Don't Blink: How Pop-ups Are Transforming Retail

The new era of retail isn't just about the internet. Welcome to the world of the pop-up store. Turns out that highlighting products on a website isn't always the most effective way to get your brand in front of the consumer. Buyers want to see, touch and smell the merchandise. And retailers want to promote the notion of constant innovation. Hence the growing popularity of the pop-up, a phenomenon that began with Halloween and Christmas merchandise but has since expanded to include any number of fashion-oriented items. A pop-up might not even be selling anything outright, it could be there to highlight a new product, test new geographies, build brand awareness or mine valuable intelligence about the consumer. On this episode, we examine the evolution of the pop-up with retail strategist Melissa Gonzalez, founder of the Lion'esque Group, a firm of pop-up architects. She traces the history, current state and future of pop-ups. And she addresses a key question about the state of retail today: Is nothing permanent anymore?