Pop-up Stores for Pop Groups

One Direction is a UK "boy band" with an international fan base and a big MTV video win to its credit. It made its name on the X Factor show (one of the shows that inspired American Idol) and has been touring the world.

Instead of simply selling T-shirts and other band-branded items at each venue on the concert tour, the band's merchandising company decided to open limited-time pop-up stores in Melbourne, Sydney, Toronto and Chicago when One Direction came to town.

Thanks to the Facebook page and other social media, 1D World was the talk of tweens well before One Direction's concert dates. “Before we were coming, before we announced, they all knew about 1D World,” the merchandising firm's managing director tells Maclean's.

Pop-ups featuring music are popping up all over. Two pop-ups opened in Chicago for this year's Record Store Day, one devoted to the now defunct local group Hot Jams and one by Numero Group--both loaded with vintage or new vinyl releases.

The next big occasion for pop-ups is Halloween, when temporary shops open all over America to offer holiday-themed costumes, makeup, and merchandise. Even before the Halloween stores close, the Christmas pop-ups will be open (with enough fake snow to cover the globe several times over!).