Commercialisation is Advancing

Pop-up stores and Commercialisation units are becoming increasingly more sophisticated, offering numerous advantages to retailers and consumers.

For the retailers, it goes without saying they are an excellent way to test the market and conduct consumer research. You can trial a product or service and analyse performance and interest in certain locations, enabling companies to decide if a more permanent lease is worthwhile. Having a physical presence is a real benefit for e-commerce companies who may not have the capital to invest or commit to a long-term lease. It will allow these retailers to engage with their consumers – after all, bricks and mortar clearly isn’t dead, so these pop-ups allow online retailers to engage and offer an experience to their market which is becoming more and more important to consumers.

A well-designed and conducted unit can improve brand awareness considerably and really establish brands within their market. Having a transportable retail unit means it can be located where high-footfall is guaranteed – a major benefit for retailers! Offering free samples, entertainment or a game/challenge for passers-by to interact with, will significantly increase dwell time and help create a memorable experience that can be shared with a wider audience.

It is important that a brand invests in their pop-up stand to ensure it reflects their brand image correctly. It needs to reflect the brands promise in terms of quality, entertainment, service and product. Having a temporary presence creates a real sense of urgency, and if the pop-up has been implemented successfully and with quality, it can often result in increased sales due to consumers having the mindset/concern of limited availability.

There are numerous more benefits than covered above but commercialisation units are expanding to be much more than just a small stand in shopping centres. Brands are now looking to take it one step further, using much bigger spaces or even whole venues to create an exclusive experience. Appear Here is an example of an organisation working with landlords to offer flexible, short-term space to retailers in the form of historic buildings, retail space, venues and underground stations. An example is their work with Nike; they transformed the Kachette in Shoreditch, Central London, into a 10-day pop-up gallery to tell the story of each iconic Nike silhouette and its reconstruction by the inimitable Virgil Abloh.

The developments and growth of ideas in the commercialisation and pop-up market is already creating truly exciting events which can often go viral! I am looking forward to what innovative campaigns will continue to come in 2018!