Milwaukee Night Market Returns June 14

2022 Milwaukee Night Market. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

The annual St. Patrick’s Day parade is still a few weeks away, but Westown Association has already found its lucky four-leaf clover.

The organization announced that Fiserv, which will soon move its headquarters to the neighborhood, is the new presenting sponsor of the Milwaukee Night Market.

The financial services technology company will use the event to showcase Clover, its point-of-sale system designed to help small businesses process credit cards.

The 2023 markets will take place one Wednesday a month – June 14, July 19, Aug. 16 and Sept. 13 – from 5 to 10 p.m.

The free event is held on W. Wisconsin Ave. between N. 2nd St. and N. Vel R. Phillips Ave. It includes a mix of entertainment, crafts and food vendors. Westown estimates that more than 100,000 people attended the 2022 markets and more than 140 entrepreneurs participated.

“As a new stakeholder in Westown, we are thrilled to partner with Fiserv on the Milwaukee Night Market,” said Westown executive director Stacie Callies in a statement. “We appreciate their support of this event and their commitment to our downtown neighborhood. The Milwaukee Night Market is an exciting fusion of all our city has to offer, and we look forward to providing Fiserv employees with that experience just steps from their front door.”

Fiserv is relocating its headquarters and more than 750 employees from Brookfield to the HUB640 building at the western edge of the market. The majority of its 40,000 employees are spread across the country. The company reports processing more than 12,000 transactions per second across its various financial software systems.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our communities, and Clover, our industry-leading point-of-sale and business management platform, enables small businesses around the world to serve their customers virtually anywhere, including in store, online and at outdoor events such as the Milwaukee Night Market,” said Bob Hau, Fiserv’s chief financial officer, in a statement. “We are proud to bring ease and convenience to small businesses and to partner with Westown Association as Fiserv prepares to become the newest neighbor and host of this vibrant downtown experience.”

Vendor applications for the 2023 season are now being accepted. Prospective vendors have until March 24 to apply.

American Family Insurance will cover vendor-registration fees for five BIPOC-owned (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) businesses at each market. Other partners on the market include GRAEF, Gruber Law Offices, Molson Coors, Joy Engine, Jameson Irish Whiskey and We Energies.

NEWaukee created the night market in 2014 and transitioned it to Westown ownership in 2021.

Can’t wait for the night market? The St. Patrick’s Day parade takes place Saturday, March 11.