First Virtual Pop Up Store - Debenhams UK

Bit of a gimmick but entertaining and engaging none-the-less and quite frankly we need a bit of fun bought back into shopping don't we?

Debenhams in the UK has this week unveiled virtual pop-up stores at some of Britain's most famous landmarks including Trafalgar Square.

The stores are open for two days from today in George Square in Glasgow, Centenary Square in Birmingham, Albert Square in Manchester, Cardiff Castle in Wales and Trafalgar Square.

iPphone or iPad2 users who head down to the locations will see Debenhams’ top party dresses on their screen when they point their devices at the landmarks.

Shoppers will be able to virtually try on the items and order via their mobile devices.

An app, designed by GoldRun, needs to be downloaded for shoppers to see the clothing. Those who take part at the event receive a 20% discount.

See how the virtual store works in the video below.

Net-A-Porter pop up interactive store

Luxury fashion etailer Net-a-Porter.com made its first move into bricks-and-mortar last night with an augmented reality pop-up window shop.

It opened two stores, one on Mount Street in London and the other on Mercer Street in New York, that allowed customers to scan pictures of products on the wall using their phones, and buy or win the items.

The stores were open for one night as part of Vogue’s Fashion Night Out event. After downloading the Window Shop application, which has augmented reality technology called Aurasma embedded, customers’ mobile phones were able to recognise product images.

After scanning a particular image the phones took customers to multimedia content related to products, and to Net-a-Porter’s online shop. Any purchases were sent by next day delivery to shoppers.

Net-a-Porter, which worked with software company Autonomy, said it is keen to help customers use their mobile phones to shop.

VP of marketing and sales Alison Loehnis said: “With the Window Shops concept, we found a way to participate in the excitement of Fashion Night Out that is true to our brand with the innovative use of technology, shopping on the go from one’s mobile device, our edit of the most relevant and sought-after fashions of the moment, and the added bonus of having the opportunity to win prizes.”

Rebecca Thomson - Retail Week

Nike Sportswear: Ice Cream Truck

We All Scream for Exclusive Shoe Releases

Nike does its part to break up the mid-summer heat by holding exclusive releases--from an ice cream truck. The Nike Sportswear "Always On" ice cream truck will be attending eight basketball events in New York City providing those in attendance with exclusive shoe releases, tees, stickers, shoelaces and actual ice cream. The blue truck is carrying items ranging from Nike Air Force 1 NYC Editions and Air Force 1 Hyperfuse to Spider-man ice cream and push pops. All ice cream is free to players and audience members.

Along with apparel and ice cream, Nike will be handing out "golden tickets for prizes" and encourage individuals to enter in their Twitter contest. At each stop the truck makes, Nike (@nikesportswear) will tweet a "fill in the blank" question and contestants can answer @21_Mercer (referring to the brand's flagship Soho Store) via the #alwayson hashtag. Three winners will be picked on the spot, and on August 20th, those winners will be entered into a raffle to win the grand prize of a bespoke appointment at the Soho flagship.

Creativity
The Sportswear ice cream truck's trip began on June 24th and will come to an end on August 20th when the winners will be announced. See more details on the Nike Sportswear site.

Nike 6.0 Pops up

Pop-up stores tend to be fairly ephemeral affairs, quite frequently here today and gone tomorrow and this one, from Nike, in Mondello, Sicily, is no exception with a lifespan of just two months.

Designed in-house with the collaboration of Over The Rainbow, an Italian consultancy, and built by New Store Europe, this does, however, have a level of detail that marks it out as somewhat different from the normal rough and ready pop-up world.

Covering an area of about 1,076 sq ft, the store’s structure is composed of overlapping multilayer panels and a concealed hooking system for hangers and shelves.



The store is intended to highlight Nike 6.0, a new brand of clothing from the sportswear brand and, as well as the non-standard approach to construction, it also carries several video walls and hand-painted graphics.



The effect is of a deconstructed surf shack where the wooden planks are almost on the point of falling to the floor, but have somehow been frozen in time.

There is not actually a huge amount of stock in this relatively modest space, a wall of sneakers and some forward-hung T-shirts, but the effect is to focus attention on what is actually there.



The really good bit about this, however, is that it is in Mondello, the chi-chi beach resort where Palermo’s affluent head for a day out by the seaside.



If an excuse were needed to go and check out some unusual retail design while enjoying a few good meals and some decent scenery, then this must be it. You’ll have to be quick though as it is scheduled to be dismantled by August 3.

John Ryan Retail Week

Topshop gives customers a new reason to visit

In the ever demanding retail landscape to stay current and relevant, Topshop have again demonstrated their chameleon like ability to move with the times. This week launching a 'secret' in-store pop-up shop. Topshop’s Oxford Circus and New York stores have both adopted the strategy to offer specially-designed boutique and quirky collaboration pieces.

The Topshop Secret Store, thought to be a first for a high street chain, will be hidden inside the two shops so customers can discover the “secret” doorway by chance. It will be marked by a florist in the corner of each store.

The Secret Stores, which will be open for two weeks from Thursday (May 26), aim to offer customers unique pieces from designers including London-based milliner Nasir Mazhar, womenswear designer Ann-Sofie Back, and New York-based jewellery designer Pamela Love. Select pieces will be available online.

The 'secret' in-store pop up is a great initiative on Topshop's part to start customers talking about their brand. Already boasting an in-store nail bar, a personal stylist service, a lolly store and comfy couches, this new innovation proves that Topshop really understand their customers. They acknowledge that in a digital landscape they have to give people a reason to come and visit their bricks and mortar stores. Give them an experience that they can in turn tell their friends. Something I call 'why buy?' and Topshop do it very well.

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Hamley's Christmas Pop-Up stores

Temporary stores in shopping centres will extend the retailer’s reach in key toy-selling period.

Famous toy store Hamleys is making its first foray into pop-up shops with the opening of three around the country to capture Christmas spend.

Hamleys opened Hamleys Toy Box shops in Bluewater and Sheffield’s Meadowhall last week. It opened a third in Chapelfield shopping centre in Norwich on Decemebr 22nd. All stores are expected to remain open until the end of January.

Because of its year-round popularity with visitors to London, Christmas accounts for only 25% of the retailer’s sales, but the pop-ups provide an opportunity to increase takings in the most important toy-selling period in the year.

Hamleys chief executive Gudjon Reynisson said: “It’s an idea we have had for quite some time and we decided to go for it this Christmas. We are taking things one step at a time and haven’t made any decisions yet, but we could either make these stores permanent or have more locations for pop-up shops next Christmas.”

Hamleys branched out from its flagship on London’s Regent Street in 2008 when it opened a large-format store in Dundrum Town Centre in Dublin, followed by another in Glasgow’s St Enoch centre in 2009. The pop-up stores will more than double the toy retailer’s locations in the UK, excluding its travel stores.

Reynisson said Hamleys was “extremely happy” with trading at the 1,000 sq ft Bluewater shop and the 2,000 sq ft Meadowhall store.

“They are very different to our wonderful big stores,” said Reynisson. “It’s really important to give more people access to our own-brand range, and to give customers a taste of the magic of Hamleys.”

The stores will stock 900 SKUs, with own-brand accounting for 70%. The rest of the offer is made up of Christmas best-sellers.

Reynisson added: “We are looking forward to Christmas. We are very optimistic and happy with the year so far.”

Reynisson said that, while pop-up shops were new to Hamleys, operating small-formats was not. The retailer has a handful of airport stores as well as one at St Pancras International railwaystation in London.

Puma's pop-out shop

Puma has developed a “pop-out shop” that will tour the country as the sports fashion brand aims to allow customers to rediscover the brand’s retro lines from the 1970s and 1980s.

As part of its Rewind Forward project, which launches next month, Puma will drive a customised vehicle that “mutates into a shop” representing those two decades to London, Manchester and Liverpool as well as various festival locations throughout the summer.

The brand said that it may pitch up in car parks, railway stations or even people’s gardens. “The stranger the location the better,” it said.

The shop will be made up of various elements that pop out, which include seating, storage, TV screens and a projector.

The Rewind Forward project, which encompasses other yet-to-be-revealed events, will “enable the consumer to re-discover and see the Puma Archive range in a new light”, it said.

The inside of the pop-out shop will be “decked out with the best archive moments in Puma’s history alongside Puma Archive product”, added the brand.

Source: Retail Week

Marmite pop up store

Love it or hate it, a pop-up shop devoted to iconic British yeast spread Marmite has opened at the Piccadilly Circus end of London’s Regent Street.

Spread over two floors and created by fledgling design company SunHouse Creative, the lower ground floor is devoted to product, while upstairs is a 1950s-style tearoom where shoppers can enjoy a cuppa and a round of toast with Marmite.

The store features a raised plinth in the window where a pair of mannequins are seated at a breakfast table where Marmite takes centre stage, while behind them is a pyramid constructed from Marmite jars. Elsewhere, other oddities include a black turntable on which jars of the condiment spin endlessly and a bamboo bird cage containing a jar of the black stuff.

At the back of the shop, a multi-colour Union Flag with a Marmite jar at its centre covers the whole of the rear ground floor wall. Painted by recent graduates from The Royal College of Art, it was created during the course of three days, according to Rupert Pick, director at Hot Pickle Trading, which runs the shop.

The store will remain open until the end of the year.



Published in Retail Week: 16 November, 2009 | By John Ryan