Eumundi Markets
Running since 1979 on a strict locally-made-only rule, now pulling around 1.2 million visitors a year to a hinterland town of a few thousand people.
About this market
Eumundi Markets started in 1979 as an idea between two friends, ceramic artist Christa Barton and Gail Perry-Somers, for a European-style artisan and farmers market in a small Sunshine Coast hinterland town. The first day had three stallholders set up around the CWA Hall, refreshments served inside, and a grand total of eight visitors. The turnover that day was $30.
From three stalls to Australia's biggest craft market
Growth from there was steady, then dramatic. By 1985 it had reached 97 stalls and around 143,000 visitors for the year. By 1990: 203 stalls, 260,000 visitors. By 2000: 350 stalls, and a second weekly market day added in 2002 to handle demand. Today it's commonly described as the biggest art and craft market in Australia, with an estimated 1.2 million visitors a year, a genuinely large number for a town of a few thousand people.
Market at a glance
The founding rule, that everything sold has to be locally made, was set by the Eumundi Historical Society (now the Eumundi Historical Association) under Valmay Templeton, and it's the reason the market still reads as art-and-craft rather than imported-souvenir. Reviewers mention the ginger beer, German sausage and momos often enough that the food stalls are clearly not an afterthought, and buskers work the grounds on both market days.
One of the market's original 1979 stallholders started out selling second-hand items and became known simply as the "worm lady" for her handmade terracotta worm sculptures, pieces that went on to sell internationally.
Wednesday vs. Saturday
Saturday is the bigger, busier version: tour buses, tighter parking, the full crowd. Wednesday is quieter and arguably the better visit if browsing matters more to you than ticking off a bucket-list Saturday. Both days run rain or shine, so weather isn't a reason to reschedule either way.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What days are Eumundi Markets on?
- Wednesday and Saturday, 7:30am to 2pm, rain, hail or shine. It doesn't close for weather.
- Is everything locally made?
- That's the founding rule and it's still enforced. The original guiding body required all goods to be made locally, and that's a big part of why it's kept its reputation as a genuine art-and-craft market rather than a souvenir bazaar.
- How big is it now compared to when it started?
- It opened with three stallholders and eight visitors in 1979. It now draws an estimated 1.2 million visitors a year across its two weekly market days.