A Pop-Up Shop, otherwise known as ‘flash retailing’, is a temporary retail space that takes up short-term occupancy in order to market brands and sell products in an innovative way. In the US, Pop-ups are estimated to be a $50 billion industry -a huge incentive for South African retailers who are now eager to Pop-Up themselves and create a new kind of success for their retail businesses.
4 Reasons to open a Pop-Up
- Test the waters: Pop-Up Stores are a great way to investigate opportunities in a different location or experiment with a new concept. For example restaurants can open a mobile food truck in order to get a taste for local interest before investing in a permanent location.
- Alternative revenue streams: New markets can potentially bring new clients with a fresh appetite for your product.
- Moving stock: This is a big draw card- particularly when new customers in the Pop-Up vicinity aren’t necessarily aware which products are new or old. This could be a great option for clothing retailers who might open for single-season trade in order to shift old stock.
- Generate marketing: Increase brand awareness in order to attract new customers and create fresh talking points for your social media and other marketing activities.
How to make the most of a Pop-Up opportunity
When it comes to opening a Pop-Up Shop it is important to do it well and think it through in order to maximize return:
Add a local twist: If you are a JHB store doing a Pop-Up in Cape Town for example, you could add Western Cape elements to the Pop-Up and use this as a tool to give your brand homegrown flavour and new relevance.
Think out of the box: Pop-Ups don’t have to be in a traditional retail space so consider distinctive locations that will be exciting and memorable like RVs or containers.
Pantone, the colour-matching specialists, created a brand awareness “Pantone Café” in the French Riviera, which offered Pantone colour-coded snacks to customers.
Make an impression:
Think about how you are going to bring the new Pop-Up customer back to your permanent store by offering incentives like a gift card for use after the Pop-Up closes.
Do it well:
Kit out your Pop Up store in a slick and brand appropriate way. ‘Temporary’ doesn’t necessarily mean ‘cheap’, so while a Pop-Up can be cost effective, it should still be professional and brand appropriate. Consider applying for a merchant cash advance if quick business funding is required to make your Pop-Up ‘pop out’ from the crowd.
