Friday's Food & Art Vendors

2025 Rules & Regulations

 Goals:

• To provide a monthly ritual in downtown Mt. Vernon for residents and visitors to enjoy.
• To promote the sale of locally grown or produced products.
• To grow jobs and businesses by offering the opportunity for local entrepreneurs to test and refine their products, thereby encouraging business incubation or expansion of local businesses to downtown Mt. Vernon.
• To provide an educational forum for patrons to learn the uses and benefits of quality, locally grown or prepared food products.
• To make locally grown and produced food and other goods accessible to the community.
• To bring regional and traveling visitors downtown in order to support other retail businesses and provide additional revenue.

Host: Mt. Vernon Festivals, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization, P.O. Box 1708, Mt. Vernon, IL 62864

Contact Information: Market Manager, Mt. Vernon Festivals, Inc.: (618) 242-3151 or tourism@mtvernon.com

Location: Broadway Commons, 911 Broadway St., Mt. Vernon, IL 62864

Time: First Friday evenings, 5 p.m. – 8 p.m.

         May 2              June 6              July 11              Aug 1               Sep 5               Oct 3

Products sold at Friday’s Food & Art:

Friday’s Food & Art is committed to creating a diverse market with high quality, locally grown and produced products available. Friday’s Food & Art will not be bound by a specific set of selection criteria for all instances and reserves the right to accept or refuse anyone as a vendor and will consider many factors when evaluating applications. Vendors are selected through a committee approval process. Priority is given to:

• Local farmers and producers in the State of Illinois, including re-sellers*.
• Vendors who create high quality, unique or unusual hand-crafted items (i.e. artists, crafters, etc.)
• Prepared food vendors who offer foods made from fresh, quality ingredients. Food vendors must adhere to menu submitted with application unless preapproved by committee as well as Jefferson County Health Department rules and regulations.
• Vendors from the previous season whose continued presence at the market successfully aligns with market’s mission.

Booth Spaces

Booth assignments are made by the market manager based on the following criteria:

• Available space, number of spaces needed, complimentary products placed near each other, and vendor absences.
• The market managers will make every attempt to maintain booth space consistency throughout the season. However, some crops are seasonal, and not all vendors may participate in the full season. Market space assignment may be adjusted weekly as needed.

Booths:

• Vendors are responsible for providing their own tent, tent weights, tables, chairs, and necessary equipment and supplies to conduct business. Tent weights are not required, but highly suggested. Stakes are not permitted in The Commons.
• All booth spaces are 12’x12’, with multiple spaces available for rent.
• No electricity is provided to any booth space, excluding live entertainment.
• Friday’s Food & Art reserves the right to disqualify the sale of any merchandise the market deems offensive or obscene.

Absence Policy

• As a courtesy, vendors are asked to contact the market manager by 5 p.m. via email or phone call the Wednesday before if they will be absent. This allows the manager time to find an on-call vendor and fill any gaps.

Inclement Weather Plans

Friday’s Food & Art will be held rain or shine. In the case of severe weather, Mt. Vernon Festivals, Inc. reserves the right to make cancellation decisions. Vendors will be notified via email or phone call in case of weather cancellations.

Set up/Tear down

• Set up begins at 2 p.m. and must be completed by 3 p.m. In consideration of other vendors, no vendors are allowed on the grounds until 2 p.m.
• Tear down begins at 8 p.m. Absolutely no early tear downs are allowed. Vendors are required to stay until closing. Vendors who sell out early must keep their booth set up and post a sign letting customers know they have sold-out. Selling out is a great thing and is a time for you to network with your fellow vendors, take special orders, or hand out business cards and share your personal story.
• Vendors are expected to be courteous to each other during set-up and tear-down.

Vehicles and Parking

• Vendors need to quickly unload vehicles then move to designated parking location before completing setup as communicated by market management. After closing of the market, vendors should break down their booth first and then move their vehicle closer to the market grounds.
• No vehicles are allowed near the market grounds after 4 p.m.

Clean-up and Garbage

Vendors are required to clean up after themselves. Vendor booth must be maintained in a clean, safe and sanitary manner. Vendors are responsible for taking trash to designated dumpster located on The Commons grounds.

Signage

All vendors will post professional looking signage identifying their business or farm. All goods for sale should be clearly marked with their prices either individually or on a larger sign that is easy to read. If a vendor brings meat or produce that was not raised on their farm a sign should be in place that abides by State of Illinois regulations stating where it came from.

Permits, licenses and insurance

It is the responsibility of the vendor to obtain and have on-person all licenses, insurance certificates and permits required for the sale of the vendor’s products at all markets.

Questions/concerns regarding food product regulations and/or licensing should be directed to the Jefferson County Health Department – Bryan McGill at (618) 244-7134 or bmcgill@jchdil.org