Live events & performance

Books and taxes for craft fair organizers.

A vendor's booth fee paid by Venmo months out, table deposits that hold a spot, gate admission on the day, and a jury fee for new applicants. Gus sorts each apart, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.

Book a call What we handle
  • From $197 a month
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever
NovemberExample month
$5,800
what you made

November cleared $5,800. The holiday market's booth deposits from October are now booked against this month's actual event.

  • Venmo, vendor booth feesVendor and booth fees
  • Gate admission, cash depositGate admissions
  • Tent and table rentalSite infrastructure
  • Local newspaper adMarketing
  • Event liability insuranceInsurance
Money in$21,000
Money out$15,200
Set aside for taxes$1,300
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

A craft fair's books go wrong the same way, market after market.

A generalist sees a stack of Venmo payments and a tent rental bill. Your market is dozens of small vendor payments collected weeks ahead, a jury fee charged to new applicants, gate money on the day, and a deposit that holds a booth spot whether or not the vendor shows.

  1. 1

    Vendor booth fees collected weeks ahead get counted too early

    A vendor who pays a booth fee in September for a November market has really paid a deposit against that event, and counted as September income, it makes a slow month look busier than it is.

    What we doHolds vendor booth fees against the market date they belong to, so early sign-ups do not distort the months before the event.
  2. 2

    Dozens of small payment app transfers are hard to trace

    A market with sixty vendors paying booth fees through personal payment apps generates a pile of small, similarly labeled deposits that are easy to lose track of or double count.

    What we doWorks through every small payment app deposit and matches it to a vendor and a market date, so nothing gets lost in the pile.
  3. 3

    Jury and application fees get lumped with booth fees

    A fee charged to new vendors just to apply for a spot is a different kind of income than the booth fee itself, and mixed together it hides how many vendors are applying versus how many actually get in and pay full price.

    What we doKeeps jury and application fees in their own line, separate from confirmed booth fees.
  4. 4

    A no-show vendor's deposit gets refunded without a record

    When a vendor cancels or does not show, a deposit refund handled by hand often never makes it back into the books, leaving a gap between what was collected and what the market actually kept.

    What we doTracks deposit refunds against the vendor and market they were for, so cancellations do not quietly disappear from the numbers.
  5. 5

    Gate money and vendor fees blend into one deposit

    Cash collected at the gate and vendor booth payments often get deposited together at the end of a market day, hiding whether the event is really funded by vendors or by foot traffic.

    What we doKeeps gate admissions and vendor fees apart, so you can see which side of the market is really carrying it.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a craft fair or makers market.

Set up once for how a market makes money and where it goes. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.

Money in

  • Vendor and booth feesConfirmed booth payments from makers and small businesses.
  • Jury and application feesFees charged to new vendors applying for a spot.
  • Gate admissionsSpectator entry fees collected at the door, where charged.
  • SponsorshipsLocal business support for signage or the market's social promotion.
  • DepositsBooth deposits held to secure a spot, tracked until the market happens.

Money out

  • Site infrastructureTent, table, and chair rental for the market.
  • MarketingLocal ads, social promotion, and printed flyers.
  • InsuranceEvent liability coverage for vendors and visitors.
  • Site and venue rentalParking lot, park permit, or hall rental for the market date.
  • StaffingSetup crew, gate staff, and vendor check-in help.
  • Signage and wayfindingBooth number signs, banners, and directional signage.
  • Payment app feesWhat Venmo, Square, or Cash App keeps on processed payments.

What we watch for you

  • Vendor fill rate

    How many booth spots are filled against how many are available, before the next market's marketing push.

  • Gate-to-vendor ratio

    How much of revenue comes from vendor fees versus gate admission, useful when setting next season's pricing.

  • No-show rate

    How often paid vendors cancel or do not show, which affects how deposits should be handled.

  • The set-aside

    What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number already known.

Ask Gus

Things market organizers ask Gus.

Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.

I have forty Venmo payments from vendors for next month's market. Can you sort those?

Yes. I match each one to a vendor and hold it against next month's market date, so it does not get counted as this month's income.

A vendor canceled and I refunded her deposit by hand. Does that need tracking?

It does, so the market's real numbers reflect what you actually kept. Send me what you sent back and I will log it against that vendor and market.

Should we start charging a jury fee for new vendor applications?

That is a pricing and vendor relations call above what I settle alone. I can show you how full your booths have been running, and the accountant can help you think through it.

The tax side

The tax side of running a craft fair.

Most of what goes wrong here is volume: dozens of small vendor payments through personal payment apps, and no single deposit that tells the whole story.

What your return has to get right

Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.

  • 1099-K from payment appsVenmo, Cash App, and similar apps issue a 1099-K once an account crosses $20,000 and 200 transactions in a year. All vendor booth income is taxable whether or not that form arrives.
  • Contractor 1099s for market-day staffA setup crew member or gate worker paid $2,000 or more over the year outside payroll gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
  • Matching vendor fees to the right market dateA booth fee collected weeks ahead belongs to the market it was paid for, not the month the payment landed. Getting the timing right keeps each event's numbers honest.
  • Worker classification for setup and gate staffA setup crew member or gate worker who works your schedule and follows your rules at every market is usually an employee, even for a once-a-month role.

Deductions craft fair and makers market organizers miss

Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.

  • Tent and table rental
  • Booth number signage
  • Event liability insurance
  • Site and parking lot rental
  • Payment app processing fees
  • Printed flyers and posters
  • Social media ad spend
  • Vendor check-in supplies
  • Directional and wayfinding signs
  • Cash boxes and change funds
  • Weatherproof tarps and covers
  • Trade association dues

General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.

All year, not just April

A craft fair's year, kept every month.

Markets often run monthly or seasonally, with vendor sign-ups landing weeks before each one. Gus keeps the tax calendar lined up alongside it. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.

  1. January

    Plan the year

    Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list for market-day staff is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.

  2. April

    Filed. Done.

    Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.

  3. July

    Midyear check

    Where you stand across the year's markets so far, and what you will owe.

  4. October

    Before the holiday market rush

    Holiday markets usually bring the year's biggest vendor sign-ups. Before it hits, Gus lays out what the year has cleared so far.

What you get

Starts at$197a month

What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.

Book a call
  • Monthly bookkeeping

    Every transaction sorted into categories set up for craft fair and makers market organizers. You never categorize a thing.

  • An accountant checks every transaction

    Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.

  • Your business tax return, filed

    Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.

  • The monthly number

    What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.

  • Your own bookkeeper

    A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.

  • On your books all year

    Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.

  • Cancel any time

    No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.

Straight answers

Questions market organizers ask first.

Our vendors pay through Venmo and Cash App. Can Gus sort all of that?

Yes. Gus works through every payment app deposit and matches it to a vendor and a market date, so nothing gets lost in the pile.

Do we need a 1099 for vendors who rent a booth from us?

No. A booth fee is what a vendor pays you, not the other way around, so no 1099 is owed to them for that. A 1099 only applies to people you pay for work, like setup crew or gate staff.

We collect deposits months before a market happens. How is that handled?

Gus holds deposits and booth fees against the market date they belong to, so an early sign-up rush does not get counted as the wrong month's income.

A vendor canceled and we refunded her by hand. Does that matter for the books?

Yes. Send what you sent back and Gus logs it against that vendor and market, so the numbers reflect what you actually kept.

Do we owe anything on jury or application fees from vendors who did not get in?

That income is ordinary business income like any booth fee, and Gus keeps it in its own category so you can see it apart from confirmed spots.

Our books are behind after a busy holiday season. Can Gus catch up?

Yes. Send the bank and payment app statements you have, and Gus sorts them market by market. Most organizers know where they stand inside a week.

Is a real accountant checking my books?

Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.

What does it cost, and can I cancel?

It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.

More in live events & performance

We keep books for the business next door too.

What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for

Book a call

Pick a time. That's the whole signup.

Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.

  • $197 a month to start
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever