3 Ways to Pop UP and test your brand
I am a huge believe in flexible testing for your brand in order to find the right sales channel for you. Don't go signing a 5 year retail lease without ever having tested out a retail store!
Thankfully, there are soo many ways to test out a low-risk pop up shop where you can meet new clients, learn from your customers, better refine your products, and of course, #sales!
1) Pop up in a Boutique -- reach out to a cool or local boutique near you and see if you can host a pop up or trunk show in their store. Many boutiques are looking for new and cool reasons for their clients to come in and shop. Combining your marketing power with the boutique's also helps bring in cross traffic and new clients to each of you - win-win! The boutique will usually want to share a percentage of sales with you, which is fair given that they're the ones renting and staffing the space! There are also bigger stores such as West Elm who are sometimes willing to host you in their space -- it never hurts to ask!
2) Pop up in an artisan market -- I am a huge fan of Artists and Fleas which has three locations in NYC, two in LA, and more to come. They have options from weekends to two-week blocks and more, in super high traffic locations. You'll get to interact with customers from all around the world and really test your product. There are soo many new marketplaces and markets popping up in cities all over the country so you're bound to find one that's accessible to you!
3) Pop up in an empty storefront -- the retail and brick and mortar landscape is changing significantly, and that means that there are many store fronts that are sitting there, open and waiting to be leased long-term. Reach out to the brokers or landlords and see if they would consider a short term pop up. Depending on the state of the building, you may be able to spruce it up on a small budget, pop up and test your assumptions about the area. If it works out, awesome, and maybe you can consider staying longer. If not, analyze why it didn't work, and apply those take-aways to your next location/ choice. Always be testing and iterating!
The most important take away is getting in front of your customers/ would-be customers. How are they reacting to your product? What can you learn from them? How can you adjust to make a great product/market fit?
Let me know any other suggestions or tricks you've tried with pop ups!
Sophie
Our booth at Chelsea Market Artists and Fleas. Designed and built by my team mate, Anthony Johnson, and his 90 year old grandfather! Team work makes the dream work!
Our pop up at Adelante Boutique, space designed by the incredible Claire Zinnecker. Popping up in a boutique is a great way to get to know the owners, get their valuable feedback, and hopefully work together in the future!