Temporary retail (also known as flash retailing) is projected to turn an amazing 10 billion dollars in 2019, making this the undisputed Year of the Pop-Up.
So, what exactly is a pop-up? Pop-ups are short term storefronts or markets which enable merchants to have a temporary physical location to showcase their products.
While the concept of the pop-up market can be dated back to 13th century Vienna, the credit for the modern version is widely credited to Los Angeles resident, Patrick Courrielche. In 1977 he organized a one day event which came to be known as the Ultimate Hipster Mall. Corporate America soon took notice of the benefits of this form of marketing, setting up pop-ups in major cities across the U.S. and England. Two of the earliest companies to test products and marketing strategies through temporary retail were AT&T and Motorola, who geared their efforts towards the youth market. Their success led to pop-ups from Levi Strauss, Kate Spade, Target, Best Buys and even Internet giants like Google and Amazon.
Seasonal pop-ups became a familiar sight in the late 1990s as Halloween costume shops, Christmas tree shops and fireworks displays sprung up in cities nation wide. These holiday markets still hold strong, accounting for 61 percent of the pop-ups in the U.S. in 2018.
In the early part of 2000 small business owners joined in the concept of “flash retailing” as eateries, produce farmers, jewelry designers, artists and antique dealers followed suit and pop-ups became the venue of choice for a wide cross section of entrepreneurs.
One strong draw, especially for a small business just starting out, is the lack of risk involved. While a brick and mortar shop can require a large investment of time and money, pop-up merchandising is here today, gone tomorrow. This allows the merchant to follow what is trending with a limited amount of merchandise. There are no utility bills, costly advertising or mortgage payments here. Just load up enough inventory for a 3-4 hour stint, throw in a couple of tables and voila!, you’re in business.
Home base for many pop-up businesses can be found online. However, these e-commerce merchants are discovering that there are many benefits to the direct seller-to-customer interaction that they have with a pop-up, that is not provided through their Etsy or eBay shop. In addition, the transient nature of this form of retailing provides the vendor the opportunity to test a variety of locations to see where their buyer base lies. By setting up at farmer’s markets, street fairs and music festivals they can see first hand what is a hit . . . and what is a miss.
In preparation for this column I visited with Siera Hipsher, Indianapolis entrepreneur and owner of RVTG (Redistribuiton Vintage), an east side LLC which organizes pop-up markets. She feels that the success of pop-ups can be attributed, at least in part, to a growing public support for small business. For her markets, she selects a blend of vintage, handmade and unique items, making for a different shopping experience with each event. “I have about a million reasons why I started the markets,” said the 35-year-old mother of two, “but my love of supporting my fellow entrepreneurs is the one that most strongly impacted my final decision.”
Revealed in that statement is perhaps the true spirit of the small business pop-up, as you cannot help but get the feeling of community that is not available through standard retail shopping.
For some of the best pop-ups in central Indiana check out: Market at the Lodge, Johnson County Antique Market, and Indie Arts and Vintage Marketplace on Facebook. Until next time . . . Linda
Linda Kennett is a professional liquidation consultant specializing in down-sizing for seniors and the liquidation of estates and may be reached at 317-258-7835 or lkennett@indy.rr.com.
