The short version: TradeWins Marketplace is Burlington’s monthly makers’ market, and the Adventure is the free treasure hunt that runs through it. Shoppers search containers on vendor tables for little treasures, and some of those treasures are collectible cards featuring a sponsor’s logo and a 10% coupon for their business. With enough sponsors, the hunt becomes a story. Shoppers meet your brand while they’re curious, happy and holding a keepsake, and the market stays small, local and cozy because sponsors never take a table. If you want to be part of something people actually enjoy, this is it.

About the Market

TradeWins Marketplace is a monthly Sunday market (day still being determined, but I’m hoping  for Sunday) for solo makers and service providers, hosted at SmartPilates in Burlington, with 15 to 18 vendors per market. Table fees are intentionally low so emerging makers can test their work without risk, and the whole market is organized and run by me. SmartPilates is our venue partner, and we’re grateful for the space.

What Is The Adventure?

Every month, shoppers are handed a first card at the welcome table. It tells them there’s a hunt hiding in the market and how many treasures they’re looking for.

Each vendor table has a themed container. Some hold a sponsor card. Others hold a surprise giveaway, like a sweet or a toy. Nobody knows which until they look, so shoppers visit every table to gather their treasure.

Your card is part of the hunt, instead of a boring brochure on a table. That’s the whole idea.

How it works for shoppers:

1. They arrive and receive the first card at the welcome table. It explains the hunt and says how many treasures to find.
2. They visit vendor tables and look in each container.
3. Sponsor cards carry a logo and a coupon. Other containers hold a surprise giveaway.
4. They keep the cards and bring in your card for a 10% discount at your business afterward. A hole punch and counter app is all you need.

How Your Sponsorship Shows Up

It depends on how many sponsors join:

• 1 or 2 sponsors: You sponsor a treasure. Your logo and coupon ride along with a find that shoppers are excited to discover.
• 3 or more sponsors: I build a story or riddle around the hunt, and your card becomes a chapter in it. The story is original, written and designed in-house, and it will make a phenomenal keepsake of a wonderful market day.
• The more sponsors, the longer the story.

Why It Works

• It’s a hunt, not a handout. People who go looking for something remember it, and they remember who it came from.
• Shoppers are in a good mood. They’re out supporting local makers, not being sold to.
• The card has a job after the market. It’s a keepsake and a coupon, so it goes home in a bag, onto a fridge, or into a wallet.
• Your brand sits beside local makers. The people who shop here care about small and local, and your name appears right next to theirs.
• Zero disruption. You don’t need to staff a booth, attend, or sell on the day. That’s a nice savings.

What Sponsors Get

• A dedicated card with your logo, designed to match the hunt
• A 10% coupon (or your own offer, see “About the Coupon”) valid until the next market
• Placement in the hunt, seen by every shopper who finds your card
• 2 to 3 group posts with the other sponsors on The Ancient Millennial’s TradeWins Marketplace social channels
• A short results report after each market, with the real numbers (see “Tracking and Reporting”)
• A thank-you from me, in person and online, with a listing on my website as part of a growing directory of market-supporting businesses

What Sponsors Don’t Get (and Why That’s the Point)

Sponsors don’t take tables, sell at the market, or appear on the vendor floor in any traditional way. TradeWins is built as a launchpad for solo makers, and keeping the market floor purely creators is what makes it special. Your sponsorship funds that, and lets you be part of the market day without changing it.

Who Can Sponsor

• Local businesses only. Any business involved must be from the Halton Region.
• No competitors. No direct competitors will appear in the same hunt.
• First come, first served. Every sponsorship is reviewed for fit, and whoever applies first and  fits gets the spot.
• One card per sponsor. Sponsors can’t hold more than one chapter per market.
• Up to 15 sponsors per market.

Founding Year Pricing

Our first year is our founding year, and pricing will change as we gather more information. Sponsors can join in blocks of up to three markets.

• 1 market: $100
• 2 markets: 180(90 per market)
• 3 markets: $250 (about $83 per market)

Every package includes your logo and coupon on a dedicated card, a mention on our social channels, and a short results report after each market.

Sponsors who renew without a gap keep their position and their rate. Longer packages (6 and 12 markets) will open after our first year, and founding sponsors will hear about them first.

Payment is due in full once we’ve agreed on your package, before your card goes into production.

About the Coupon

Every card carries a 10% coupon by default. Sponsors can swap in their own offer, like a free coffee, a free add-on, or $5 off, as long as it’s easy to understand and easy to redeem.

• Coupons are valid until the next market (about a month).
• Tracking redemptions: No system yet? Punch a hole through each card at redemption and tally it with a free click counter app on your phone.
• Please share your redemption count after each market so I can include it in your results report.

Market Tracking and Reporting

TradeWins is new, so I won’t promise numbers I can’t back up. Here’s what I will do:

• Track how many shoppers pick up the first card
• Track how many shoppers report completing the hunt
• Send you a short report after each market with the real numbers for market attendance

What I Need From You

• Your logo (high resolution, PNG or vector)
• Your coupon wording and terms (2-3 lines, as short as possible)
• Your business name, address, and website or social link
• Confirmation by the deadline I give you before each market, so your card can be designed, printed and cut

You’ll get a digital proof to approve before anything is printed.

Cancellations and Refunds (and Why)

Your card isn’t a table or a booth, it's part of a hunt, and story, that vendors and other sponsors are counting on. When one sponsor drops out, the others carry the gap, and the vendors who’ve been promised a fun, full hunt carry it too. This market is built on everyone showing up for each other, and that goes for sponsors as well.

It works much like paying for a flyer run: once the work is underway, it’s done. So once your sponsorship is confirmed and paid, it is final.

Here’s what I will do:

• If a market date is cancelled or postponed, your sponsorship rolls over to the next market at no cost.
• If TradeWins ends permanently, you’ll be refunded for any markets that didn’t take place.
• I can’t guarantee attendance, and refunds aren’t offered for turnout. I’ll share real numbers after every market, and together we’ll decide if this is working or not.
• If you feel the need to cancel do so before the first social media post goes out with your logo and information or no refund will be given.

I’d rather be clear now than awkward later. If any of this doesn’t sit right, tell me before you commit. We’ll talk it through, and no hard feelings if it isn’t the right fit.

Want to Sponsor? Let’s Meet.

I meet every sponsor in person before anything is decided. Message me at [contact] and we’ll set up a short chat.