As a brand, your consumers want product mash-ups, retail remixes, and special guest stars. They don’t define themselves as either “online” or “offline”. Now you don’t have to either.
With spaces available in the major shopping destinations across the globe, there’s never been a better time to be where your customers are. And where they’re not.
In speaking to our customers and watching how they grow their brands using pop-ups across the globe, there are recurring themes on how and why more businesses are turning to pop-ups. Here are our top 5 reasons to pop-up abroad:
1. Reach new audiences.
New customers are waiting for you in every city – find locations in the world’s top 15 cities in terms of population and purchasing power*. With pop-ups, brands can access new customer bases in new cities easily, and quickly grow their concept by moving and adapting.
In the summer of last year, Danish fashion brand Ganni opened a 6-month store on Redchurch Street in Shoreditch to showcase their AW14 collection. Their simple yet elegant, high quality collection already had a dedicated following back home but they wanted to test the waters in London. Safe to say, their much-coveted Scandinavian aesthetic was a roaring success.
2. Create a buzz.
Stake your claim as the ‘new brand in town’ and use this to your advantage. By popping up in a new territory, your brand, products and offer will be culturally fresh and exciting to the local demographic.
When online fast-fashion retailer Boohoo.com decided to open its first standalone store, they opted for two weeks in New York, rather than a location in its native UK. Fans of the brand were able to shop them in real life for the first time, and a programme of events and special guests ensured there were queues around the block. When asked why they choose to keep the retail short-term and go international, the company’s CEO and Co-Founder Carol Kane was quoted in WWD as saying “if I talk about our product strategy, it’s of newness. Why would I open a store when I can open a country?”
3. Try before you buy.
The beauty of a pop-up is that you can test different locations easily – now even further afield. Don’t be afraid to experiment, and try something unusual or expected in a completely new location. Choose somewhere that complements your unique brand and your style, and learn from the response.
Major Italian notebook brand Moleskine, after opening their first stand-alone UK stores in Canary Wharf and Covent Garden last year, decided to launch additional pop-ups in satellite locations. By testing the waters with temporary retail locations the brand was able to evaluate the new consumer market before fully committing to rent further long-term sites.
4. Be at every international industry event.
Establish a presence at every fashion week in the world’s capitals; never miss another high profile trade show or festival simply because it’s overseas.
Last November Malaysian designer Pearly Wong booked a Berlin pop-up showroom through We Are Pop Up, for her latest collection of ethical, multi-functional men’s and womenswear. Within a month, she was launching Day 1 of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Berlin, showing her A/W15 collection to a full-house audience. Pearly Wong now plans to continue building her brand in Berlin as well as expanding to other cities and fashion weeks.
5. Launch in new cities cheaper, faster, and easier than ever before.
At We Are Pop Up our mission is bringing down the barriers for taking your brand to the next level. Last summer we got together with Boulevard Berlin to create the ‘From London With Love’ Pop Up Village. Eight exclusive emerging designers from London each took on their own pop-up store to debut in Germany. The brands included Fashion Meets Music, Fourth & Main, JOY, MONOCHROME, Alice’s Pig, Something About Elizabeth, Bwoy-Wonder who showcased their streetwear, vintage and eco-fashion for men and women as well as shoes, accessories and jewellery to a German audience for the first time.
Whether you’re considering Summer in NYC, Fashion Week in Paris or Christmas in Copenhagen, you can discover and book the latest international spaces on We Are Pop Up here.
*Source: Centre for Retail Research. World Shopping Capitals 2011 Survey – Which City is the Biggest Shopper?
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