The country may be headed toward the fiscal cliff, but that didn't stop marketers from once again flooding New York City with holiday pop-up shops. Built to promote and sell wares during the busy shopping season, this year the temporary homes for brands enticed consumers with experiential environments, giveaways, and activations linked to social media platforms. From Johnnie Walker's three-story house in SoHo to EBay's toy box in a shipping container, here's a look at this year's holiday pop-ups.
EBay Toy Box
EBay partnered with Toys for Tots to launch its new app at the EBay Toy Box pop-up in the meatpacking district's Gansevoort Plaza. Open December 6 through 9 and produced by Matter and MAS Event & Design, the promotion was housed in a refurbished shipping container.
Photo: Joana Mangune/BizBash
Elizabeth Arden Recharge Room
On December 1 and 2 Elizabeth Arden opened a Recharge Room as a place for holiday shoppers to relax. The pop-up in the Flatiron district's pedestrian plaza offered makeovers and hand massages.
Photo: Sara Jaye Weiss
Elizabeth Arden Recharge Room
Baked by Melissa's giant gumball machine, which Elizabeth Arden dubbed its Recharge Machine, dispensed little plastic pods that held red velvet cupcakes as well as red tickets that could be exchanged for items like Red Door spa gift certificates, Elizabeth Arden products, or a pair of Christian Louboutin heels.
Photo: Sara Jaye Weiss
EBay Toy Box
The Christmas tree at EBay's pop-up featured ornament-shaped pieces marked with QR codes and a description of a toy. Visitors could donate gifts to Toys for Tots by downloading the EBay Now app on their smartphones and scanning the ornaments.
Photo: Joana Mangune/BizBash
EBay Toy Box
A cart served hot cocoa and housed a phone charging station.
Photo: Joana Mangune/BizBash
'Nylon' Magazine's Pop-Up Shop
Nylon magazine opened its first-ever pop-up shop on December 6, taking over an empty gallery space in the meatpacking district for a temporary promotion that ran through December 18. The raw site was designed to look like a Nylon photo shoot with white photography umbrellas hanging from the ceiling.
Photo: Nylon Magazine
'Nylon' Magazine's Pop-Up Shop
To further the photo shoot theme, behind-the-scenes footage from the magazine's cover stars were projected on the wall.
Photo: Nylon Magazine
'Nylon' Magazine's Pop-Up Shop
A white sheet of backdrop paper with the #NylonPopUp hashtag invited guests to write messages physically and through social media.
Photo: Nylon Magazine
Refinery29's Tinseltown Bazaar
As a way to extend its "Live from Tinseltown" online video series, Refinery29 took over Openhouse Gallery for three days. The pop-up shop, dubbed the Tinseltown Bazaar, was open from December 14 through 16.
Photo: Angela Pham/BFAnyc.com
Refinery29's Tinseltown Bazaar
Aux Armes decorated Refinery29's space, mixing clothing displays with kitschy holiday decor; pine boughs served as a mannequin's skirt. On the walls, shiny silver decals formed an abstract skyline backdrop.
Photo: Angela Pham/BFAnyc.com
Refinery29's Tinseltown Bazaar
Additional festive design elements included a small reindeer under a silver tinsel tree at the shop's entrance.
Photo: Angela Pham/BFAnyc.com
Refinery29's Tinseltown Bazaar
Reflecting the brand's online Tinseltown gift guide, the pop-up sold holiday cards, stamp ink pads, and colorful frames.
Photo: Angela Pham/BFAnyc.com
Wired Store
Wired magazine launched this year's Wired Store on November 30, taking over Esprit's old retail space in SoHo. The pop-up shop remains open through December 23.
Photo: © 2012 Louis Seigal/seigalphotography.com
Wired Store
Mother New York produced the eighth iteration of the Condé Nast title's pop-up shop, decorating the walls with black-and-white typography.
Photo: © 2012 Louis Seigal/seigalphotography.com
House of Walker
The House of Walker, a private pop-up designed by MKTG to have a cozy and residential feeling, opened in December. The temporary home for the Scotch whiskey brand is hosting 21 invite-only events as part of Johnnie Walker's consumer mentorship program. The three-level space includes a 54-seat theater and rooms that reflect the brand's different labels, such as Red, Blue, and Double Black.
Photo: OzTech Media
House of Walker
In the Double Black room, scientific sketch-like illustrations were used as a backdrop and contained information about each bottle displayed in the room.
Photo: OzTech Media
House of Walker
The Blue Label room featured blue items, such as custom books and sofas.
Photo: OzTech Media
Johnnie Walker Engraving Studio
Johnnie Walker also set up a booth in Grand Central Terminal. The Blue Label promotion offers free bottle engraving from December 1 to 29.
Photo: Joana Mangune/BizBash
Johnnie Walker Engraving Studio
Shoppers can have as many as 45 characters engraved on a 70-milliliter bottle and also hand write their own notes.
Photo: Joana Mangune/BizBash
American Express Holiday Pop-Up Shop
Produced and designed by Momentum Worldwide, American Express's pop-up shop inside Grand Central Terminal ran from December 12 to 14. The financial company donated $10 to Toys for Tots for every gift card sold.
Photo: Joana Mangune/BizBash
American Express Holiday Pop-Up Shop
Set up on the other side of the gift box activation, a photo booth allowed shoppers to take photos with festive props, such as candy canes, Santa hats, and reindeer antlers.
Photo: Joana Mangune/BizBash
American Express Holiday Pop-Up Shop
To promote the pop-up on social media, American Express gave shoppers the option to share their photos on Facebook through an app on a Samsung tablet. For every photo shared, a $5 donation was made.
Photo: Joana Mangune/BizBash
