Mansfield, VIC
Our vision is to see markets and stallholders flourish – to push this wave forward towards local commerce – to see farmers regularly selling their own produce directly to consumers who are more connected to their food, and to help markets become the town squares of their communities.
– Jay Cooper, Nick Cooper, Veronica Ridge
Issimo Markets
Issimo Markets created a mobile-friendly platform that allows stallholders and food trucks to discover and book markets in just minutes.
THE PROBLEM
Running a market can be relentless. Administration and communication requirements can quickly spiral out of control.
While markets provide a direct avenue for farmers and other producers to sell their products directly to the public, keeping more of the value chain and therefore more of the profit, stallholder discovery and curation can be challenging.
Stallholders find it difficult to know which markets they can book. Many markets avoid one-off bookings often because they are too difficult to coordinate. Conversely, new markets find it hard to communicate that they exist, leaving areas of the market empty on the day.
The net effect of these challenges is that there is less opportunity for vendors to try new ideas, and therefore less chances to validate their product and get crucial face-to-face early feedback.
THE INNOVATION
The mobile-friendly solution devised by Issimo Markets simplifies and streamlines market bookings. The platform today handles discovery, bookings, communications, payment, documentation around food safety, insurance, liquor licensing, resource maximums and site allocation.
It enables markets to have full control and discretion over each application, with a simplified process that steps each party through the introduction, application and booking. A built-in messaging system allows markets and vendors to communicate for any special requirements, and all communication and updates are stored together, allowing for each party to quickly see the history and current status of their bookings.
Documentation for compliance (insurance, food handling etc) can be reviewed and stored and used each time a market books – saving markets countless hours checking documents and stallholders uploading them for every application. Bookings can be made far in advance, deferring payment and documentation until the market has accepted the booking and closer to the actual date.
Finally, any market can join the Stallholders Wanted page and monthly email, to get some fresh attention and new applications.