Carnival Stalls

Midsumma Carnival Stalls

Carnival is the largest single event of the festival, a free event that brings together all walks of our community to enjoy a day of queer celebration, with a range of performances and attractions for all. Expect in excess of 100,000 people to be passing through the site during the course of the day. If you have held a stall at Midsumma Carnival in the past, then you know how spectacular this day is. If not, then welcome aboard, you're in for a ride!

If you're wanting to request a Food Vendor stall, please check out our Food Vendors page.

Carnival Stallholder Registrations for 2014 will open on the 1 July 2013 and close on the 1 November 2013 (unless sold out prior). Earlybird discounted fees will be available until 31 August 2013.

Submit Carnival Stall Request (1 Jul to 1 Nov) ▸

  • Introduction
  • Pricing
  • Specifications
  • Registration
  • The Steps

  • On 12 January 2014, Midsumma will transform Alexandra Gardens (on the southern banks of the Yarra River) into the queerest party in town, and this is your business' invitation. With an estimated 100,000 attending in 2011, 2012 and 2013, the return to Alexandra Gardens in 2014 is set to entice even larger crowds!

    Throughout the day, Carnival attendees can sit with a picnic, watch the hours of free entertainment running over multiple stages and activity spaces, cruise the crowd and more importantly - find out about your business or community group! On the grassy lawns of Alexandra Gardens, Midsumma will host between 80-100 stalls, populated by varying community groups, government agencies, liaison units and commercial businesses.

    Stalls come with a variety of capabilities - ie. powered sites, unpowered sites, double stalls and you can order additional chairs and tables to suit your organisation. This variation is to allow all to be involved, overcoming price-point exclusion. Check out our 2012 Photo Gallery: Carnival Stalls to see the types of stalls we've had in the past.

    Want to be a part of the action at Carnival, but unsure if your budget will stretch that far? Midsumma offers an earlybird special to those quick off the mark! All registrations received before the earlybird cutoff date (31 August in 2013) will be charged a special earlybird discounted rate!

  • The pricing for Carnival Stallholders in 2014 has changed from the model of years past.

    This is a reflection of the changed site for Carnival, as well as a new layout for Stallholders on the day, stalls will no longer run in 'long rows', but will be formed into smaller 'pods' or 4-6 stalls, to allow for greater interaction with the public and a less linear look. This also means that there will be more corner stalls available to showcase your wares and services.

    Please read the below categories and rates for Carnival Stallholders carefully:

    2013 Stall prices

    • Commercial Premium (corner) Stall - $1,315 /earlybird rate $1,055

      Please note that all Commercial Stalls will be Premium Stalls in 2014, due to a different site layout

    • Large Community Organisations - $820 / earlybird rate $550
    • Small Community Organisations - $500 / earlybird rate $300

    all stalls include one trestle table and two chairs

    earlybird rates available until Saturday 31 August 2013

    To be eligible for earlybird rates, you must register before Saturday 31 August 2013 and payment must be received by Midsumma before 5pm, Monday 1 September 2013

    Is my organisation a Large or Small community group?

    The following stand lasts have been created to determine whether you organisations falls into the Large Community Organisation category or the Small Community Organisation category

    Large Community Organisations Small Community Organisations
    Local Council, State or Federal Government branches, offices or political parties Sports teams
    Local Council, State or Federal Government agencies or initiatives Victorian-based LGBTIQ social groups
    Travel/ Tourism groups, boards or bodies Health service Not-for-profit / Community Organisations
    National or International Not-for-profit / Community Organisations Community theatre companies or Artists-run gallery spaces
    Private Health Organisations -
    Educational Institutions -

    Want to 'pimp your stall'? Additional Options

    • Additional Trestle Table - $22
    • Additional Chair - $11
    • Commercial Power fee- $300 (includes fire extinguisher hire)
    • Community Power fee- $200 (includes fire extinguisher hire)

    all prices include GST

  • All stalls consist of a 3x3m marquee space (with marquee provided). The base package also includes 1 trestle table and 2 chairs. Stallholders may purchase up to 4 "stall spaces" and additional tables and chairs can be ordered within the online application form.

    Carnival_Stalls_Example_1_web
    Sample corner stall, ready for:    		 ANZ Stall: photo by Christian Doan
    simple adornment...
    		 Carnival Stall: photo by Benjamin Ashe
    or a more crowded design

    Stalls are arranged in 'pods' and similar businesses/groups (eg travel-related or sport-related) are located together wherever possible. Midsumma will determine the placement of individual stalls within the site once applications have closed and final stallholder numbers can be determined. Early-bird bookings have the option to request being located near/away from particular groups/businesses.

    Adornment ideas: photo by Benjamin Ashe
    Yet another adornment style!    		 2 Stall example: photo by Benjamin Ashe
    Sample double stall
    		 3 stall example: photo by Christian Doan
    Sample triple stall

  • Registrations for Carnival stalls will open on 1 July 2013

    Earlybird registrations close on 31 August 2013, and the final deadline for booking a stall is the 1 November 2013 (if not sold out prior to then).

    Registrations for food vendors open and close independently of the other stalls, see Carnival Food Vendors 2014 for more info

    Tip: to be reminded when stallholder registrations open, subscribe to the Midsumma newsletter!

  • You will be notified if your stall request was successful, upon which you will be asked to sign a standard agreement form and provide payment. If these are not received by the due date, your allocated stall will be assigned to the first entry on our waiting list. Emails will be sent to the address that you provided us in your registration. If you appear to have not received a confirmation email from us, please check that it hasn't gone into your spam folder.

    Once the payment and paperwork is complete, you will be sent a "Stallholder kit" which will outline exactly where your stall will be located on the day as well as many other important details such as the time allocated for you to arrive ("bump in") and depart ("bump out") at the end of the day. Of course you may arrive and depart outside of the designated times so long as you can do that manually, but vehicle access will be strictly limited to the times allocated. This is to minimise the possibility of injury to festival attendees as well as ensuring that bump-in and bump-out run smoothly and efficiently. Note that if necessary the bump-out time may need to be delayed until it is judged safe for vehicles to enter the site.