The 1988 fantasy comedy film Big—in which 12-year-old Josh Baskin ages to 30 overnight—produced a number of memorable pop-culture moments that are still referenced in 2018. The prime examples are the foot-operated piano at FAO Schwarz and the Zoltar fortune teller machine, which grants Josh his wish to become “big.” (The bigger version of Josh was memorably played by Tom Hanks.)
To celebrate the film’s 30th anniversary—and to put its brand on the map—e-commerce furniture company Zinus recreated the New York loft from the film for a day-long consumer pop-up.
Zinus, which specializes in mattresses and bed frames, hosted the event in a vacant space in Flatiron on May 31. The loft featured a floor piano, a pinball machine, a trampoline, the Zoltar fortune teller, and a Zinus bunk bed based on the one from the film. The brand secured licensing rights from the film and partnered with brand experience agency Jack Morton Worldwide, which produced the event.
Darren Wilson, vice president of marketing for Zinus, said paying tribute to the film aligned perfectly with the brand’s tagline, "Live in Wonder."
“For events and pop-ups of this nature, there needs to be a strong parallel between the two brands,” said Wilson. “We chose to recreate the loft because the film epitomizes the wonder of childhood and playfulness."
While the pop-up was ideal for nostalgic, Instagrammable photos, it also gave guests a chance to win a new mattress if they interacted with the Zoltar machine. Zinus also sold 100 limited-edition bunk beds on its site to coincide with the event.
Zinus was founded in 1979, but Wilson noted that now was the time to make the brand more well known, as it only recently started selling to the public. This was the brand's first pop-up and it plans to host more culture-focused events in the future, according to Wilson.
“We’re an e-commerce company, and being part of the cultural conversation is very important to us,” said Wilson. "We’ve been producing products for decades but we’ve only been selling directly to consumers for about two years. We chose to deploy our consumer-facing strategy [with this pop-up], introducing the product to the public and our brand’s belief in a world of wonder.”
Here’s a look at how the Big loft was replicated by Zinus.