Pop-up shops offer a way in without a long-term lease for brands testing new markets or moving into physical retail. It’s also a way to celebrate collaborations with a specific designer, artist, or influencer, or create hype for limited drops. Whatever your primary goal, it brings a fresh energy to your event marketing if done well.
In the US alone, the pop-up shop industry generated $15.6 billion in 2026, with no single company holding more than 5% market share. For flexibility, pop-up spaces can be rented for a day, a week, a month, or a full year—a fraction of the commitment a permanent storefront needs.
Ahead, learn how to plan and run a pop-up shop that provides the best return on investment (ROI) potential.
What is a pop-up shop?
A pop-up shop is a temporary retail space, also called a pop-up store, that a brand opens for a defined period, anywhere from a single day to several months.
The modern pop-up shop, as we know it today, traces back to 1997 in Los Angeles. That’s when creative director Patrick Courrielche launched the Ritual Expo, a one-day event dubbed the “ultimate hipster mall.”
And unlike permanent stores, pop-ups are built around a specific moment: a product launch, a seasonal push, market validation, developing a new business idea, or a collaboration.
Pop-up shops are:
- Event-driven. Pop-ups have a start date and an end date. The temporary window generates press and gives customers a reason to show up now rather than later.
- Experiential. Brands use the space to host activations, demo products, run workshops, or build community, turning the visit itself into a draw.
- Low overhead. Short leases and flexible terms keep upfront costs well below those of a permanent storefront, making the format accessible to direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands and indie labels.
Why open a pop-up shop?
Splash’s 2025 Outlook on Events report found 88% of marketers identified events as a key revenue driver, and 94% of marketers using event-led growth strategies reported consistent revenue from events.
Here’s more on why pop-up shops work for modern retailers:
Test new markets without long-term commitment
A pop-up gives brands a low-cost way to validate a new neighborhood retail location, or customer segment before signing a multiyear lease. Run a pop-up for two to four weeks in the target market, track daily foot traffic, walk-in rate, and conversion, and you’ll have enough data to know whether a permanent storefront is worth pursuing.
“We did four pop-ups around Toronto. So, our pop-ups were kind of test dummies for what location would work, what kind of vibe would work,” says Allegra Shaw, founder of Uncle Studios. The fourth pop-up, an ’80s-themed convenience store, was the most successful, which directly informed the location of the brand’s permanent store on Ossington Avenue.
Create buzz and drive social media engagement
A well-designed pop-up gives customers a reason to film, post, and share. Plus, on visual-discovery platforms, user-generated content (UGC) travels further than it ever has.
TikTok’s average engagement rate reached 3.7% in 2025, up 49% year- over year and more than seven times Instagram’s 0.48%, according to Socialinsider’s 2026 Social Media Benchmark Report.
For pop-ups, that’s the entire game. For example, Vogue named the Louis Vuitton x Murakami Pop-Up Café at Peranakan House in Joo Chiat one of the eight key moments that defined the fashion industry in 2025, framing it as part of luxury’s pivot to “experiential luxury.”
Move excess inventory quickly
Pop-up shops are a clean way to sell through dead stock without discounting in your flagship sales channels.
For example, sustainable fashion brand Reformation ran a week-long sample sale pop-up at Boston Seaport in April 2025. There it offered past-season favorites, one-of-a-kind samples, and best-elling styles at up to 80% off retail, with new inventory added daily.
Seasonal transitions are the most natural moment for an inventory pop-up. After the holiday spending frenzy, consumers typically tighten their wallets and look for clearance deals in the new year. This makes January through March a prime window to use markdowns strategically and clear inventory without diluting brand equity.
End-of-summer and back-to-school windows offer similar moments.
Read: Inventory Aging Report: How To Reduce Aged Stock
Build face-to-face customer relationships
According to Adyen’s 2025 Retail Report, in-store shopping remains the preferred channel for 44% of consumers, with 51% of those who prefer stores citing the ability to touch and feel products as the reason.
A pop-up gives brands the chance to put a face to the name, meeting customers in person and answering questions in real time. That hands-on quality is also what makes pop-ups effective for product demos and gathering customer feedback. Live demonstrations let customers handle the product, ask staff direct questions, and try before they buy.
“When we were doing pop-ups and in-person events, we realized we were making sales for all the month after because we would meet people in person,” says Myriam Belzile-Maguire, founder of Maguire Shoes.
Generate omnichannel sales
The shoppers who walk into a pop-up are also the ones likely browsing your site and following your socials. The pop-up just gives them somewhere physical to land, or from “clicks to bricks.”
Here, QR codes are a good bridge. According to Uniqode’s State of QR Codes 2026, getting more information is the top reason 75% of consumers scan QR codes, ahead of discounts (52%) and payments (35%).
Stick them on product tags, fitting room mirrors, packaging, signage; anywhere a shopper’s hand might already be.
Tip: How to Use QR Codes in Retail (2026 Guide with Examples)
Types of pop-up shops
There are numerous types of pop-up shop ideas to consider, depending on your business goals. Here are some examples.
Seasonal pop-ups
The most common type of seasonal pop-up is the holiday pop-up shop. For some businesses, these shops tap into peak shopping season, which accounts for more than a quarter of their annual sales.
Chicago’s Christkindlmarket is an example of a seasonal market where businesses create pop-up stores. Open from mid-November to near the end of each year, the Christkindlmarket offers consumers an interactive holiday event featuring locally made goods from dozens of vendors to purchase as gifts.
Collaboration pop-ups
Collaboration pop-ups are co-hosted events built by brands, creators, or retailers with overlapping audiences.
A collaboration pop-up blends audiences, cross-promotes offers, and creates a fresh reason for shoppers to show up.
For example, the band BLACKPINK teamed up with Fanatics and Complex to launch the BLACKPINK IN YOUR AREA League Collection. The drop blended BLACKPINK’s visuals with iconic NBA and MLB jerseys.
Experimental/test-market pop-ups
An experimental pop-up is one where a business experiments with new products, markets, merchandising, or retail experiences before launching on a bigger scale.
Experimental pop-ups allow businesses to be innovative, test ideas, and bring creative products or concepts to an audience they might not otherwise reach.
Meta has been running this play in public. After debuting the Meta Lab concept at Connect 2024, the company expanded its experiential retail strategy to coincide with the September 2025 launch of its $799 Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses. The product was so new that you needed an in-person demo to buy it.
About 90% of attendees went through the store, and one in four made a purchase. In fact, Meta signed a 10-year lease with Vornado Realty Trust to keep Meta Lab NYC beyond the launch window.
Virtual and online pop-ups
A virtual pop-up is an experience. Think 360-degree shoppable environments, livestream styling sessions, VR walkthroughs, or gamified product reveals on a custom platform.
For example, for the first time globally for luxury, Snapchat brought together Chopard, BOSS, and Lancôme inside one immersive digital village where visitors could step into each boutique in AR through dedicated Lenses
An online pop-up is a temporary digital storefront on its own landing page or subdomain.
SKIMS ran this play with its Holiday Shop: a dedicated landing page that opened in October 2025, with more than 100 limited-edition pieces.
Shop-in-shop
A shop-in-shop is a shop set up within an established store.
Retailers typically rent a portion of a store or boutique as a place to sell their products. Launching a pop-up in a store leverages the larger store’s existing foot traffic, helping you save money on rent and décor in the process. It also brings something fresh to the original store and creates excitement. It should be mutually beneficial, similar to cross-selling or collaborative marketing.
How much does a pop-up shop cost?
Rental cost is the biggest line item, typically 30% of your budget, but everything else flexes around it.
Budget breakdown by pop-up type
While every pop-up is different, here are ballpark cost ranges based on:
- Retail space rental data from Storefront. Where you can filter by city, duration, date, space type, and event type.
- Retail worker wages in the US. These are estimated at $17.15 per hour according to ZipRecruiter.
- Shopify POS hardware pricing, including:
- The Tap & Chip Card Reader, starting at $49, for mobile or countertop payments
- The POS Terminal Countertop Kit, priced at $349, for a more permanent setup (tablet not included)
- Digital marketing costs, which can vary widely. According to WebFX, most businesses spent between $50 and $6,000 per month in 2025.
| Pop-up type | Retail space | Setup and fixtures | Staffing and POS | Marketing | Total ballpark |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| One-day event | $1,000–$5,000 | $500–$2,000 | $300–$800 | $500–$2,000 | $2,300–$9,800 |
| Weekend pop-up | $2,000–$10,000 | $1,000–$3,000 | $600–$1,200 | $1,000–$3,000 | $4,600–$17,200 |
| Short-term retail | $5,000–$25,000 | $2,000–$6,000 | $2,000–$5,000 | $2,000–$6,000 | $11,000–$42,000 |
| Online/virtual pop-up | n/a | $0–$2,000 | $0–$1,000 | $1,000–$10,000 | $1,500–$13,000 |
| Collab pop-up | $1,500–$10,000* | $1,000–$3,000 | $500–$3,000 | $1,000–$4,000 | $4,000–$20,000 |
*Collaboration pop-ups often share rental, setup, and staffing costs between partners.
Tip: Shopify offers POS hardware rentals. So you can get a temporary setup for your temporary storefront.
Key expense categories
| Expense | Low budget | Mid-range | High end |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rental space | $1,000/week for a 500 sq. ft. LA boutique | $800–$1,500/day in emerging NYC neighborhoods | $2,500+/day in SoHo; $3,000–$8,000/day in Times Square; up to $75,000/week on Melrose |
| Staffing | 1–2 staff at $17.15/hour | 3–4 staff at $20–$25/hour | Full team at $25–$30/hour; security at $25–$60/hour |
| POS and payments | $49 (Tap & Chip Reader) | $349 (POS Terminal Countertop Kit) | $500+ for a multistation setup |
| Design and build-out | DIY signage and basics | $2,000–$10,000 for fixtures, lighting, vinyl, etc. | $5,000–$25,000 for a custom build-out |
| Marketing | $200–$1,000 for flyers and organic marketing | $1,000–$5,000 for paid social and influencers | $6,000+/month for a full campaign |
| Utilities | Often included in shorter rentals | $200–$500/month | $500+/month |
Hidden costs to consider
Once you’ve got the space, less obvious expenses creep in:
- Variable costs scale with how long you run, how much inventory you move, and how ambitious your activations are. Includes sales commissions, packaging materials, and ongoing marketing spend across paid social, PPC, and influencer outreach.
- Upfront costs include permit fees, general liability insurance, utilities not bundled into rent, and credit card processing fees. Shopify Payments charges 2.4% to 2.9% plus 30¢ per transaction. Also, budget for shipping and freight for inventory, displays, and visual merchandising.
How to set up a pop-up shop: Your 8-step checklist
There are clear steps to take when it’s time to set up your pop-up store. Here’s what you need to know:
1. Define your goals and budget
Get clear on what success looks like and what you can spend to achieve it. Answer these questions first:
- Why are you doing this? Launching a product, testing a new market, building brand awareness, moving inventory, or running an experiential campaign?
- Who is the audience? Existing customers? A new demographic? Press and influencers? Local foot traffic?
- What’s the budget? Set an all-in number—rent, staff, build-out, marketing, contingency—before leasing a SoHo storefront you can’t afford.
2. Choose your pop-up type
A press-driven brand launch needs a different setup than a holiday inventory clear-out, so choose:
- A physical pop-up for face-to-face engagement and building a local audience
- A virtual or online pop-up for global reach and tying into a digital launch
- A shop-in-shop or collaboration pop-up for borrowed foot traffic and shared costs with a partner brand
- An experimental pop-up for testing a bold concept before committing to a permanent footprint
3. Find and secure a location
Contact realtors directly to check if they have any pop-up shop venues available. There are also searchable, online databases where you can book properties yourself.
Examples include:
Most let you filter by city, duration, square footage, and event type.
Once you’ve shortlisted a space, you’ll sign a retail leasing agreement. The lease defines the term (the rental period), and outlines what you’re allowed to do in the space, like modifications, hours of operation, signage, AV setup, food handling, and so on.
Pop-up rent typically runs at about half the cost of a traditional retail lease, and rent may be structured as a percentage of sales, on a month-to-month basis, or offered at a discounted “teaser” rate for first-time tenants. Some landlords may prefer to compromise on lower rents to avoid empty units, so it’s worth asking for a rent-free start period or reduced opening week.
4. Handle legal requirements
Cities and states treat pop-ups as real businesses, which means permits, licenses, and compliance rules apply from day one.
You’ll typically need:
- Temporary business license
- Seller’s permit to collect and remit sales tax
- Zoning approval for the location
- Additional permits if you’re selling food, alcohol, or playing live music
Requirements vary significantly by city. For example, San Francisco caps “pop-up” retail at 60 days under a Temporary Use Authorization, while Chicago issues a dedicated Pop Up License.
Always check your city’s business licensing office and zoning department before signing a lease.
5. Design your space
Your pop-up’s design should reflect your target audience and your product.
The exterior is your first impression and your free advertising. Look for:
- Frontage and sidewalk access wide enough for foot traffic, lines, and curbside pickup
- Window display space large enough for hero product placement or a strong installation
- Signage rights; confirm what the lease allows, and design accordingly. Canva, Adobe Express, and Figma all have free templates for storefront signage and window vinyl
- Parking and public transit access; proximity to a train station or main bus route can impact your foot traffic
The interior has to do two things at once—showcase the product and process transactions without friction. Look for:
- Square footage; enough room for browsing without bottlenecks at the door or POS
- Stock and back-of-house space; somewhere to hide inventory and staff belongings
- Wi-Fi and power, high-speed internet for POS and card readers; enough outlets for lighting and chargers
- Display fixtures, including built-in shelving, racks, or tables, or a clear plan to bring your own
- Anti-theft features like surveillance, alarms, or sightlines that let staff see the whole space
- Accessibility and capacity considerations; people using wheelchairs should be able to navigate the space and be mindful of capacity limits set by the fire code, along with emergency plans
6. Set up the point-of-sale and inventory
Shopify POS is built for selling in person, online, and at events from one back office. For pop-up sales specifically, this means a sale at the event automatically deducts stock from your online store in real time.
7. Market your pop-up
A pop-up’s success depends on the marketing window around it as much as the event itself.
Split your marketing the pop-up shop work across three phases:
- Pre-launch
- During the pop-up
- Post-launch
Pre-launch (2-4 weeks out)
Build anticipation. Tease the location and dates on social media, send teaser emails to your existing list, and partner with local businesses to extend reach.
According to LoyaltyLion’s 2025 Consumer Loyalty Research, 72% of shoppers are motivated to enroll in a loyalty program by early access to sales, and 85% are motivated by discounts. Both levers work well for the pop-up pre-launch.
During the pop-up
Capture data while you have it. Configure your checkout to collect email and SMS consent at the point of sale; Shopify POS Pro handles this natively.
Post-launch
Don’t let the momentum die when the doors close. Employ email personalization to connect with everyone who signed up at the pop-up. Include a thank-you note, a photo gallery from the event, and a link to the products they tried in person.
8. Measure success
A pop-up is a data collection exercise for your business. Track these retail metrics to understand what worked, what didn’t, and how to do it better next time:
- Foot traffic and dwell time. How many people walked in, and how long did they stay?
- Conversion rate. Of the people who walked in, how many bought something? A 20% to 40% walk-in-to-purchase rate is the storefront benchmark for a successful retail pop-up. Contrast with your ecommerce conversion rate.
- Average order value (AOV). Compare this to your ecommerce AOV.
- New customer sign-ups. The number of new email and SMS opt-ins captured at the POS.
- Cost per acquisition (CAC). The total pop-up spend divided by new customers acquired. Benchmark this against your paid social CAC.
- Post-event online sales lift. Track ecommerce traffic and revenue in the pop-up’s geographic radius for four to six weeks after closing.
When the pop-up ends, the customer relationship shouldn’t. Use Shopify’s built-in segmentation to group pop-up sign-ups based on shared behavior; then use Shopify Messaging to send a thank-you email within 48 hours of closing to drive the first online sale.
Inspiring pop-up shop examples
Here are three real-life examples of successful pop-ups to inspire your own.
Glossier
Beauty brandGlossier did a three-day Paris pop-up in March 2025, The Wonder of You at Galerie Joseph. There it launched its new Glossier You Fleur fragrance, complete with floral installations, an AI-penned personalized poem for each visitor, and on-site bottle engraving.
The brand is widely cited as one of the most successful examples of a pop-up strategy in retail.
Pop Up Grocer
Pop Up Grocer is a retailer that thought outside the box to create unique, experiential pop-up shops appealing to shoppers’ wants over needs.
Plant Man P
Plant Man P is a streetwear brand for those who love houseplants. So it made sense to collaborate with plant store The Sill’s New York location to launch a shop-in-shop for its products.
“We decided to do a t-shirt design reading ‘Plant Care Is Self Care’ in the infinity symbol layout, because we believe that plant care is self-care, and vice versa,” says Plant Man P founder Jon Perdomo. “We love that we’re able to go out and meet people in the community and help out in any way we can, whether it’s plant care or self-care and anything else in between.”
Pop-up shop ideas to inspire your launch
Here are some creative pop-up shop ideas to consider:
Seasonal themes
During the winter holidays, you could create a cozy, festive atmosphere with decorations, seasonal products, and themed activities, like holiday gift guide product demos.
In the summer, consider a beach-themed pop-up featuring summer essentials like swimwear, sunscreen, and outdoor games.
Local artisan showcase
Shine a spotlight on the talent in your community by hosting a local artisan showcase.
You can feature handmade goods from local artists and craftspeople, such as pottery, jewelry, textiles, and artwork.
Food and beverage tasting
A food and beverage pop-up can draw in crowds eager to try new flavors. Partner with local food producers, breweries, or wineries to offer tastings of their products. You could also create a themed experience around different cuisines or beverages.
Fashion boutique
Set up a temporary fashion boutique that showcases trendy clothing and accessories.
You can create a personalized shopping experience with styling sessions or fashion shows featuring local models.
Beauty and wellness
Give shoppers a little R&R with a beauty and wellness pop-up shop that focuses on self-care products and services. Offer skin care consultations, makeup tutorials, or even mini spa treatments like facials or massages.
DIY workshops
Create an interactive learning experience for your customers by hosting DIY workshops at your pop-up event. These hands-on sessions can range from crafting homemade candles to painting pottery or creating personalized jewelry.
Virtual pop-up
Run an online flash sale tied to a countdown timer. Schedule a limited-time window, display a ticking countdown on your homepage and product pages, or create a Coming Soon page and stack it with email/SMS reminders, exclusive bundles, or early access for subscribers.
Shopify apps like Hextom: Countdown Timer Bar and Essential Countdown Timer plug straight into your store and auto-end the offer when the clock hits zero.
Renting vs. owning your pop-up space
Most pop-ups run on rentals or license agreements, but a small number of brands buy outright.
These are the trade-offs:
- Renting keeps upfront costs low, leaves maintenance to the landlord, and lets you exit without selling a property. But this is at the cost of no equity accumulation, potential rent escalation, and limited control over modifications.
- Owning builds equity and locks in costs, but commercial purchases typically require a 20% to 30% upfront commitment of the total purchase price, including down payment, closing costs, and renovations. This is business capital that could otherwise fund inventory, staff, or marketing.
For most brands testing physical retail for the first time, rent. A 30-day pop-up costs a fraction of a property deposit and tells you whether the location, format, and audience work for you.
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Pop-up shop FAQ
What is considered a pop-up shop?
A pop-up shop is a temporary retail space used by brands to sell products or services for a limited time. These shops often appear in high-traffic areas like malls, markets, or city streets, and are used to test new markets, boost revenue, or build buzz for your brand.
What are the rules for pop-up shops?
Rules vary by location but generally include:
- Permits and licenses, such as a temporary business license or sales tax ID
- A lease agreement, which is a short-term rental contract with a landlord or property owner
- Insurance, including public liability or event insurance
- Compliance with local health, safety, and zoning laws
In the US, check with your city’s business licensing office. In the EU or UK, local councils often handle this.
Do I need a license to do a pop-up shop?
In most cases, yes. Short-term retail spaces are still treated as real businesses by city and state authorities.
Always check your city’s business licensing office and zoning department before signing a lease. Fines and shutdowns aren’t worth the risk to a successful pop-up shop, especially for small businesses running on tight margins.
Can I run a pop-up shop online?
Yes, a virtual pop-up event can deliver the same urgency-driven pop-up shopping experiences as a physical event, without the overhead of a market street location.
The pop-up model works online as a limited-time flash sale. SKIMS turned its 2025 Holiday Shop launch into exactly this kind of moment, and Snapchat hosted dozens of local brands in its AR-powered Winter Village.
You can test product-market fit against your target customer in a short period, validate business goals, and build the data and email list you need to justify a physical location later.
