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Markets help center
How to get set up and start taking applications, plus common questions about fees and getting paid through Vendor Highway.
How to
Set up your profile and connect Stripe
Sign up as a market, then fill out your business profile — bio, contact info, address, and social links — and upload a logo (it appears on every one of your markets' pages, and next to your name in the header once you're signed in). From "Get paid" on your dashboard, connect a free Stripe Express account — that's what lets your share of every application fee actually reach your bank account.
Create your first market or event
From "My markets" on your dashboard, click "Add a market" and fill in its name, venue, dates, application deadline, and fees. If you run more than one — a winter market, a fall market, whatever you call them — add each as its own listing; they all share your one Stripe account, photo gallery, banner, required documents, and terms & tax info from your profile below, so you only set those up once.
Set what you require to apply
Use "Required documents" on your dashboard to pick which of a vendor's uploaded documents (insurance, permits, ServSafe cards, etc.) they need on file before they can apply to you. Add a banner photo and a gallery to your profile too — both show up on every one of your market pages.
Review and decide on applications
Applications show up on your dashboard as vendors apply. Expand one to see everything the vendor already filled out — their profile, category, needs, and documents — with nothing for them to fill out twice. Approve or deny from there; application fees are never refunded either way, and approving can trigger an optional vendor (booth) fee the vendor pays on their own.
Send an email campaign to reach vendors
The marketing subscription ($29/mo) unlocks a campaign tool on your dashboard — write a message and send it to every vendor on Vendor Highway, vendors in one category, or just vendors who've already applied to you. It's built for broad outreach: filling open spots, announcing a new market, or letting past applicants know you're taking applications again.
FAQ
Why do I have to connect a Stripe account?
Stripe is how Vendor Highway actually gets your share of an application fee into your bank account. When a vendor applies and pays, that payment is collected by Vendor Highway and then transferred to you, minus our commission — a connected Stripe account (specifically a free "Stripe Express" account, built for exactly this) is the only way we're able to send that money to you.
Does it cost anything to connect Stripe?
No. Creating the Express account is free, and there's no monthly fee. Stripe's own card-processing fee is paid out of Vendor Highway's commission, not deducted from your transfer — the amount you see as your application fee, minus our commission, is what lands in your account.
How much does Vendor Highway take?
A 4% commission on your application fee. There's no cost to list your market or build your profile — we only make money when a vendor actually applies and pays.
Can I charge $0 to apply?
Not currently — every market sets an application fee of at least $5. This keeps the platform sustainable without charging markets anything up front, and $5 is low enough that it shouldn't be a barrier for most vendors.
Is there another way to get paid besides Stripe — check, Venmo, cash?
Not right now. Keeping every market's payments on the same platform is what lets us automate the whole process — collecting the fee, taking our commission, and paying you out — without you or your vendors ever having to chase down a payment manually.
When do I actually get paid?
As soon as a vendor's payment succeeds, your share is sent to your connected Stripe account. From there, how quickly it reaches your bank follows Stripe's own payout schedule (typically a few business days for a new account, faster after your first payout).
Is my bank and business information safe?
Your bank details are entered directly into Stripe's own secure onboarding flow — Vendor Highway never sees or stores them. We only store the connection to your Stripe account, not your account or routing numbers.
How do I approve or deny an application, and what about refunds?
From your dashboard, expand any received application to see everything the vendor already filled out — profile, category, needs, and documents — then approve or deny. Application fees are never refunded either way, the same way a film festival keeps a submission fee whether or not you're selected. Approving can trigger a separate vendor (booth) fee, which the vendor pays on their own once accepted.
What's the vendor marketing subscription?
For a monthly fee, it unlocks an email-campaign tool right on your dashboard — write a message and send it to all vendors, vendors in one category, or vendors who've already applied to you. Good for filling open spots or promoting an upcoming event.
Can I offer vendors a discount or a free application?
Yes — from your dashboard you can create your own codes: a percentage off your application fee, or a full waiver (the vendor applies for $0). Set a usage limit if you want, and share the code however you like, including through a marketing campaign.
Can I email a vendor after I've approved them — like day-of instructions or a reminder?
Yes, but it's outside the campaign tool on purpose. The marketing subscription's campaign tool is built for broad outreach to vendors who haven't applied yet (or applied in the past) — not one-off logistics with vendors you've already accepted. For that, expand their application on your dashboard to see their contact email and phone, then reach out directly from your own email or phone the same way you would with any other confirmed vendor — parking instructions, load-in times, day-of reminders, and anything specific to that one event.
Ready to list your market?
Sign up as a market