Bloomberg Businessweek - USA (2019-09-30)

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ILLUSTRATIONS BY XAVIER LALANNE-TAUZIA

◼ SOLUTIONS Bloomberg Businessweek September 30, 2019

“There’sdefinitelya lotof‘let’slearnanditerate’mental-

ity,whichis in paralleltowhatyouseein SiliconValleyas

you’regrowinga startup,”Gonzalezsays.

Experientialmarketinghasbecomeincreasinglyinter-

twinedwithsalesandlocationtesting.GlossierInc.,the

makeupe-tailerwithmorethan$100millionin revenue

andpermanentstoresin NewYorkandL.A.,hasgone

all-inonpop-ups.In 2017 thestartupranthreeweek-

longflashstoresin threecities.Glossierattractedample

mediaattentionin 2019withsix-toeight-weekpop-ups

in London,Boston,Seattle,andMiami;it hasonemore

planned—forAustinthisfall.TheSeattlepop-upfea-

turedgreenplantmoundswithburstsofpinkandpur-

ple,designedbylandscapeartistLilyKwong.Boston’s

wasaneight-hutpop-upvillage,witha differentshop-

pingexperienceineachhut:Onefocusedonbrows;

anotherdeliveredorderswhilecustomersgabbed.(“It’s

verypink,”wrotetheBostonGlobe.)

GonzalezandHaouachehaveseenplentyoffailures,

mostlywithcompaniesthatdon’thavethemanpowerto

expandtoa store.“Brandshavetohavetheoperational

infrastructuretohandlethegrowthoftheire-commerce

andalsohavea store,orelseit becomesa verybighitto

theirbandwidth,”saysGonzalez.

Socialmediaengagementisessential.“Bookinga

spacewithhighfoottrafficis notenough,”saysHaouache.

A storeshouldhavea lotoffollowers.Celebritiesand

influencerswithjustthathavejoinedthegame,includ-

ingTaylorSwift.Sheopeneda flashstorein NewYorkin

AugustforherfashionlinewithStellaMcCartney.

When it’s well-executed, a pop-up—or pop-in,

asshopsinstalled withanotherretailer aresome-

timescalled—persuadescustomerstoreturninper-

son,beatingbackthelong-prophesieddominationof

e-commerce.Onlineshoppingaccountsfor14%ofall

U.S.retailsales,accordingtoa 2019analysisbyInternet

Retailer,androughlyhalfofretailgrowth.

ThefirstfloorsoffourBloomingdale’slocationsin

NewYork,L.A.,andSanFranciscofeaturetheCarousel,

a 1,500-square-footpop-in.Themerchandiseand

designareswitchedeverytwomonths.Thelatest

themeisWindow IntoSeoul, witha coupledozen

Koreanbrandsonhandanda K-popaesthetic.“Oneof

ourbigfocusesis tocreatetheseever-changingand

veryexcitingelementstocontinuetodrivecustomers

toourstores,”saysJustinBerkowitz,men’sfashion

directorforBloomingdale’sInc.“I reallythinkthatforthe

futureofretail,”hesays,it’simportanttomake“brick-

and-mortara placewherethecustomerreallywantsto

come.”�ArianneCohen

THE BOTTOM LINE In the past two years, pop-up stores have evolved

from their marketing roots into a key driver of sales and location testing for

big and small retailers alike.

Sundays in the

Supermarché

For decades,Frenchunionshavefoughtextended

openingtimesforstores,defendinglawsthatforbid

everythingfromcornergroceriestowarehouse-size

hypermarketsfrommakingstaffersstockshelvesorsit

behindcashregistersin theweehoursandonSunday

afternoons.Suchrules,theunionssay,ensurethatwork-

ersgetneededtimeoffandprotectthemfromexploita-

tion.TwoFrenchretailchainshavecomeupwitha way

aroundthoseregulations:openingsansemployees.

GrocerygroupCasinoGuichardPerrachonis leav-

ing 200 outletsopenafteremployeesgohome,with

self-checkoutmachinesin theirstead.RivalCarrefourSA

inMaybegantestinga similarideainParis’sposh

7tharrondissementwitha marketthat’sopen24/7.The

storeslocktheirliquorcabinetsandclosemeatcounters

andcheese-cuttingstations,butshopperscanselect

whattheywantfromotherdepartments then proceed to

the automated checkout. Security guards, typically out-

side contractors, keep an eye out for shoplifters. “We’re

responding to customer demand,” says Alexandre de

Palmas, director of Carrefour’s convenience store divi-

sion. He says hundreds of shoppers show up during the

late-night hours, and there’s more traffic earlier in the

evening “because people aren’t worried the shop will be

closed when they get there.”

French retailers say they need longer hours to remain

competitive. In the largely stagnant market, the only way

to grow is by taking share from a rival, and today there

are more entrants than ever, with low-cost chains such

as E.Leclerc, Lidl, and Aldi expanding across France

and e-tailers taking a greater share of sales. “The inter-

net has changed the game, and we have to adapt,” says

Sebastien Corrado, marketing director for the Casino

group, which launched its program last December. “We’re

finding a way for physical retail to compete.”

Unions call the strategy risky: Late-night partygoers

and messy shoppers could wreak havoc. Worse, they

say, the stores are normalizing the idea that consumers

French unions

hate extended

store hours.

So shop owners

are opening

without workers