Should the popularity of pop-ups make me rethink my in-store offering?

“If the popularity of pop-ups hasn’t made you rethink already, it should,” says Lucy Unger, director of Europe and Russia at retail design consultancy Fitch. “Pop-ups have been around for more than a decade, but retailers are only just waking up to their relevance and influence. The best pop-ups have always understood that a growing number of consumers want engagement and stimulation beyond the everyday. Done well, pop-ups are ‘must see’, disruptive and surprising, reaching new audiences and creating real social currency for shoppers.”

The lessons for traditional retailers are evident – all retailers want customers to be excited by their offering. When retailers create meaningful and personal experiences, consumers re-evaluate purchasing, and, crucially, remain loyal.

Pop-ups can also teach traditional retail a lot about the power of an omnichannel approach. “It might be true that shoppers are wedded to traditional store formats when it comes to buying, but out-of-store engagement opportunities are a way of generating reappraisal and igniting interest in often unexpected ways,” says Unger. “Recognising this type of opportunity could be one way of driving more traffic in store.”

For many retailers, financial imperatives and corporate limitations mean that the in-store experience fails to inspire – it becomes an operational exercise getting people and product connected in a functional way. “Let’s not knock that at the right place and time,” says Unger. “But to compete effectively, stores will always need to also offer customers relevant, engaging and unique experiences.”