Privacy Policy

Last updated: 18 October 2026

1. Our commitment

Markets Direct is operated by SmartBizTech Pty Ltd (Markets Direct, we, us or our). We respect your privacy. This policy explains how we collect, hold, use and disclose personal information, in line with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). It applies to markets-direct.com.au, the Markets Direct newsletter and our dealings with market stallholders, market organisers and visitors.

2. Who this policy covers

Markets Direct is a directory that connects people with local markets and stallholders by council area. We deal with three main groups:

  • Stallholders: market vendors and small businesses who sell at markets and are listed, or want to be listed, on Markets Direct.
  • Market organisers: people and organisations, including councils and community groups, who run markets and provide market details.
  • Visitors and shoppers: members of the public who browse the website, search by postcode or council area, subscribe to our newsletter or contact us.

3. What we collect

The personal information we collect is usually limited to what you give us, and depends on how you deal with us.

Stallholders. Your name, business or trading name, ABN (if you provide it), email address, phone number, website and social media links, a description of your products, product and stall photos, logos, the markets you attend and your market schedule.

Market organisers. Your name, role and organisation, email address and phone number, and market details such as names, dates, times, locations, site maps, stallholder rules and application information.

Visitors and shoppers. Your postcode or council area if you search by it, your email address, first name and postcode (both optional) if you join our newsletter, and anything you include in an email or enquiry.

When you visit the website, we and our service providers (such as our hosting provider) may also automatically collect technical information, such as your IP address, browser and device type, pages viewed and the site that referred you.

4. How we collect it

We collect personal information when you sign up to our newsletter, email us, send us listing or market details, or give us photos or stories to share. We may also collect business and market information from publicly available sources, such as a market’s or stallholder’s website, social media page or council listing, where that’s reasonably necessary to keep the directory accurate. Stallholders and organisers submit listings via an online form.

You can browse the Markets Direct directory anonymously, without giving us any personal information.

5. Why we use it

We use personal information to:

  • publish and maintain market and stallholder listings
  • help visitors find markets in their council area. When you search by postcode, we use it only to match you with markets in or near your council area, and local visitors are redirected to their local markets
  • send the newsletter and updates you’ve asked for
  • respond to enquiries and requests to update or remove a listing
  • run, improve and secure our website, and meet our legal obligations.

We won’t use it for an unrelated purpose without your consent unless the law allows it.

6. Public listings and private information

Some information is published so the directory can work. For stallholders this is usually your business or trading name, product description, photos, logo, website and social media links and the markets you attend. For organisers it’s the market name, dates, times, location and public rules or application details.

We keep other details private, including personal phone numbers, personal email addresses, ABNs and newsletter details, unless you ask us to publish a contact detail. Before your listing goes live, please tell us if there’s anything you don’t want shown publicly.

7. Photos taken at markets

We may take or receive photos at markets for listings, our newsletter, blog stories and social media. We aim to get consent from stallholders before featuring their stall, and we avoid publishing photos where individual shoppers can be clearly identified unless they’ve agreed. We don’t knowingly publish identifiable photos of children without the consent of a parent or guardian.

If you appear in a photo on Markets Direct and want it removed, email hello[@]markets-direct.com.au with a link to the page and we’ll remove or edit it promptly.

8. Newsletter sign-ups

When you sign up to our newsletter, we record the date and time, your email address, your first name and postcode (if you give them), your consent and, where we keep a backup copy, the page you signed up from. Newsletter sign-ups are stored with Mailchimp, an email service operated by Intuit Inc. in the USA, so your details may be stored and processed outside Australia. A backup copy may also be kept in SmartBizTech’s Google Workspace, which only authorised Markets Direct team members can access. We use your postcode only to share news about markets in or near your area.

Sign-ups use double opt-in. After you sign up, Mailchimp sends you a confirmation email, and you’re only added to the newsletter once you click the link in it.

Please don’t include sensitive information (such as health information) in any form or email.

9. Email marketing and the Spam Act

We only send commercial electronic messages with your consent, as required by the Spam Act 2003 (Cth). Every newsletter we send identifies Markets Direct and includes an unsubscribe link, and we act on unsubscribe requests promptly (within five working days). You can also unsubscribe at any time by emailing hello[@]markets-direct.com.au.

10. Cookies and analytics

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to make it work and keep it secure. We use visitor analytics to improve the website. Analytics collects aggregated, anonymous usage data, such as pages visited, device and browser type, and approximate location, and it may use cookies. This information doesn’t identify you personally.

You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings, although some parts of the website may not work as well if you do.

11. Service providers

We use trusted third-party providers to run Markets Direct, including Cloudflare (website hosting and security), Mailchimp, operated by Intuit Inc. (newsletter sign-ups and emails), Google (Google Workspace, where a backup copy of newsletter sign-ups may be kept) and email providers. We take reasonable steps to choose providers with appropriate security and privacy commitments.

We don’t sell your personal information, and we don’t share stallholder, organiser or subscriber details with other businesses for their marketing.

12. Disclosure and overseas recipients

We may disclose personal information to our service providers, professional advisers, and government or regulatory bodies where the law requires it. Some of our providers (for example Cloudflare, Google and Mailchimp) may store or process information outside Australia, including in the United States. Where that happens, we take reasonable steps to ensure the information is handled in line with the APPs.

Our directory links to websites and social media pages run by markets, stallholders, councils and other third parties. Their handling of your information is governed by their own privacy policies.

14. Children

Markets Direct is designed for a general audience, and our newsletter is intended for people aged 18 and over. We don’t knowingly collect personal information from children. If you think a child has given us their details, please contact us and we’ll delete them.

15. Keeping information secure

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss and unauthorised access, change or disclosure. That includes access controls, secure providers and limiting who can see it. We delete or de-identify information we no longer need. If a data breach is likely to cause you serious harm, we’ll notify you and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) as the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme requires.

16. Access, correction and removal

You can ask to see the personal information we hold about you, or ask us to correct it, by emailing us. Stallholders and organisers can ask us at any time to update or remove a listing, photo or market detail. We’ll respond within a reasonable time, usually within 30 days, and we aim to act on removal requests sooner. If we can’t give you access, we’ll tell you why.

17. Complaints

If you think we’ve mishandled your personal information, please email us at hello[@]markets-direct.com.au first and we’ll respond within 30 days. If you’re not satisfied with our response, you can complain to the OAIC at oaic.gov.au or on 1300 363 992.

18. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The current version will always be on this page, with the date it was last updated.

19. Contact us

Privacy questions and requests: hello[@]markets-direct.com.au

SmartBizTech Pty Ltd · New South Wales, Australia