Wyndham's street market expects twice its first crowd, with 60-plus stalls filling the main street on 27 November

When the Wyndham Street Market began in 2023, organisers shut off just part of the town's main street for about 30 stalls. On Friday 27 November, they will close most of it, and they expect to need every metre.

At least 60 vendors are lined up for the market's third outing, a mix of food and craft stalls, community groups raising funds and free activities for children. Committee member Chase McDonald told the Otago Daily Times the number of stalls and visitors had doubled and was still rising. "Originally, we were only closing off a part of the street. Now we've had to close off the majority of the street, for the amount of stuff we have on it," he said.

For a town of Wyndham's size, the numbers are striking. The first market drew about 2000 people, and organisers are planning for at least twice that this year, with visitors coming in from around the region. By 2024 the stall count had reached 60. "We'll exceed that easily [this year] it's got really, really popular," Mr McDonald said. "[In the] second year, we were big. This year, I dare say it's going to be bigger."

The stallholders read like a roll call of the town. Firefighters, police officers, the town football club, the Wyndham Primary School PTA and the Menzies College basketball team are among the groups taking part. Children can try bouncy castles, face painting, paintball shooting and giant inflatable zorbs at no cost. Mr McDonald, a father of three, said the appeal for young ones was the freedom to "go for it at full speed".

"The smile on their face to say, they don't have to ask me to do stuff, they can just go do it," he told the ODT. "[That] is just the nicest feeling."

Putting it on costs thousands of dollars. The Wyndham Business Association sponsors the market, and the Southland District Council's Waihōpai Toetoe Community Board helps fund it by paying for the main road closure. Mr McDonald also set the record straight on why there was no market last year. A rumour that the council had withdrawn its support was untrue, he said; the committee, which now has four members, had simply been dealing with personal circumstances.

The market comes as Wyndham enjoys a busy spring. Earlier this month, hundreds turned out at the Wyndham A&P Showgrounds for the annual Lower Mataura Valley Pet Day, the ODT reported, where pupils of the Wyndham and Edendale primary schools, along with Year 7 and 8 students from Menzies College, entered more than 100 pets, from lambs and calves to dogs and poultry, alongside 90-plus baking entries.

Organisers would like stallholders confirmed a week out but will consider late requests, "as long as it's something bringing something back into the community," Mr McDonald said. The committee is also keen to welcome new members.

The Wyndham Street Market runs on the town's main street on Friday 27 November from 5pm to 8pm. Entry is free. Vendors can register through the Google Form on the Wyndham Street Market Facebook page or by emailing wyndhamstreetmarket@gmail.com.