Landowner & venue partnerships
Car boot sale & market operators
Capital Boot Sales runs car boot sales and markets across Hertfordshire, Essex, London and Gloucestershire. We promote our sales through our seller network and a combined social media following of over 100,000.
We run regular sales that provide income for public and private landowners. We agree trading dates and access in advance and manage promotion, staffing, arrivals, parking and clearance around the site’s existing use.
We work with Essex County Council at Sandon and Colchester Park and Ride and with Lee Valley Regional Park Authority in Edmonton. We also run the longstanding Great Amwell and Cuffley sales and Gloucester’s city car boot sale at Hempsted Meadow.
For landowners, councils & venues
Car boot sale& market operators
Capital Boot Sales runs car boot sales and markets across Hertfordshire, Essex, London and Gloucestershire. We promote our sales through our seller network and a combined social media following of over 100,000.
We run regular sales that provide income for public and private landowners. We agree trading dates and access in advance and manage promotion, staffing, arrivals, parking and clearance around the site’s existing use.
We work with Essex County Council at Sandon and Colchester Park and Ride and with Lee Valley Regional Park Authority in Edmonton. We also run the longstanding Great Amwell and Cuffley sales and Gloucester’s city car boot sale at Hempsted Meadow.
Council sites and private venues
Seasonal and year round
Combined across all six sites
Plus £10m employers’ liability
Our operating record
Our sites and partnerships
Our operating record includes launching new sales, developing established venues and reopening Gloucester’s purpose built market. The case studies below show how we work with landowners to build regular trading operations around each venue’s existing use.
Establishing and developing sales
Sandon and Colchester Park and Ride
We run Sunday and bank holiday Monday sales at two working Essex County Council Park and Ride sites, clearing the trading areas before the service resumes.
Reopening a city market
Hempsted Meadow, Gloucester
We reopened Gloucester’s city car boot sale after securing a 15-year lease through competitive tender and run it on Sundays and Wednesdays.
Managing longstanding venues
Great Amwell and Cuffley
We run seasonal Sunday sales on two private farms in Hertfordshire, including Cuffley, which has hosted a car boot sale for more than 30 years.
Establishing new sales
Edmonton, Lee Valley Leisure Complex
We established a midweek sale at Lee Valley Regional Park Authority’s leisure complex, with agreed trading areas and separate buyer parking.
Community benefits
Regular sales provide access to affordable goods, support independent traders and caterers, and give residents a way to earn income from unwanted belongings. They also create a regular Sunday meeting place for the local community.
We use our social media channels to promote the venue's existing markets and community events to the people who attend our sales, and when we launch a new site, we look to recruit locally for paid roles in stewarding, parking and running the sale.
Affordable goods
Secondhand clothing, toys and household goods offer lower cost options for households. Selling unwanted belongings provides extra income. Under 16s enter free.
Local trading and fundraising
Pitches provide independent traders with access to customers without the overheads of a permanent shop. Discounted pitches support fundraising by registered local charities.
Reuse of goods
Furniture, tools, clothing and everyday items find new owners. Reuse extends their useful life and offers an alternative to buying new or throwing usable things away.
Social connection
Regular sales give visitors a familiar place to meet, talk and stay connected with their local community.
Research on community benefits
Research on traditional markets supports their role in affordability, enterprise and social connection. Studies of car boot sales also examine reuse and the communities formed through regular participation. These are sector findings, rather than measured outcomes for Capital’s venues.
Site management
Capital manages promotion, staffing, arrivals, parking and site clearance. Each landowner has one point of contact.
Staffing, site care & insurance
Our team manages seller setup, arrivals, parking and trading areas, with marshalling and clearance arrangements agreed for each venue. We enforce sale rules and oversee litter collection and waste removal, returning the trading areas clear and ready for their next agreed use.
- £10m
- Public liability insurance
- £10m
- Employers’ liability insurance
Site suitability
We assess potential locations by their available space, access, local demand and existing use.
- Park and Ride and commuter car parks
- Sunday and weekend sales can generate additional rental income when commuter demand is lower, with trading and clearance arranged around transport operations.
- Event and leisure venues
- Sales can fit around concerts, sporting fixtures and venue bookings, using suitable parking areas and existing access.
- Hardstanding and open land
- We consider surfaced yards, council car parks and suitable open fields, assessing usable space, ground conditions, access and connections to main roads.
Where land is earmarked for development, we can discuss running a regular sale for the time the site is available.
Promotion & attendance
We promote each sale through local advertising, our existing seller network and a combined social media following of more than 100,000.
- Local demand
- We assess the local catchment, nearby sales, access and available trading dates to identify demand and establish how a regular sale could fit the location.
- Local promotion
- Each launch is supported by local advertising, our established seller network and targeted Facebook campaigns to reach prospective buyers and sellers in the surrounding area.
- Visitor information
- Clear directions, seller setup times and opening updates help visitors plan their journey. Attendance figures and feedback then inform how we develop and promote each sale.
Across our six seasonal and year round venues, we hold more than 250 sales each year. Our busiest weeks account for more than 2,000 seller pitches across the group.
Landowner
enquiries
For confidential discussions about car parks, event venues or local authority land partnerships, contact Capital Boot Sales. Please include the location, approximate size and current use of the site.
Send a site enquiryEnquiry process
Initial discussion
We discuss the location, current use and suitability for a regular sale.
Site assessment
Where appropriate, we arrange a visit to review access, parking and the available space.
Site proposal
We prepare a proposal covering the trading days, site layout, operating arrangements and commercial terms for the landowner.