Tips for Opening a Temporary Pop-Up Shop this Holiday Season

As we move into the last quarter of the calendar year, it’s time to start focusing our attention on taking advantage of the coming holiday selling season. For many retailers, that means getting ready to open temporary pop-up shops and kiosks. Good news! With MyPOS Connect you can rent temporary point of sale system licenses on a month-to-month basis, to get you through the holiday season, and then deactivate them in January when you shut down your pop-up shop. This is a sure-fire way to boost sales with minimal up-front investment and no ongoing costs after the season is over.

If you’re undecided about whether a temporary pop-up shop might be beneficial to you, consider that pop-up shops and seasonal markets open your operation up to new customers that may not know you exist. They allow you to focus your attention on your most profitable products, and they’re a fantastic test ground for new products and strategies. Most importantly, temporary pop-ups can be hugely profitable. A 2014 industry report by the PopUp Republic, a Chicago-based marketing firm, confirmed that the pop-up industry in the United States is responsible for roughly $50 billion in annual sales, which peak around major holidays. According to multiple sources, such as Forbes Magazine, CBC and Entrepreneur, the market for pop-ups has continued to see growth.

If you’ve already started working on finding temporary locations to supplement your holiday sales campaign, here are a few quick tips for maximizing the success of your pop-up store.

Make it exclusive

PopUp Republic followed up their initial report by surveying more than 1,200 American Consumers, asking them to disclose their top reasons for visiting pop-up shops. This second study showed that 61 percent of pop-up shop patrons are looking to find seasonal products, and 39 percent of patrons visit to find new and unique products. Can you offer a new product or put a seasonal twist on an old favourite? If so, you’re much more likely to excite your customers.

Make it an experience

Find a way to make your temporary shop or kiosk an interactive experience for your customers. Another result of PopUp Republic’s study: 30 percent of pop-up customers are looking for an experience, not just a product. Something as simple as an Instagram-worthy backdrop, or a quick demonstration that gets the customer involved, goes a long way.

Scope out your location

Set some time aside to find your potential location (or locations). Look for the time of day that foot traffic is the highest. Make sure that the placement of your pop-up will make it convenient for people to stop by and have a look at your offerings. Look at the crowd’s demographic so that you can determine if your products are a good fit; tailor your marketing to that demographic. If you’re setting up shop at a market that is hosted on a regular basis, try visiting a few times before your opening day.

Process transactions quickly

The last thing you want to do is slow down your operation and increase wait times by inefficiently processing transactions. As we mentioned in this blog post’s intro, MyPOS Connect allows you to operate temporary licenses, so you can add a POS system without dramatically increasing your ongoing costs. The software can run on any Windows tablet – which you won’t have to lug around a giant piece of tech.

Stay on top of your sales and inventory

Don’t lose track of inventory and sales numbers. This is crucial if you’re testing out a new product or hoping to open a more permanent selling location. If you’re using MyPOS Connect, you’ll have access to all of your reports, in real-time, so you can replenish stock and track costs accurately and you can analyze just how successful your pop-up is.

Keeping these tips and tricks in mind will help you optimize your pop-up shop success, not only during the holiday season but, all year round.