Almost every farmers market in DFW runs a vendor application, and you apply to each market separately. There is no regional application, no shared vendor list and no single fee schedule. Seasons, costs, product rules and application windows are set market by market, and many markets publish a vendor application or vendor information link on their own site. Start on our vendors page, then go to the individual market page for the market you want, and follow its link to its own terms.
We are not going to invent a fee, a deadline or a requirement for any specific market here. Those change, and getting one wrong costs you a season. What follows is the structure of the process, so you know what you are looking at when you land on a market's application.
## Step one: pick markets by cadence, not by size
This is the decision most new vendors make last and should make first. A large share of DFW markets are not weekly, and the cadence determines your entire commitment.
A weekly market means roughly thirty to forty dates a season. A second-and-fourth-Saturday market means two dates a month. A market like the Cottage Farmers Market in Allen runs six dates a year. Those are three completely different businesses for a vendor: different inventory planning, different staffing, different cash flow.
Cadence also affects what you can sell. Six dates a year works for a shelf-stable or craft product. Weekly dates favor produce, baked goods and anything you make fresh. Each market page in the directory lists the cadence.
## Step two: understand who runs the market
Markets in DFW are operated by several different kinds of organization, and that determines how the application feels.
**City-run markets.** Some are operated by the municipality, with published rules documents and city contacts. The Lucas Farmers Market, the Grand Prairie Farmers Market and the Midlothian Farmers Market all list city sites as their home page. Expect a formal document and a defined process.
**Chamber-run markets.** The Cedar Hill Farmers Market lists its chamber of commerce as its home. Chamber markets often route vendor questions through chamber staff.
**Nonprofit market organizations.** Good Local Markets operates the White Rock, Fair Park and Tietze Park markets in Dallas from one site. Applying to one puts you in front of an organization that runs several.
**Multi-market operators.** Four Seasons Markets is listed as the home site for several markets in the directory, including Richardson, Sachse, Carrollton and Castle Hills. One relationship can open more than one date.
**Independent markets.** Others run on their own domain or their own social page. These are often the most direct to reach and the least formal.
## Step three: read the season dates before you apply
Season dates are the second thing that surprises new vendors. Markets in the directory open and close on very different schedules. Some run year round. Some open in March, some in April, some not until May. Some end in October, some run through December, and several add standalone holiday dates outside their normal season.
Applications generally open ahead of the season, which means the window for a spring-opening market is in winter. If you find a market in June, you may be looking at next season. Check the market page and its own site rather than assuming.
## Step four: expect market-specific rules
What you can sell, whether you must have grown or made it, insurance, permits, canopy weights, setup times and whether the market caps the number of vendors in a category are all set by the individual market. Some are strict producer-only markets. Some accept crafts and prepared food. Some do not.
Do not carry an assumption from one market to another, and do not take a number you read on a blog, including this one, over the market's own document. Ask the market manager directly if the site does not say.
## Where to start
Go to the vendors page for our vendor information, then browse the full directory or a city page such as Fort Worth, McKinney, Frisco or Plano. Open the individual page for each market you are considering, follow the link to that market's own site, and read its vendor terms there.
Shortlist three markets whose cadence fits what you can actually produce, and apply to those. That beats applying everywhere and being unable to staff it.
Every market's day, hours, season and website are listed in the directory.