https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/definition/pop-up-shop
A pop-up shop is a temporary retail space that is typically used to introduce a new product line, test a new market or generate awareness for a product or cause. Pop-up stores are typically set up in areas with high foot traffic such as busy streets, malls, and city centers. The practice of using pop-up shops is sometimes called "flash retailing."
Retailers use pop-up shops to combine the flexibility of online retail with the increased customer engagement that physical retail offers. Like online retail, pop-ups are cheaper to implement and maintain than a permanent retail space. However, they also offer customers a place to physically interact with a brand in a way that's not possible online.
Retailers and brands of all sizes can take advantage of pop-up retail. Recently, global retailers like Amazon, Fila and Macy's -- and celebrities like singer Billie Eilish and Kanye West -- have all used pop-up events to promote their brand or expressed plans to do so. Local artists and makers can also use pop-ups to sell their creations and network.
In addition to standard retailers, the pop-up model has also been applied to restaurants, concerts and art displays. Pops-ups are used as a marketing strategy just as much as -- if not more than -- a sales opportunity. They are often promoted as an event and a store, and are important for generating Brand loyalty, which leads to future sales.
Pop-ups have gradually emerged out of a desire for convenience and exciting experiences on both the customer and retailer's part, and out of property owners' need to fill emptying spaces with new business.
Temporary retail locations have existed for centuries. Classic examples include farmer's markets and event-specific concessions, like food carts at sporting events.
However, the emergence of pop-up shops as they exist today -- a promotional corporate retail model -- can be traced back to the early 2000s, when the company Target rented a 220-foot-long boat on the Hudson River to offer Black Friday deals.
Several companies realized the value in providing these experiences to customers and adopted the method over the following years, but it wasn't until 2008 when the trend really gained momentum. The financial crisis of 2008 and the following retail apocalypse created many vacant buildings and mall storefronts where old retailers had previously operated. Flash retailers took advantage of these spaces, partially because malls needed someone to replace their vanishing tenants.
Soon, pop-ups spread to other services beyond straightforward retail, as well as becoming more sophisticated in their presentation. New types of pop-ups included restaurants and art galleries. The first underwater pop-up space was even introduced in 2015.
With companies becoming increasingly dependent on e-commerce channels, pop-ups are being used by online retailers to establish a physical presence in target locations. They use them to provide experiences that aren't possible online -- creating brand awareness, building relationships with customers and fostering brand loyalty.
Pop-up stores typically last anywhere from a few days to a few months, but less commonly can last for about a year.
Pop-up stores are often centered around a specific event, and only last for the duration of that event. One example is holidays -- the company Spirit Halloween rents out old abandoned retail locations to sell costumes for the month of October.
A pop-up store's timeline might also coincide with a product release or marketing campaign that the organization is using. Other times, the "event" might just be how long the company is interested in measuring customer engagement. Still others may simply stay open for as long as the retailer is able to afford or secure the lease.
Pop-ups aim to mix the efficiency of online retail with the social benefits of a physical location. The benefits of pop-up shops include:
Additionally, apps like Storefront match renters to temporary retail spaces. Users can look through various unique spaces and negotiate short-term leases through the app. There are also companies that create temporary commercial spaces specifically for pop-ups, which can help mitigate some of the existing costs.
In 2019, the app conducted a survey of retailers that used their app. They found that pop-ups improved market visibility for 51% of respondents, increased sales for 46% of respondents and increased social media engagement for 46% of respondents.
Some drawbacks of pop-ups include:
Many speculate that pop-ups will grow in popularity in the coming years. One 2020 study from the University of South Carolina's Department of Retailing showed that over 80% of 600 retailers that hosted pop-ups the previous year said it was a success.
In January 2020, Amazon announced plans to implement a series of themed pop-ups with inventory being routinely adjusted to accommodate the themes. Some themes to be used include cameras, Marvel's Avengers franchise and curated holiday toy lists.
These specific themes allow Amazon to collect specific data on customer interests based on locations. The pop-ups also allow Amazon to collect detailed data on customers who aren't as engaged in their online business, and ideally convert them to Prime.
Other online retailers will likely continue to use pop-ups because they build brand loyalty. Shopping malls are also losing core tenants and need new businesses to fill the empty spaces -- a problem to which pop-up shops provide a solution. Malls could theoretically turn abandoned storefronts into spaces designed for temporary tenants to rent.
Developments like this would contribute to the continuous move toward a sharing economy, in which permanent ownership is less common than sharing and renting resources as a service.
20 Mar 2020