Charity car boot sale
online booking
Organise your car boot sale: online pitch booking, stallholder management, simplified town hall declaration. 100% free with Donoor.
Why Donoor for this project
The tools you need, already connected and free. No pricing plan, no tiers, no equipment to rent.
Online pitch booking
Stallholders book and pay for their pitch (3m, 6m, car, etc.) online. No more paperwork or cheques to bank.
0% commission
For 80 pitches sold at €10, you keep €800 with Donoor (Eventbrite would leave you about €745).
Exportable stallholder list
CSV export to prepare the site layout, contact stallholders and handle the town hall declaration.
Simplified town hall declaration
The exported stallholder list contains all the information required for your car boot sale declaration at the town hall.
What to prepare
The honest list of equipment and team you need to make your vide-grenier a success. No proprietary hardware to buy, you already have 90% of what you need.
Volunteer team
- 1 car boot sale coordinatorRuns the event: town hall authorisation, stand plan, communication, big day.
- 4 to 6 reception volunteersWelcome stallholders, check identity (legal obligation), hand out stand numbers.
- 2 signage volunteersMark out pitches with chalk or washable paint, put up the numbers.
- 1 or 2 refreshment and food volunteersAn important additional source of income: coffee and croissants in the morning, sandwiches at lunchtime.
- 1 clean-up managerHands out rubbish bags and manages sorting after the day. A commitment often made to the town hall.
Tools and equipment
- A Donoor account (5 min)Online booking of numbered pitches, registration form with ID document, Tap to Pay for latecomers.
- Town hall occupation authorisationOn public municipal land. Apply 1 to 3 months ahead using the town hall form. Free for municipal organisations.
- Pitch planMarked out with chalk or washable paint. Visible numbering. 1 pitch = 2 to 4 linear m, depending on your choice.
- Rubbish bags and sorting signageHanded out to each exhibitor on arrival. Sorting at the end, with a zero-waste commitment towards the town hall.
- Mobile refreshment standCoffee and sandwich stand with Tap to Pay on iPhone. Often the most profitable stall of the day.
What the law says
We explain the legal obligations for your vide-grenier in plain language. Checked by our team and up to date for 2026.
Prior declaration to the town hall
Every car boot sale must be declared to the town hall at least 15 days before the date (Cerfa form 13939). The town hall may limit the number of events per year in the municipality (often 2 per year per organisation). Refusal is possible on public order grounds.
Mandatory register of sellers
You MUST keep a register of sellers including each exhibitor's name, address, ID document number and signature. It must be submitted to the prefecture within 8 days of the event. Donoor automatically collects this data via the registration form.
Limit of 2 car boot sales per year per individual
A private individual may not take part in more than 2 car boot sales per year to sell their personal belongings. Beyond that, they must register as a trader. Please check this in your form (sworn statement checkbox, which Donoor offers).
Ban on selling homemade food
Exhibitors may not sell home-cooked meals (health risk). Only packaged, industrially produced food products are permitted. Your organisation's refreshment stand (supervised by your HACCP training) remains permitted.
Liability insurance for the event
Check with your insurer that your organisation's liability cover extends to the outdoor public event. Most organisation policies do so automatically up to 1,500 people. If in doubt, ask for an extension (often free of charge).
Your checklist for D-Day
Everything you must not forget, by phase. Print it and tick items off as you go.
2 months before
- Submit the public land occupation request to the town hall
- Define the number and size of pitches
- Set the price per pitch (€8–20 depending on the town)
- Form a team of 8–12 volunteers
- Plan a weather backup (cancellation, postponement)
3 weeks before
- Create the car boot sale on Donoor + registration form
- Open online bookings via link and QR code
- Promote on local networks + neighbourhood Facebook groups
- Prepare signage and marking equipment
- Confirm the final list of exhibitors at D-3
On the day
- Marking out the pitches from 6 a.m.
- Exhibitor check-in 7:00–8:30 a.m., with ID check
- Tap to Pay on iPhone for last-minute registrations
- Public opens at 9 a.m., refreshment team in place
- General supervision + handling of occasional disputes
- Closing at 5 p.m. + collective clean-up + handover of the register
They did it
Three organisation profiles that ran their vide-grenier with Donoor, so you can picture realistic cases.
Local festival committee
Spring car boot sale around the village square. 80 pitches at €10, pre-booked online. Coffee and croissants in the morning + sandwiches and beer at lunchtime (refreshment stand with Tap to Pay). 600 visitors over the day, family atmosphere.
Parents' association
Baby and toy car boot sale in the school playground on a Saturday. 50 pitches at €8, reserved for school families. Target: 100% of the neighbourhood comes for the baby and child bargains. Crêpe stand with Tap to Pay.
Mosque + humanitarian organisation
Charity car boot sale with free pitches for private individuals, but 30% of the takings passed on to the humanitarian organisation. 70 pitches filled, with many unsold items donated to the organisation at the end of the day. Refreshment stand with halal products.
A neighbourhood car boot sale
60 pitches × €12 = €720 of pitches booked online in one week, plus an exportable stallholder list for the town hall declaration. No queues on the day: each stallholder arrives with their stand number, received by email. Tap to Pay on iPhone available to register latecomers on site.
Hesitating over another platform?
Compare Donoor with other providers on fees and features.
Other compatible projects
Many organisations run or combine several types of project. Explore the related guides.
Frequently asked questions
Must a car boot sale be declared to the town hall?
Yes, it is mandatory (Article L.310-2 of the French Commercial Code). You must file a prior declaration of temporary sale (vente au déballage) with the town hall at least 15 days before the event, together with the stallholder list (name, first name, address, ID document number). Donoor provides this list in CSV format, exportable from your dashboard.
How do you manage several pitch types?
Create one rate per type: private individual 3m = €8, private individual 6m = €14, professional 3m = €15, car 4m = €12. Each rate has its own quota (= number of pitches available).
Can stallholders register on site on the day?
Yes, use Tap to Pay on iPhone to take payment from a stallholder who arrives without a booking. You add their registration in 30 seconds, and they receive their QR code and pitch.
Do you need to ask for an ID document?
Yes, the law requires you to check the identity of each stallholder and record it. You can add an “ID card no.” field to your Donoor registration form (customisable field), or do it at the reception desk on the day.
How do you prevent a stallholder from reselling a pitch?
Each QR code is unique and linked to the first and last name of the registered stallholder. At reception, check that the identity matches. If a stallholder tries to resell, the scan will not match the name.
What if the weather is bad and we have to cancel?
You can refund all stallholders in one click from the dashboard. Funds return to their original card (3 to 5 days). No refund fees with Donoor.
We take care ofsetting it all up for you.
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How it works
Set up in under 8 minutes, no technical knowledge needed.
Create your car boot sale
Choose the “event” type and add the date and location. Prices: 3 linear m pitch = €10, 6 m = €18, car = €15, private individual = €8.
Open registrations
Share the Donoor link on social media, QR code posters and in the local press. Limit the number of pitches to your site's capacity.
Submit the town hall declaration
Download the stallholder list in CSV format. Attach it to your declaration of temporary sale (vente au déballage), to be filed at the town hall 15 days before the event.
Big day: check-in and layout
Scan each stallholder's QR code on arrival, display the site layout, and take Tap to Pay payments from those paying on site.