Marketplace – Vendor Application and Information

As a valued vendor of the Colorado Black Arts Festival, we would like to extend an invitation for you to be a part of this incredible celebration! This is the single largest vendor opportunity to target African-American consumers and supporters of the African diaspora arts and culture of the year! You or your organization could certainly be a part of this highly anticipated 3-day community event. We encourage vendors to offer unique products, art, and services relevant to the African diaspora to promote the cultural experience of and presentation to the Colorado community. Below please find registration information.

With nearly 30,000 visitors over the three-day event, the Colorado Black Arts Festival is an incredible opportunity to sell and showcase your art, sell products or services, engage festival-goers, and promote your business or organization. The Watu Sakoni (People’s Marketplace) is a highly anticipated part of the festival where visitors can get unique finds from as far away as Africa to handcrafted items made by local artisans and vendors. Professional and emerging visual artists showcase an array of works to an audience who appreciate art centered on the African diaspora. Non-profits and Special Exhibitors round out the offerings to visitors.

FESTIVAL HOURS
1:00 pm – 8:00 pm Friday, July 7, 2023
11:00 am – 8:00 pm Saturday, July 8, 2023
11:00 am – 7:00 pm Sunday, July 9, 2023

Vendor Contact Information: vendors@colbafweb.org.

Know Before You Apply:

Vendor registration deadline: Friday, June 9 at 11:59 a.m. Vendor spaces are available until the noted deadline or when all spaces have been filled. No onsite registration!

Before completing this application, please be aware that you are applying to be CONSIDERED as a vendor. There is no guarantee stated or implied that you will be accepted once you’ve submitted the vendor application. All prospective vendors will be notified within 5 business days of their submission once the vendor committee has had final approval. Accepted vendors will be allowed to complete the vendor application process by paying the vendor fee.

Payment and Vendor Fees:
A NON-REFUNDABLE $25 APPLICATION FEE.
The Colorado Black Arts Festival will only accept credit cards, organizational checks, certified cashier’s checks, or money orders as payment. Personal and written checks are not accepted and will be returned.
*If you selected the Civic and Social Organizations category, your application fee will be waived at check-out.*

All accepted vendors will receive an email confirmation of their acceptance with directions on payment of their vendor fee(s). Payment of vendor fees can be completed online or mailed to:

Colorado Celebration of African American Arts and Culture
Attn: Vendor Committee
P.O. Box 300577
Denver, Colorado 80203

REFUND POLICY
If you submit an application for the 2023 Colorado Black Arts Festival and you wish to withdraw your application, you must do so by emailing vendors@colbafweb.org by 11:59 pm on the following dates in the refund schedule.
CBAF refund schedule:

100% refund if you notify CBAF 30 days prior to the event (June 7, 2023 by 11:59 pm)
50% refund if you notify CBAF 15 days prior to the event (June 22, 2023 by 11:59 pm)
0% refund will be given after June 22, 2023. The forfeited fee will not be applied towards Festival 2024.

Refunds will be based on the above schedule minus the application fee (and processing fee if applicable). CBAF reserves the right to refund vendor fees by check.

Vendor Application:
To be considered for a vendor space, please complete the application along with payment of your non-refundable $25 vendor application fee. Vendor booth assignments are based on a first come-first serve basis with full payment and a completed application form. Partial payments are not accepted and any incomplete application forms will not be considered for vendor booth space. Vendor payments are non-negotiable.

***New for 2023- CBAF is not accepting new vendors exclusively selling sunglasses, sports team jerseys or tennis shoes. Returning vendors selling these items will be accepted on a very limited basis.

Additional Fees to note:
Electricity-one drop $150
This optional fee is for 1 (one) 120V drop. Vendors are NOT allowed power strips with this power option. You must request electricity with your initial application. On-site requests for power will not be considered due to the strategic layout of all vendors PRIOR to the festival. The availability of electricity is based on demand for Festival 2023.

Electricity-two drops $250
This optional fee is for 2 (two) 120V drops. You must request electricity with your initial application. On-site requests for power will not be considered due to the strategic layout of all vendors PRIOR to the festival. The availability of electricity is based on demand for Festival 2023.

Art Vendors:

Visual Artist-10×10 ($275) 10×20 ($475)
This category features professional and emerging African American artists who are selected based on their artistic talents.

Literary Artist- 10×10 ($275)
Artists’ work must be original and entirely written by the artist in the medium of poetry, novels, essays, etc. Publishers, book stores, book clubs, or dealers are not considered in this category

Art Dealer-10×10 ($575) & 10×20 ($1000)
This category includes any person or business that sells or displays artwork, not of their own craftsmanship.

Food Vendors:

Food Vendor-Tent Set Up- 10×20 ($1250. Pricing includes clean up fee)
This category is for special event vendors and retail establishments that sell food to the public. Water or other beverage sales are prohibited

Food Vendor-Food Truck 3 days- ($1250. Pricing includes clean up fee)
This category is for mobile food trucks. Water or other beverage sales are prohibited. Larger trucks >20′ will incur an additional fee.

Food Vendor-Novelty- 10×10 ($750)
This category is for food vendors that sell snack-type items such as popcorn, roasted nuts, pickles, candy, cotton candy, etc. If you are sampling items from your business for people to take home (e.g. BBQ sauce, hot sauce, jams/jellies, etc.), please complete the Special Exhibitor category.

Marketplace Vendors:

Marketplace Vendor-10×10 ($550) & 10×20 ($900)
This category includes anyone selling the following: Any quality made manufactured items, clothing, headgear, fabric, handbags, hair care products, home decor, etc. Copyrighted or pirated goods will not be allowed to be sold.

Arts & Crafts Vendor-10×10 ($400) & 10×20 ($650)
Vendors in this category can only sell personally handcrafted items elusively made by the exhibitor. This category excludes any vendor that sells clothing regardless of the manufacturing method. Any vendor who sells both hand-crafted items and manufactured products are considered a Marketplace Vendor.

Civic/Social and Political Organizations:

Civic and Social Organizations-10×10 ($350)
This category is for organizations engaged in promoting the civic and social interests of their members. (e.g. alumni associations, car clubs, travel clubs, booster clubs, ethnic associations, social clubs, Greek organizations, and religious organizations (including churches, health screening/education, etc.) This is not an exhaustive list of qualified groups/organizations. This category does not cover non-profit businesses that are promoting a business or services. You will need to provide proof of 501(c)3 or 501(c)4 status.

Political Organization/Candidate-10×10 ($700)
Establishments primarily engaged in promoting the interests of national, state, or local political parties or candidates. (Examples: campaign organizations, political clubs or organizations, political parties, etc.) CBAF is an art and cultural organization and does not endorse any political party or issue. CBAF merely provides a venue for campaigning regardless of political affiliation as long as there is no conflict with the mission and goals of CBAF.

Corporate/Special Exhibitors:

Corporate/Special Exhibitor-10×10 ($1250) & 10×20 ($1600)
This category is for businesses or corporations wishing to promote and/or sell their products or services. (Examples: franchised businesses, home improvement businesses, hospitals, and health services organizations [for profit and non-profit], chiropractors, insurance companies, universities and colleges [for-profit and non-profit]). See our website for more examples.

Young Entrepreneur (age 5-18) 10 x 10
Please email vendors@colbafweb.org with information about the youth and what they will sell. Very limited availability

Vendor Guidelines:

Prohibited and Exclusive Sale of Items
NO VENDOR including food vendors is allowed to sell beverages including water or alcohol. Vendors are also not allowed to sell or exhibit products dealing with drug paraphernalia, reference to illegal drugs, weapons, or toys that depict weapons at the Colorado Black Arts Festival. No items will be accepted if they are in direct competition with Colorado Black Arts Festival sponsors with exclusivity rights.

Insurance and Loss
All vendors/exhibitors are required to have their own liability insurance. Proof of liability insurance will be requested at the time of check-in. The Colorado Black Arts Festival is not responsible for any loss, damage or injury. Overnight security will be provided by the Festival; however, this in no way implies responsibility on the part of the Festival for lost/stolen items.

There is no rain date, and no refunds will be given for weather-related issues. All vendors are encouraged to prepare for possible inclement weather (proper weights, tent sidewalls, etc.)

Sales Tax and Licenses
All vendors selling goods are responsible for obtaining a Colorado and Denver special events sales license and for collecting the appropriate Colorado and Denver sales taxes. Each vendor must be in compliance with the Denver Special Events tax license requirements. It is expressly agreed and understood that the Festival will not permit any vendor to participate in the event that has not paid their taxes in full to the Denver Manager of Finance. Any vendor who is not current with their Denver and/or Colorado tax return, including not in compliance with the 2021 festival will be denied to participate until any tax obligation is resolved with the taxation division. The CBAF receives an annual report on the taxation status from the revenue departments of all merchant vendors.

Please visit the Colorado Department of Revenue Taxation Division for the Colorado Special Event Tax License and the City of Denver Treasury Division for Denver Special Event Tax License (scroll down to the blue box that says “Special Event Sales Tax” to download the Special Event Packet) or get Denver Special Event Tax Application and Tax Form here. The fees are nominal and representatives from these agencies may be on-site to assure all vendors are in compliance with obtaining their sales tax licenses.

All food vendors must obtain a Temporary Retail Food Establishment License from the City and County of Denver and shall have a valid Fire Permit from the Denver Fire Department to do any type of cooking. Licensed mobile retail food establishments may be exempt from obtaining a Temporary Retail Food Establishment License.

BOOTH SETUP AND GUIDELINES

All display materials must be of professional quality. Exhibitors are responsible for providing their tent, table and chairs, adequate weight supports and booth set-up, equipment, and supplies– CBAF is only providing the exhibition space. Tarps are NOT allowed to replace a tent. Tent colors other than white are highly discouraged and blue slant leg tents are not allowed to maintain a high-quality event. Branded tents in good taste are acceptable.
Exhibitors are responsible for the setup, operation, maintaining, and dismantling of their equipment and for load-in and load-out. The CBAF staff and volunteers are not responsible for transporting exhibitor supplies or equipment unless prior arrangements are made with the CBAF vendor coordinator.
The exhibitor shall maintain a clean and safe operation for the full duration of the festival. The exhibitor shall clean up the booth site and remove or dispose of all trash. Exhibitors will be billed if their exhibit space is not cleaned including zip ties, and will be charged for any damage incurred and jeopardized future participation in the CBAF.
Exhibitors are expected to comply with all Federal, State and local laws, rules, and regulations, and shall have all appropriate licenses, permits, and other required documentation. Subletting or booth sharing is strictly prohibited. Any vendor found to be in violation of these will be asked to leave the festival grounds immediately.
You must display your CBAF-issued exhibitor identification on the upper right side of your tent at all times. Exhibitors not displaying a legitimate CBAF exhibit identification will be removed from the Festival.
Food vendors must meet all standards of Environmental Health and Waste Water Management for Denver and will need to supply the following for their set-up: fire extinguisher, canopy, extension cords, flooring to protect from asphalt from grease/food splash, kitty litter, potable water, and handwashing station. A 16 lb. bag of ice can be purchased for $6/bag from Festival personnel. Food Vendors shall not leave debris, rubbish, trash, or grease/grime on asphalt. Any violators will be billed for the additional clean-up and not be allowed to participate the following year.
Items with the CBAF logo, title, or name will be prohibited from being sold at the festival.

Event Violations
If an applicant is accepted into the Festival and later found to have violated the required rules found in the exhibitor/vendor guidelines and the application, the applicant will be asked to leave the Festival, no refund will be granted and the applicant may not be considered for future festivals.

Vendor Setup and Teardown Schedule:

Thursday, July 6 from 5:30 pm – 8:30 pm (Vendors will not be allowed to set up on Festival grounds before 5:30 pm on Thursday)
Friday, July 7 from 8:00 am-11:00 am. (All vendor vehicles must be moved off festival grounds before 12:00 pm on Friday)

Tear-down is Sunday, 7 pm – 10 pm. (No vendors/exhibitors will be allowed to leave early and must remain set up until 7 pm on Sunday at the conclusion of the festival)