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Pop-ups: From temporary to trendsetting.

Brands are using pop-ups to create eye-catching and exclusive encounters that shake up their customers’ routines and create buzz.

October 1, 2015 by Ethan Whitehill — CEO, two west inc

In recent years, temporary retail has become much more than a trend, evolving into an $80 billion industry globally that’s reached premium status in the retail world. As experience continues to redefine the way we shop, brands are using pop-ups to create eye-catching and exclusive encounters that shake up customers’ routines and create buzz. With lower price points, these temporary fixes are a great way to launch new products or try out new territories.

A few of the hottest topics for pop-ups today are: mobile environments, permanent pop-ups and the presence of big retail. Below are some key points about each.

More mobile please

As mobile technology progresses, pop-ups are finding ever-more inventive ways to use it. Some retailers use touch screens to mix online and traditional shopping; others send opt-in messages to consumers’ smartphones while they browse; and a few offer tweet-to-pay reward systems. Sexy offerings, no doubt. But before creating a mobile environment, it’s important to ask: What’s the cost? Does it enhance the brand experience? Does it add value for customers?

Permanent pop-ups

Some retail concepts are capitalizing on the pop-up craze by transforming their space every month or two into a fresh experience. Making over everything from merchandise to store design may seem like a tall order but there can be real perks to this practice. Adopting such a flexible model allows these concepts to grow audiences, connect consumers with a wider variety of products and diversify revenue streams.

Big retail brand strategy

The pop-up landscape has grown far beyond cash-strapped startups and online brands in need of physical space. Large retailers like Apple and Kate Spade are jumping into the pool too, finding that these gems are the perfect place to deliver targeted messages, test out new products and build customer loyalty. Designing a pop-up concept for a specific space enables a brand to challenge perceptions, create surprising experiences consumers are sure to remember and connect with aspirational target audiences.

5 brands popping up on our radar:

Five Points: This brand was envisioned as a series of pop-ups to further their goal of developing a “creative union.” Each event features hands-on activities and hand-crafted goods, inviting customers to experience what they call “the five points of creativity.”
Nordstrom:Spearheaded by fashion tastemaker Olivia Kim, the Pop-In@Nordstrom offers a monthly, themed shop-in-a-shop experience that’s hand-curated and always fresh.
Sunday Suppers:Blending a variety of cultural outlets, this culinary event encourages novice and experienced chefs to step out of their comfort zone by interacting with food, people, art and design all at once.
Daisy Marc Jacobs:The fashion house recently debuted the Daisy Marc Jacobs Pop-Up Tweet Shop, where customers used “social currency” (in the form of tweets and posts) as payment for products and fragrance samples.
Apple:Apple used shop-in-shop concepts around the Apple Watch. Apple purportedly aims to deliver a more personalized buying experience by combining hi-tech with the upscale service of high fashion.