In the world of perpetual evolution, some things stay relevant and effective during all times. Irrespective of advancements in technology and ways of living, many experiences seem successful only when done the traditional way. The most concrete example of it is the physical retail shops where the customers walk in, feel the products in person and execute a trade. In other words, shopping from a brick-and-mortar store can’t possibly have a substitute.
The pandemic and sporadic lockdowns in all parts of the world have caused most businesses to devise ways to function online. This virtual interaction of people with the things they want to buy might seem adequate at the moment. However, it is highly unlikely that this could be a sustainable protocol to be followed for times to come. People were already getting frustrated and miserable by being at home for just months. It is not possible that everything could be achieved from the comfort of our homes.
Human beings are inherently tribal creatures who prefer living in communities. Going out and enjoying the company of others is crucial to our development and functioning in society. That is the reason why the shopping malls and public places saw people flocking in immediately after the lockdowns ended. The retail industry saw a massive spike in the footfall and retail business in the market as soon as people were physically able to visit and conduct day-to-day activities.
The marketing trends also indicate that a vast chunk of the population still prefers shopping for any item physically while being in interaction with people around. The pandemic provided an illusion of a parallel world where the businesses of retail marketing were also transformed in the digital space. But that turned out to be untrue the very next moment when things opened up. We can equivocally infer that the physical brick-and-mortar stores are not going anywhere for the foreseeable future.
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What are Pop-up Shops?
It is common that any upcoming business will try to be as frugal with spending unnecessary capital at the beginning as possible. There are two strong reasons for that. The first one is, new businesses don’t have that much capital, to begin with. Secondly, there is no surety that the business will take off. Hence, the risk of losing the investment is real and does happen to a whole lot of people. The modern-day solution could be pop-up shops.
A pop-up shop is a retail outlet but in a miniature version. Essentially, it could be a kiosk or a small cabin outside in public areas or malls which allows the business owners to establish a direct relationship with the potential customers. It represents the brand image and records the feedback of the regular people which would turn into the clients and buyers of the products offered by a company. It could be mobile in nature where one could experiment at various locations, trade shows, exhibitions, festivals, etc to gauge the response of people at various venues.
Advantages and Features of Pop-Up Shops
Now, there are myriad advantages of a pop-up shop over the full-fledged retail store and online marketing. Here are some of those advantages in detail.
Low Initial Capital
The prime argument in favour of a pop-up shop is that it would cost almost 1/5th of the actual cost of establishing a full-fledged retail store. Marketing in the retail industry could gobble up a ton of cash in the very beginning. But with the concept of pop-up shops, that money could be judiciously utilized by showcasing only the highlights of the actual business but establishing a strong connection with the live audiences. The Indian retail market has pop-up shows in almost every sector but the most prominent has to be street food. The food industry thrives on the pop-up shop culture. Once, the customer base is set up and the customer preferences are observed, a full-fledged restaurant could be opened.
Testing Waters
Such pop-up shops are the perfect opportunity to test the waters in any space. One can never be an expert at the inception of anything. There is always scope for valuable feedback from real people, which could be put to implementation during the final product. Such a retail marketing strategy could provide immense insight into the business and operational aspects of a company. You get a miniature version of the entire business to pick out the weaknesses and work upon them in depth. If used correctly, this opportunity alone could be the difference between a successful and a failed business venture.
Expand Business Outreach
One crucial thing to mention here is that pop-up shops are not only for upcoming businesses but also for established ones. Even if you are a renowned company, you could set up kiosks to gauge the latest marketing trends and pivot your businesses accordingly. Some of the biggest brands in the world adopt these practices on a regular basis. You must’ve seen counters of telecom companies, automobiles showcased in malls, food tasting activities on roads, product launches in public spaces, etc. All these things are done by large companies to market and promote their products in the retail industry in India.
Seasonal Shops
There are quite a few products/services that are season-specific. Now, it isn’t feasible to keep building shops on every occasion or place and then keep winding them up. A pop-up shop allows you that flexibility. You could set up a pop-up shop for a particular season for a fixed duration of time. This would also develop a sense of urgency among the buyers who are more likely to purchase products realizing the exclusive and short-lived nature of the purchase. Once you have achieved your target or sold out, you could simply wind up and walk away. In the Indian business context, it could be something like Diwali items, Valentines items, Holi items, Christmas items, etc.
Keeping all these massive advantages in mind, a pop-up shop is a great solution for beginners in the field, as well as for established firms. This culture has something to offer for everybody. One could make use of this concept as he/she deems fit. Indian retail industry could see a huge boom and recovery after the pandemic using this method. It will allow the retailers to test the market sentiment again without going all-in.
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