In what seems to be one of the most ingenious trends to weave itself into Hip Hop culture is the "pop up shop". These are shops that have the ability to appear in a city near you if you are fortunate enough. They are generally store fronts that showcase exclusive items from your favorite artist. The idea is that there will be an instantaneous and overwhelming urge for fans of said headline artist to come out and spend some of their consumer dollars. As a society, we are drawn to the "exclusive" "once in a lifetime" nature of these events. You often hear about Kanye, Drake or Future going on tour in your city then find yourself standing in a line that wraps around two city blocks to buy a tank top for $65.00. Incredible marketing indeed.
Usually a pop up will appear just before a tour starts or in tandem with an album launch. Much strategic planning goes into the location of a pop up shop and you are bound to see one in major cities like NY, Chicago, Los Angeles, Toronto and many others. The Weeknd recently set off an eight city pop up rotation for his swag. In his collab with Futura 3000, the pair got the fans engaged with what he termed "Artist Capsule" clothing concepts. Kendrick Lamar, who started the DAMN tour July 12, announced all locations for his shops that align with all his tour dates and cities. The first of which opened in Houston. All of Lamar's new merchandise will be showcased throughout the pop up locations.
Image via Hypebeast
The lure of the pop up shop is the frenzy that it creates along with the media exposure for any artist backing one. Since Lamar and others usually sync the opening of the shops with tour dates and record releases, there is even more buzz and spotlight attributing to the success of the tour. Not to mention the additional revenue that is anticipated to flow in. Anyone who is not able to make it to one can just direct themselves to the artists' websites where the items can be found.
What can one expect to find in a pop up shop besides a pricey tank? Well, Macys in NYC just set up a flagship pop up store featuring items from its latest union with Bad Boy. The clothing line is called the Heritage Collection and will showcase pieces inspired by Sean "Diddy" Combs and the one and only Notorious B.I.G. Lots of graphic tees, jerseys, hoodies, hats and jackets will be selling for the next 6 weeks in this location. Items are reasonably priced as well, not going over a $100.00 price point. Many pop up shops are slotted to be springing up for the rest of the summer so keep your eyes peeled. Some noteworthy artists to keep a look out for are Drake and his OVO pop ups, 2Chainz and his clothing collabo with Gucci Ghost, Travis Scott and Big Sean to name a few.
Image via Jean Paul San Pedro