pop up shops

Everything You Need to Know to Try Temporary Retail Pop-Up Shop

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If you’ve been considering getting a physical location for your online store without a long-term commitment, then a pop-up shop might be a great option for you. A pop-up shop would be a great option for both big and small businesses to test the water of physical retail before making the investment in something more permanent. A physical location will put a face to all of your online customers and help you attract a new clientele. It is also a great way to encourage sales, in spite of the growth and popularity of online shopping. 

Below, we will walk you through the steps, costs, and logistics involved in opening up a pop-shop.

What Is A Pop-up Shop?

A pop-up shop is a temporary retail space where brands, usually those with only an online presence can interact with their current customers, and communicate their brand and products to potential to a wider audience. Pop-up shops are usually visually interesting to set themselves apart from regular retail stores.

How Much Does a Pop-Up Shop Cost? 

This will depend on a number of factors, such as the location, duration and size of the pop-up. There is no set price on how much you can spend, but you can have a short-term pop-up store for as little as $1,500.

Benefits of a Pop-Up Store

Drive More Sales During Busy Retail Seasons

Black Friday and Boxing Day are optimal times to open up a pop-up shop. Introducing your brand during the holiday season is a strategic way to get people to know you and your brand at the same time. If you have a regular-season pop-up shop, you’ll build a sense of anticipation among customers.

Unload Old Inventory

Retaining old stock can quickly become expensive. Not only are you missing out on sales, but you’re also putting forth carrying costs that can be allocated to other areas of your business. In addition, depending on what your product is, inventory can get old and become unsellable, which means lost revenue and capital.

How To Pick A Great Pop-Up Shop Location

Finding the perfect pop-up shop for your storefront is crucial to your success. Listed below are some common spaces great for pop-up shops: 

  • Vacant storefronts 
  • Gallery/event space 
  • Shopping centre or mall 

Questions To Ask Before Booking A Space

If you’ve found the perfect location for your pop-up shop, there are some questions you must ask before booking the space: 

  • What are your rental costs? 
  • What are the dimensions of the ceiling, windows, doors, etc.? 
  • Can space be modified? 

If you are interested in a pop-up shop, contact us at Storstac Inc. Let us help you bring your vision to life. 

Why Modular Construction Is More Effective and Reduces Less Waste Than C&D Construction

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As we progress as a nation to be more environmentally-conscious and make conscientious efforts to reduce our waste via recycling and limiting food waste, we tend to forget about construction and demolition (C&D) waste. C&D waste is one of the largest waste sources to date and only about 20% of C&D waste is recycled. With advancements in the construction industry, C&D is no longer the most viable, cost-effective solution for a building project.

How is modular construction pushing the industry forward by reducing waste? Keep reading to learn more about modular construction and why it’s effective.

Site Preparation Is Simultaneous With Building Production

Modular construction is revolutionizing the way we build and how we build. A far more affordable, effective and efficient solution compared to traditional C&D building, modular construction is reducing the waiting period of building production. During C&D construction, homeowners or business owners have to wait for the site preparation to be completed before the building production commences. Modular construction allows site preparation and building products at the shipping container factory to occur simultaneously. Individual shipping containers are designed and built off-site at a manufacturing plant, like Storstac Inc., and then transported to the construction site and fitted to the size you desire.

Reduces Material Waste

Traditional C&D construction methods produce immense waste that is rarely recycled. Modular construction promotes proper, sensible use of building materials by constructing the shipping container modules in a controlled environment. This drastically reduces waste because any excess materials from a previous project do not have to be disposed of and could be utilized for another building operation. Repurposing excess materials are environmentally responsible and can reduce construction downtime. As shipping container modules are delivered to the construction are almost fully complete. 

Designed To Be Deconstructed, Not Demolished

Modular construction may be the most suitable example of reducing, reusing and recycling. Portable storage containers are adaptable and as easily as they can be constructed, they can just as easily be deconstructed efficiently. If you plan on using your shipping container for temporary purposes, whether a pop-up shop, just for storage or to house employees during a remodel, modular construction is the most effective solution. When you no longer need your shipping container, Storstac Inc. can easily remove it from your property and repurpose it. You can rest easy knowing your portable storage container will not be disposed of in a landfill after a single-use. 

 

Include modular construction in your efforts to become more environmentally conscious. Greener, cost-effective building practices are revolutionizing the way we build properties and becoming a favourite solution for home and business owners everywhere. If you’re searching for a shipping container for rent, Storstac Inc. has an extensive fleet of high-quality, durable and visually appealing portable storage containers. Whether you desire a standard container, a specialty module or a mobile rental office container, Storstac Inc. will have the perfect options for you. Get a quote on one of our storage containers for rent at https://storstac.com/get-quote/!

pop up shops

Benefits of Shipping Containers for Experiential Marketing Events

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As more and more businesses enter the market, cutting through the clutter becomes increasingly challenging. This is one reason why marketers are deviating from traditional advertising methods and adopting innovative tactics such as experiential marketing to excite and engage consumers. For many marketers, sturdy, mobile, shipping containers can be easily repurposed into pop-up outlets or on-site installations that are perfect for brand activation.

What is Experiential Marketing?

Also called “live marketing” or “event marketing,” experiential marketing uses creative ways to interact directly with brands and products. Experiential marketing creates unforgettable immersive experiences live, at the venue. These experiences are usually part of events, trade shows or pop-up activations that may or may not be event-based. 

The experiences allow personal interaction with the brand in a wide variety of ways. They allow consumers to experience the brand before buying them. As consumers engage with the brand and get excited, they spread the word to others, building brand value in a powerful, authentic way. 

Word-of-mouth opinions play a big part in spreading the value of the brand in experiential marketing. The experiential events are of several types ranging from the grand opening of a shop, product launch, or launch of a new service. 

How Shipping Containers Help Experiential Marketing?

There are many reasons why experiential marketers are in love with shipping containers for experiential marketing purposes. The repurposed spacious containers make perfect venues for pop-up stores and installations in experiential marketing venues. 

Easy-to-Customize: Shipping containers are easy-to-setup and pack away, sturdy, easy-to-customize into unique, brand-focused installations and environmentally friendly. From music festivals to college campuses, shopping malls to tradeshows, shipping containers are popularly used because they are weather-friendly, durable and flexible to create attractive, creative spaces that are aligned to the brand needs. Whether you are looking for a retro look, something modern or classic like a food serving kiosk, designs are only limited by your imagination. 

Addidas used it a while back to create an oversized shoebox shaped space to display their new line of products. Coca-Cola used a shipping container to create a striking sampling showroom. Buick used a shipping container for brand activation on the beach in a sporting event and festival, offering a 360-degree experience with car displays and mobile kiosks around it to collect data. Gillette took their shipping container to the road to educate consumers about their razor with Flexball Technology.

Weather-Proof Pop-up Shelters: Unlike cloth tents, there’s no need to wind up in the event of rain. Your shipping container allows you to continue to “stand your ground” with no disruption to the experience. Although the size is relatively small, limiting the number of people to peer in and stroll around, it gives you enough space to display the wares to full effect and spend more face-time with consumers.

Storstac Inc: Modified Shipping Container Kiosks

We are Canada’s largest inventory of modified shipping containers popular among retail outlets and food servers who convert them into kiosks. Portable, secure, and modular, our shipping containers offer a wide range of modified pop-up retail and food serving kiosks for rent or sale, all of which are custom manufactured right here in Toronto, Canada. From clothing to drinks, to food, to tickets, to artwork; our modular modified retail and food serving shipping container kiosks can be configured in any number of ways that best suit your needs. Call us to rent or buy them for innovative, engaging experiential marketing needs.

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Advantages of Portable Shipping Containers for Retail Space

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Over the last few years, more and more brands and companies are turning to ship containers to create cost-effective space solutions in creative ways, such as retail pop up stores, swimming pools, glass-ceiling greenhouses, site offices and insulated storage units. The trend is rapidly sweeping across Canada.

Pop up retail stores are temporary spaces that need to be well designed to push a brand forward, yet not cost the earth. They must be easy to set up, pull down, transport and make your business appear trendy. Spacious, sturdy shipping containers allow that flexibility. 

Adidas incorporated pop up retail stores from repurposed shipping containers to launch their NMD shoe. The structures were built to create an urban feel while adhering to Adidas’s trademark creativity. The curated retail spaces provided interactive customer experiences, such as camera obscura portrait photos and much more. The retail stores were a huge hit that spiked up sales for the popular sports brand. 

How about recreating that for your brand with portable, repurposed shipping containers doubling up as retail space? A pop-up retail event offers unlimited location flexibility. They can be shipped worldwide. The container design allows you to create many experiential elements and still feel like a large-scale activation. It is easy to organize, offload and customize. It is easy to stock shelves in the shipping containers. The inventory travels with you on-the-go, cutting down much of your time in setting it up, packing, unpacking and leaving you with more time to spend on building your brand experience with customers. 

Shipping Containers vs Temporary Tents

Vendors at trade shows, festivals, food and retail outlets need to set up and dismantle makeshift kiosks as they move around from place to place. Commonly, tents are used for the purpose. Shipping containers are a step ahead of tents as they can be modified in a number of ways while offering a stronger, more durable, flexible roof over the head. 

  • The containers can be transported by truck, crane or forklift. 
  • They can be fitted with shelves to store all kinds of items from clothes to jewellery, food, and artifacts.
  • Since shipping containers are made of steel, they are more durable and weather-proof than tents.
  • They can be fitted with air-conditioning and heating systems to keep the space comfortable all through the year.
  • You can arrange furniture that can be moved outside to provide seating outside the structure or within.
  • When you are ready to move your wares elsewhere, it is easy to lock the cabinets to keep the items secure and move to the new location without worrying about renting storage space to keep away the wares safely or hiring overnight security.
  • You have the flexibility to create a variety of inviting layouts.

Storstac offers Canada’s largest inventory of modified shipping container retail and food serving pop up kiosks. Portable and secure, we offer a wide range of modified pop up shipping container kiosks for rent or sale that can be configured to any way that meets your needs. Contact us by sending us an email or give us a call.

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How Shipping Containers Changed the World

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Shipping containers are really nothing short of a revolution that has changed the way cargo transportation across oceans work around the world. They have improved cargo-carrying capacity, ensuring they are delivered more safely. Both perishable and non-perishable items can be safely exported from country to country without damage, whether they are bottles of seasonings or seasonal fruits and vegetables.

One of the prime reasons behind this lies in the durable components that make up the container. Made of strong steel, these gigantic boxes can carry heavy items around easily by huge cranes. In the process, they facilitated trade and globalization, changing daily lives with the easy availability of products from around the world at cost-effective prices.

History of Shipping Containers

Durable, resilient shipping containers started dominating trade after World War 2, mostly due to recommendations put forward by the International Organization for Standardization in the 1960s. A container full of wares from one part of the world could be easily shipped to the malls to the other end without any damage or inconvenience, as it passes through different countries en route.

Earlier, goods were loaded one by one onto a cargo ship in a labour intensive process that demanded packing, unpacking in the ports and easy theft or damage in the process. Called break-bulk shipping, the system was practiced right up to the second half of the 20th century until 1956. They were carried in gunny bags, tubs and wooden crates from land to ship and back to land this way.

A large labour force was employed for the process, without any guarantee of the goods arriving in the best conditions. Accidents were rampant, perishable foods were easily ruined and the process was high in value, often costing 20 times more than the item itself.

How the Shipping Container Transformed the World

The massive shipping containers transformed the trade and transportation of goods. It made the world a smaller place. Global supply met demands with transportation ease and the rare products could be enjoyed in countries that had never seen them before.

Costs reduced as transportation became less challenging and machines took over from people. In the end, consumers benefited the most as they gained access to exotic products from all over the world without paying exorbitantly, or travelling all the way.

The most interesting development was the recycling of shipping containers as they were put to numerous uses after they did their day. Portable containers entered the housing market, becoming fashionable workspaces for start-ups, bars, restaurants, and shops. From the clothes people wore the world over, to the food they ate, borders melted as goods became available everywhere.

Storstac, High-Quality Shipping Containers

With over 40 years of combined experience in the shipping industry, Storstac offers the best quality rental containers in Toronto at competitive prices to offer a worry-free cargo shipping experience. We exceed your expectations providing outstanding value and service. Contact us to find your perfect shipping container solutions.

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Best Tips to Know Before Building & Renting Your Container Home

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Sustainable design has become extremely popular in recent years. One of the best examples of this is the re-use of the shipping container. Shipping containers are durable, convenient in size and stackable to make multiple rooms. Every day, people have been purchasing them to start up a business, turn into their home or rent out to others.

However, this sustainable building design is still quite new and with any new project, there are challenges to overcome. That’s why Storstac Inc. has put together a list of tips to follow from shipping container homeowners and rental hosts.

Before you get started on your own design and get ready to rent it, check out the great advice below.

Be Aware of Rules and Regulations

Make sure to research your city or town’s regulations for building a shipping container home. Property Zoning is conducted by the city’s government and determines what type of buildings can be built in the zone. Building Permits must be applied for you to prove your awareness of building codes and will follow them to be approved for building. It’s also important to be a good neighbour and maintain the property your container will be on.

See the Container Before Buying

It’s important to do the research to find the right container and just as important to see it in person. Some shipping container buyers made the mistake of relying on the company’s word that their purchase was in great shape, only to receive it in less than desirable conditions. Do your research online then visit the container itself before buying it. Make sure it has the exact materials and is the size that you want.

Consider Your Climate

Understand what your local climate is and build according to that. Spray-foam is the most popular insulation because it forms a barrier to resist air movement. It seals very well and transfers heat to keep the shipping container warm.

For warmer climates, choose a large roof that extends over the container. This will shade the windows and protect them from intense heat. Choosing the wrong type of insulation could lead to preventable issues. For example, colder winters require spray-foam insulation because of its sealant. Some container buyers who live in colder climates found that fibreglass insulation led to their home being damaged from condensation.

Plan The Layout

Consider the number of guests that you will allow to stay at the container rental. A 40 ft container rental allows for a large home. Its long length allows for maximum sunlight if placed in the right area to make the home airier. A 20 ft container is perfect for a couple’s getaway for a more cozy, romantic feel.

Storstac Inc. is committed to providing high-quality shipping containers for rent for you to choose from. Our eco-friendly products are durable, stackable and ready to be designed your way. Storstac’s team of professionals can even build your container off-site and deliver it to you with minimal site interruption.