Kelz Kreate Craft Market
Creating Opportunities for Local Makers in Taranaki – Meet Kelli Sutton
What inspired you to start organising markets, and what makes your market special?
It all started with a conversation with my neighbour, who suggested we hold a market focused entirely on handmade crafts, as most local events in our area are boot sales. Since we had the space available, we decided to give it a go. What makes our market different is that most of our stallholders are new to markets. We do not allow boot-sale stalls, commercial products, or reselling. The market is small, welcoming, and focused on handmade, homegrown, and locally created products. With its relaxed country-style atmosphere and strong community feel, the market offers a lovely day out for friends, families, and anyone who enjoys discovering handmade treasures and passionate local creators.
What do you look for when selecting stallholders?
As we are still new, we mainly look for people offering something different from the other vendors. We also want to ensure that products are handmade, grown, or created by the stallholder themselves.
What are you most proud of as a market organiser?
I am most proud of the fact that every stallholder made sales and that everyone wanted to come back and do it again.
What is a behind-the-scenes challenge that visitors never see?
The planning, the promotion, and the prayers to the weather gods!
Can you share a moment when your market made a real difference in someone's life?
One of the things that means the most to me is being able to provide a safe and supportive environment for new stallholders to give markets a try. At our last event, four of our stallholders had never attended a market as a stallholder before. It was wonderful to see them given the opportunity to showcase their products, and to do so in a friendly, supportive environment. Helping someone take that first step and making them feel welcome is something I am truly proud of.
