Go Out on Pop-up Stores!
Pop-up stores offer things that can be easily found in various forms and in diverse industries. We are living in the era of Pop-up stores. The word ‘pop-up’ literally means the offline shop where products are provided during a limited period. The idea originated from an American market called ‘Target’ that rented its space to sell products temporarily. Meanwhile, the purpose of pop-up stores lies not only in gaining profit but also in marketing. This is related to the reason why customers are visiting such stores.
Is Profit Secondary Purpose?
The value of pop-up stores does not lie in increasing sales. Rather, they are marketing strategies to test markets. Despite the huge amount of investment costs at the beginning, the store can be managed more economically and has less risk than an officially accepted one. Thus, this is the investment to examine its profitability in the future. From the perspective of small and medium-sized firms, this is effective for them to promote their brands and products. This strategy is usually found in a growth period of a product life cycle, especially in the case of small companies. Major companies, based on their capital assets, are more flexible in taking advantage of pop-up stores. They can utilize it in every period of the life cycle, and they can afford to run the stores longer than other brands.
The Importance of Location
Pop-up stores emerge everywhere, but there is a preference when it comes to location. These days, the department store is the most common space for them. In 2023, nearly 400 of them were held in The Hyundai Seoul, which is one of the most popular department stores in Korea. Moreover, according to Yonhap News Agency, the Shinsegae department store in Gangnam has a floating population that is estimated to be about a million every day. For example, 'The Gem Palace,' an antique jewelry brand from India, opened on October 17. Compared to the pop-up stores in Seongsu dong that targets the younger age group, it has a promotional effect on various age groups. For example, from October, Try me!, a cosmetic shop of make-up influencer known as Leo J, is being loved by the MZ generation.
Pop-up Stores in the Future
Pop-up stores are still growing as the internet platform is evolving. The Hyundai Seoul is running an account on Instagram, indicating the location and the period in a caption. Through these posts, customers can get information about them. Also, the research volume of the word ‘pop-up’ or ‘pop-up stores’ on Naver is constantly increasing. Its research volume from May to October has doubled this year, according to Naver Datalab. As a result, pop up stores are being developed with the internet technology, and they are continuously trying to be practical even in the future.
Seo Jun-hee (ST Reporter)
20231933@soongsil.ac.kr
