Text by Aldo Davalos
Fashion and lifestyle are ever changing by nature. People change their mind on style as fast as they change their latte order at a coffee shop. Brands need to be able to change with the fast-paced consumer lifestyle we live in today. The solution might be in a store as fickle as its consumer. Pop-up stores help create that buzz that has been lacking in consumer retail.
Many creative agencies and brands are looking at pop-up stores as a way to regain visibility to their base. Sebastien Agneessens of Formavision, a creative agency that works with brands like Reebok, Starbucks and Lexus, believes that “Pop-up stores help connect brands to the creative and artistic community by giving them some street credibility.” Because pop-up stores are constantly changing week-to-week and month-to-month, most of the items are only available for a limited time. Ann Akiri-Bayol of 55DSL believes that “The idea behind [our] approach to pop-up stores is to add a fresh feel to the face of retail, with exclusivity and surprise. We want to anchor an image in the consciousness of the local community, press and opinion leaders of the street fashion world.”
Spawning from art installations and in-store shows, some pop-up stores are created to feature new and undiscovered talent, while others look to increase exposure for an already existing brand. For Jesse Lee of Dubfrequency, a Los Angeles-based marketing company that brings together like-minded brands, artists, and musicians, he believes pop-up stores help brands by providing a physical space to showcase their work. “It helps highly regarded brands that might not have as much branding on the local level. It’s similar in the way we like to feature new up-and-coming artists that we believe in. We want to bring this element to the culture of Los Angeles.”
For Anh Do of Space 15 Twenty, which is Urban Outfitter’s exclusive pop-up store in Los Angeles, the pop-up “helps create a new shopping environment to expand the brand and showcases new collaborations and themes with designers.” What makes Space 15 Twenty different from all other Urban Outfitter stores is that “it allows designers to curate their own store with other designers that feature brands and labels that wouldn’t otherwise be carried in normal stores.”
Pop-up stores are more than just retail outlets. They’re an experience. Agneessens believes the “motivation behind creating a pop-up store is not primarily to sell products. It’s to reach new consumers, to create some interest for the brand, and to create content for the press.” Further, he wants “to transform these stores into a destination with a twist. They need some kind of novelty, some kind of edge.” For Lee, “It’s something cool that allows us to expand outside of events and music and marketing.” Ann Akiri-Bayol believes the experience allows them to showcase our special collaborations and concepts giving consumers something exclusive.
It’s this experience that gives the consumer the visceral experience. It puts the thrill back into rediscovering a brand. In today’s economy, pop-up stores might be the solution to sagging retail figures. As Agneessens states, “They usually cost much, much less than pouring tons of marketing dollars into advertising. At least with a physical location, even if for a short time, we can offer a special experience and tell our story to new and old fans of the brand.”
Ultimately, Ann Akiri-Bayol believes that pop-ups help to “generate buzz and significant media attention that helps to communicate the brand message and look of the collection to a large audience.” Who wouldn’t want to be a part of a limited, exclusive engagement? This might truly be working off the expression “while supplies last,” making the pop-up store burn bright like a phoenix. According to Agneessens, the true purpose “Puts it on a street level. It lets people feel like they’re a part of the experience. It lets people feel a personal connection to the brand. And the people who weren’t there read it in the press and wish they were there.” They pop up like a phoenix, and in a flash, they’re gone.
