Pop-Up Stores Are All the Rage!

Pop-up stores have been around for years. You have probably seen a temporary Halloween costume store or Holiday gift stores which temporarily locate in an empty kiosk or retail location. However, recently Target has been in the news for their successful Bullseye Bazaar and Bullseye Bodega pop-up stores. So, why are pop-up stores so great?

1. Pop-ups are a perfect way to test a particular product in a particular market. Take Mattel’s American Girl for example – they created a pop-up store in Hawaii as a test for the market for a future retail location. Instead of investing in a store, they used the pop-up to test the product in this new location, before making a decision. Their most recent pop-up of American Girl is in Detroit.
2. Pop-ups give the retailer the opportunity to easily liquidate excess inventory. Ebay recently opened temporary pop-up stores cluttered with merchandise from their online stores. With just a little effort and limited inventory the pop-up store works wonderfully to get the merchandise to the consumer.
3. Pop-ups help small, online, or start-up business the opportunity to “test the waters” as they look to grow. Small businesses can try to collaborate with a larger store or lease a corner of their store to try and sell your products in a larger location, without taking on too much risk. Or, online retailers looking to make a move into brick-and-mortar could have a pop-up in a mall or within a larger business (i.e. try getting your homemade candles into a Hallmark store, or a local gift shop). Similarly, people just starting out in a business can partner with local or larger stores to try and get their product on the shelves.

It does not matter if you are a small business, big box store, or online conglomerate – pop-up stores serve a small part in a large world of consumers. The increasing number of empty stores, busy outdoor venues and empty corner space in larger stores create a perfect opportunity for retailers.

And what does every pop-up need? Branded packaging, of course. Contact us for more business ideas, suggestions or branded packaging strategies.