Manar Al Hinai: Climb aboard the UAE’s pop-up bandwagon

Participating in pop-up events allows small businesses to introduce themselves to wider audiences. Vidhyaa Chandramohan for the National

Growing up in the UAE, I’ve witnessed how the shopping experience has evolved over time. From browsing at the old souq to the development of shopping malls to looking for items at pop-up fashion events or hunting for bargains via Instagram and WhatsApp.

Small business owners in the UAE all want to reach new customers and increase their sales without committing to one physical location. This results in many participating in pop-up fashion events – temporary retail events which are particularly popular around Eid, holiday seasons or in the winter. Flash retailing events in the UAE include Mirbad, Ataya and Eventra.

These types of events now take place all over the world, with the likes of reality TV star and entrepreneur Kylie Jenner recently launching her pop-up fashion store in New York and before that in Los Angeles. The car brand Mercedes-Benz has also organised various pop-up events around the UK.

According to Britain’s Pop-Up Retail Economy report, pop-up retail contributes more than £2.5 billion (Dh11.44bn) to the UK economy, with 10 per cent of retailers reporting their intention to participate in such an event in the next five years.

Retailers and hoteliers in Abu Dhabi have also realised the increase in footfall that these events bring, with some such as The Galleria on Al Maryah Island, Abu Dhabi Mall and the Four Seasons Hotel in Abu Dhabi, supporting pop-up organisers and participants as well as facilitating their events.

Elham Al Arif, a 28-year-old Emirati designer of the online abaya and modest travelwear label that carries her name, is one entrepreneur to join the craze. Taking part allowed her clients to view her products in person. So six months ago she founded Contempo Events, a company specialising in flash retailing events in Dubai. Interestingly she also believes that pop-up events are a trend that will die in a year or two.

But not everyone agrees with that notion. Alia Al Mazrouei is the Emirati co-founder of The Foodsters, a Dubai-based company that caters to private pop-ups and events around the UAE through food lorries and set-ups such as The Shebi, Shmokins, BurgerItch and Chick & Co. She believes that flash retailing is here to stay.

Ms Al Mazrouei, also the co-founder of the local eatery Just Falafel, which later rebranded as JF Street Food, co-founded The Foodsters after realising they did not want to only operate JF Street Food as a corner store restaurant. Instead they wanted to provide options at different locations, with the best way to do that via pop-up events. Participating in extravaganzas such as the annual Formula One race in Abu Dhabi, allows them to introduce local grown businesses to international audiences. The disadvantage to this set-up, Ms Al Mazrouei adds, is that the summer period is generally a dead season. But the company has overcome this by establishing a consultancy arm which helps start-up and existing restaurant businesses and also rents out food lorries.

A couple of clients have asked me recently whether it is worth being present at pop-up events. If you are going to take part, here are a few factors to consider:

• Plan for the short-term

A three-day pop-up is ideal, especially around the weekend from Thursday to Saturday. When you decide to get involved, ensure you advertise your participation. Get the press release out a week in advance and no earlier – people tend to forget if you announce it too far in advance.

• Ensure that the location is accessible

It needs to be easily reachable, have enough parking and perhaps is a destination of its own. Consider a public park such as Umm Al Emarat Park in Abu Dhabi, a hotel or a shopping centre, for instance. I also recommend partnering with a bank to provide credit card payment as many customers do not carry cash in hand.

• Join forces with other companies

Instead of a stand-alone pop-up, it is a good idea to participate in an event with other businesses, especially if you are a start-up. That way you are exposed to a wider audience. However, conduct research to ensure you pick the event that matches your business best.

Manar Al Hinai is an award-winning Emirati writer who manages a branding and marketing consultancy in Abu Dhabi. Twitter: @manar_alhinai.

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