A Dollar And A Dream: MOLLY's First Pop-Up Sale Event

If you've been following me since 2019, you'd know that I began my move from Toronto to Montréal at the peak of the pandemic and was automatically locked in against my will for the next 2+ years like everyone else. So socializing and getting to know people in the city was impossible, which is why when I was contacted by one of the organizers of Pop-Up 2 Shop to see if I'd be interested in their upcoming shopping event in Laval, Quebec, I quickly jumped on it.

It's always exciting to get my brand out there, so I guess my excitement got the best of me cause there were a few factors I probably should have considered before deciding to partake in the event, but hey! Everything worked out, thankfully!

  

As soon as I locked in my Booth, I immediately began thinking up how best to set up a booth and drafted up some ideas quickly on InDesign to imagine the 8 x 8 space I had rented for the event. The first idea seemed a little closed off and a bit too un-interactive for the complexity of The GR1, so I decided to switch things up a bit. The initial concept quickly showed me that I needed to open up the space as best as I could, which meant a rush order of display pieces ASAP from Amazon, because the event was only a few days away from the day I was contacted. I also had to hurry and purchase custom Display Banners, but those came surprisingly quick.

In the midst of the wait, I tested out my Square Point-of-Sale system to ensure that things were in order, and then headed on a road trip 2 nights before the event, because one of my good friends was moving away. As much as I loved to be there, it added a little anxiety to my stress due to the time crunch. I had planned to leave at around 3/4 pm and head straight to my work space where I had gathered everything I needed for the show: Banners, Decor, FOOTWEAR, Snacks, etc., but I ended up leaving around 5/6 pm, which meant I would have to arrive Montréal around 8pm and move ALL those things into the car at night, so I just headed straight home and dreaded the very looong day ahead instead.

 

The next morning, I had to get up around 5am in order to leave home at 6:30, and get to my workspace around 7am. By the time we arrived at the venue, we only had an hour and 50 minutes to set up, which had me feeling like I was in Canada's Amazing Race trying to accomplish everything before showtime at 10am. Luckily I finished setting up right on time for the selling to begin!

 

It was a great opportunity and experience overall, but I must admit, I felt slightly out of place with the price of my products placed higher than a lot of the other brands that were present. Maybe I should have inquired more about this cause it was definitely a factor concerning the momentum of sales, but as I said, everything worked out perfectly because I met a gorgeous soul, Author, Writer & Publicist, who invited me to an exclusive Diary of a Social Gal pre Formula1 Grand Prix party.

Ultimately, I would say in terms of building connections with like-minded individuals and networking, the event was a success! Definitely the kind of event small-businesses should look into, but endeavour to ask about the placement before you agree. That way, you see if it's the right fit for your price tag.

Until next time,

Molly