordia Inc has supported many organisations and non-profit community groups by providing an affordable way into the festival. WFF is the ideal place to hold information stalls where you provide valuable resources and share your aims and objectives with a captive audience.

Each year the WFF is inundated with requests from a wide variety of worthy organisations and community groups wishing to represent themselves at the festival. With applications continuing to grow each year and the commitment by WFF to continue to offer this opportunity, the information you submit is important and will determine the success of your application.

Welcome to Woodford Folk Festival

At the heart of the festival are our Stalls, creating a warm and welcoming space where our guests choose to extend their festival experience. Stalls are a creative expression and we love partnering with stall holders that share the same desire to exceed expectations, produce products or information of divine quality, and share an understanding that every interaction count.

Over the years, we have found there is a direct link between the stall’s aesthetic and their turnover. Stalls that provided feedback where they exceeded their financial expectations were those that took a lot of pride in their stall’s presentation. This is one of the key aspects our stalls selection committee considers when assessing your application so please join us in our pursuit of unlimited creativity.

Festival Dates and Trading Hours

Stallholders are expected to operate for the duration of the festival from the 26th December – 2nd January.

We ask that all stallholders trade per our minimum required trading hours (see below). However, stallholders are welcome to operate for longer hours during the festival if they choose.

Festival gates open on the 26th December at 5pm and we expect all stalls to be up and running. This is our first opportunity for our guests to have a look around, to scope out stalls they may want to visit during the festival.

The festival gates close 4am on the 2nd January 2020.

Guests will not be able to enter the festival before or after these times.

On New Year’s Eve and the 1st January, we recommend you trade longer and consider working with your neighbours to create a scene within your precinct. Organise a street party, sparkle up the roads and draw in the crowds. If retailers close earlier than 10pm the whole atmosphere in the area changes, please support the neighbours and create a late-night trade.

Minimum required trading hours:

Bumping-in and out

Contractors may enter the site earlier than this date to coincide with your bump in from the 10^th December, it is your responsibility to ensure that the contractors have your site plans.

WFF Service personal will connect your stall to power. It is important that we know when you will arrive on site and when you will be ready and prepared for our crew to connect your stall into our infrastructure systems, We will attempt to book in a time that suits all parties, stallholders or a representative of theirs must be onsite for this to occur to make it smooth for all parties.

Bumping out of your stall is permissible from 4am onwards on the 2nd January. Hired marquees can only be removed from Monday 6^th January between 7am-5pm only.

Community groups are to bump in from the 18th December and must be fully set-up by the 21st December 2019. WFF Electricians will connect your stall to power during this set-up time or between the 21st and 24^th. All stalls must be set-up with lights in place and a 20-25mtr tagged electrical lead rolled up in the corner ready to go.

Bumping out of your stall is permissible from 4am onwards on the 2nd January.

Stallholder Requirements & Selection Criteria

• Community groups who are non-profit and are incorporated and represent the community in line with Woodfordia Inc aspirations, dreams and moral obligations to the environment, human kind, fauna and flora.
• Community groups/organisations who have $20 million Public Liability Insurance.
• Community groups/organisations who can maintain their sites, stalls and volunteers for a 7-day festival.
• Community groups/organisations who can bump in on time and leave their site as they found it, clean and devoid of all waste.
• Representatives of community groups/organisations who are fun, ethical and aware of how personalities make an event.
• Community groups/organisations who are willing to create a striking and visually beautiful stall.
• Representatives of community groups/organisations who are honest, reliable and believe in the festival’s ethos.
• Community groups/organisations who can adapt to change and challenges.
• Community groups/organisations who show initiative and are able to follow the application process.

Generally, people who care and love what they do!

Stalls That Are Not Appropriate for WFF

• Community groups/organisations who show bias and discriminate against others.
• Community groups/organisations who do not agree with Woodfordia Inc’s objectives and aims.
• Community groups/organisations who do not want to put creative energy into the presentation of their stalls.
• Stall decorations/tents/marquees that have trade logos/corporate sponsorships advertised or stalls that are made from camping tents/carports.

Insurance

$20,000,000 Public Liability Insurance is compulsory for all stallholders.
All stallholders must cover their workers with a policy from WorkCover Queensland, Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003.

Cancelling your Stall at WFF

If you wish to cancel your stall more than 60 days prior to the festival, the WFF may retain 50% of the total site fee (before the 26th October). Any cancellations after this date will not be refunded.

Subletting

Stallholders can share part of their site with consent from the Stalls Manager, but stallholders are not allowed to sublet the stall.

Right of Veto

The organisers of the festival retain the right to enter your stall anytime and remove any article, sign, picture or printed matter which, in our opinion, is either not eligible for display or is considered offensive.

Community Group Stall Fees (inc GST)

Electrical Fees

Payment of fees

Upon being accepted to WFF, an invoice will be generated and emailed to successful applicants via the email address provided on your application form.

Successful applicants will be provided payment instructions and procedure via email.
Stallholders have 21 days to pay the amount in full in order to secure the site.

Your application will not be secured if payment has not been received within the 21 days.

Stalls Bond

Each Stall is required to pay a $300 bond. The bond will be included in the invoice.

Refund of Bond

You must leave your site the way you found it and be mindful of our goal ‘to leave no trace’. If you hire a marquee you need to ensure the contractors are aware you have a bond on the site and that they are to leave it the way they found it or may jeopardise this for you if they do not pick up rubbish including electrical tape and cable ties.

This bond will be refunded in January if you leave your site in its initial pristine state.
The bond will be refunded into the nominated bank account supplied on the online application form once stall management staff have inspected your site.

The Stalls Management Team will inspect your site once you leave the festival. It is important that your site is checked thoroughly; this includes screws, nails & cable ties.

Leaving ‘no trace’ requires each stallholder to remove all building materials, bamboo and any other infrastructure off site and place recycling and waste material in skips provided at the end of the festival. It is the responsibility of the stallholder to ensure that the site is clear of this debris and all rubbish sorted appropriately.

Ticketing

Included in your stall fee are complimentary Season Tickets with stallholder camping, which are non-transferrable. You and your entire crew must camp in the designated camping areas for stallholders to provide as much room for guests to camp in seasoned or overnight camping. This is strictly non-negotiable.

We want our guests to have the pick of the campsites and provide comfortable quiet camping for our stallholders and their staff.

The amount of ‘included complimentary tickets’ you receive will depend on your stall size.

Season Tickets for stallholders (complimentary and extra)

Additional stallholder staff Season Tickets can be purchased at a discounted rate once stall fee is paid in full. Discounted tickets are available up until 23rd December 2019. After this date stallholders can purchase tickets at the nominal gate rate.

It may be more convenient for you to purchase Day Tickets for your staff if they are only attending a day or certain days. Please go to our website and check out what is the most affordable way you can buy tickets for staff. Please note there is no discount on day tickets. They are available until the 23rd December 2019.

Ticket purchases are in accordance with the terms and agreements.

This year we have introduced a payment plan for stallholders to purchase additional tickets.

RFID wristbands

Each person on site will receive a bespoke wristband, designed exclusively for the Woodford Folk Festival, which incorporates an electronic chip. This is your ticket in.

Guests will be able to load monetary credit onto the wristband via the electronic chip. There will be numerous “top up” locations scattered throughout the festival site, making this an easy method for our guests to top up their credit.

Stallholders can be supplied with and trained in this easy to operate payment system. This is not compulsory to participate in, however it allows another point of sales for your retail stall, alongside your regular payment methods. We have received positive feedback from those who chose to use it last year.

The wristband stores vital information for our guests including monetary credit, purchasing history and current balance and replaces the need for cash and drink tickets.

Guests will be able to enter any bar, water refill station or festival retail outlet to use their wristband to pay for any items on site.

Patrons can also access refunds for any unspent money (no more drink tickets in their wallets at the end of the festival!).

Stallholders will be transferred the point of sales return twice, once during the festival and the 2nd and final payment prior to the 11th January 2019.

There will be an additional cost to you for this service.

Environmental Lore

At WFF we endorse an Environmental Lore regarding packaging. We are committed to reducing the amount of waste taken off site and into landfill. We sort all the rubbish, compost and recycle wherever possible.

Garbage & Recycling – NO PLASTIC BAGS

Over the last few years we have been working towards making this a single use plastic free festival and are encouraging everyone to use reusable bags and baskets. Let’s make this year the first year we never see a plastic bag on site!

A general waste fee is charged on top of your stall fee to help ensure we meet our waste targets.

Stall Allocation

Stall placement and overall layout of the site is at the discretion of the Organisers and Stalls Manager. Fitting everyone in to a tight area is tricky and sometimes we must consider factors outside of anyone’s control. Last minute challenges occur that result in sites being moved, we do our best to make it smooth for all, however at times have made big changes right up until the last day. The Stalls Manager is approachable and willing to discuss your needs and accommodate them if a stall change is possible.

Once you have been allocated your stall, stallholders must be mindful of not encroaching too far out onto the walkways with their racks, information boards or displayed goods for access and safety reasons. The stall management team will work closely with you to ensure there are no trip or potential head hazards.

When deciding what stall site size, you require, please include all ropes and awnings. If you arrive at the festival and your stall is bigger than you have indicated this has a flow on effect for those around you and will disrupt our carefully laid out site plans.

Amplified music in stalls

The festival programmes 35 venues across the site. The use of amplified music and loudspeakers is prohibited, as WFF is a live music event.

WFF is a fully curated event featuring a diverse range of live music and does not want to compete with private sound systems playing music that has not been selected as part of the carefully prepared programme. WWF also wants guests to be able to find places of rest and quiet on site. In addition, WFF does not have a license to play pre-recorded music on site apart from a very few performances in two of the venues.

The license to play pre-recorded music at a festival like WFF is hugely expensive. Over the last five years, WWF has actually reduced the number of times that pre-recorded music is used on site in order to reduce the license fee.

Please help us with compliance. We do have staff monitoring the site so if you choose to ignore this you will be asked to turn it off.

As you can imagine this is a boring task for us to undertake.

Please don’t add to our workload.

Application Checklist

1. Read the terms and conditions and other necessary information pertaining to being a community group/organisation at WFF 2019-20
2. Decide whether you can comply with the T&C and can afford to come?
3. Compile all the required attachments ready to upload

• The Stall Site Layout Plan and Camping Layout Plan is available for download on website. Please provide a scaled diagram of your stall as clear as possible.
• Please also submit your proposed camping and that of your crews and vehicle parking requirements on the separate  ayout form. Camping will be allocated once we know what site you are given.
• Digital images of your products or information boards.
• A photo or artist’s impression of your proposed stall, colour is preferable.
• Completed Electrical Requirement Form.
• Copy of current Public Liability Insurance Certificate for festival period.
• Community groups Mission Statement or Aims and Objectives.

4. Now fill in the application form online.
5. Upload all relative information.
6. Press submit.
7. Be patient whilst we go through all the applications.

The Application Process

Now it’s over to us.

1. Applications open on the 1st July 2019 until the 1st August 2019; under certain circumstances the organisers hold the right to accept stallholders after this date.
2. If you believe you can meet the criteria, please make application during this time. It is important that you include photos of your stall, keeping in mind the aesthetic expectations that Woodford Folk Festival wish to create.
3. Our team will endeavour to be in contact mid-August on the outcome of your application by email. Even if unsuccessful you will hear from us.
4. Invoices will be emailed within a nominated period and stallholders will have 21 days to finalise their payment to secure their site at the Festival.
5. Contracts for Woodford Folk Festival will be emailed with your invoice.
   Stallholders are required to return their signed contract within the specified period to secure their site at this year’s festival.
6. Further correspondence will be sent to each stallholder leading up to the festival regarding information and hot gossip relating to our stalls including your camping requirements for you and your staff, once you have secured your place.

Front of House Service-Your Front Counter

Each year we have noticed how retailers are working effectively with systems they have in place so they can easily record and calculate sales and stock, your ‘POS’, point of sale. This keeps an eye on what is happening with your cash flow and is transparent and accountable.

We highly recommend that you have a point of sales systems that allows an easy and simple transaction for your services and products with either cash, EFTPOS, Alberts, Squares or other technology options. Woodfordia is looking at RFID systems for the use at the festival and retailers will be informed if this service will be available at WFF.

We would also like you to consider your till system and its placement.   Encouraging folks to come in and look around, while quickly introducing yourself and what you have on offer may be hard to do if you’re down the back sitting on a chair, consider bringing your area to the front, observe the whole stall and the roadways. Take the opportunity to engage with folks as they come past, a quick glance of the eyes and smiles are always a welcoming and lovely thing to see and it may just bring you one more sale. Food stalls may find this difficult to achieve but consideration to your front of house is something to ponder over.

Thank you for looking through our terms and conditions and the other documents regarding the festival, even if you choose not to proceed, we appreciate that you showed interest in the festival.

Each year, we receive many 100’s of applications and inquiries; sadly we are unable to support all applications each year for many reasons.

If we are unable to provide you with a site this year, we wish you well with your endeavors and thank you for the time you took to apply.