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Facebook’s pop-up store has everything from clothes to burger sauce
The last thing you might expect to find inside a Macy's store is a space decorated by Facebook. But that's exactly what people in Atlanta, Fort Lauderdale, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Antonio, San Francisco, Seattle, Pittsburgh and New York City will see when they visit The Market, a curated collection of established and up-and-coming brands that Macy's features as a shop-within-a-shop at select locations. Through a partnership with the retailer, Facebook this week launched its first-ever pop-up store, which is going to put a spin on The Market and feature 100 "digital-native" brands inside Macy's. Digital native, essentially, means they've either advertised on Facebook or Instagram.
Google begins its big Pixel push in the UK
It's a big day for Google. The company is launching its first Pixel branded phones in the UK, retiring the Nexus line and attacking the iPhone with gusto. To give its new handsets a proper introduction, Google has renovated its store-within-a-store at the Currys PC World on Tottenham Court Road. We went to take a look, and stumbled across a Google-branded coffee stall along the way. (Helpful, given the shop opened at 7am.) If you're wondering how Google plans to market the Pixel, and ultimately compete with Samsung, Apple and others, check out the gallery below -- a similar store concept is being launched in New York City today.
Amazon might open more pop-up stores to showcase the Echo
You might see more pop-up Amazon stores in malls over the next year. According to Business Insider, the tech titan is planning to open more of them, particularly to showcase its Echo speakers and other devices. While the company mostly operates online, it's been running 16 pop-up stores in the country. That number could reach over 30 by the end of the year, the report says, and could even go over a hundred by next year, as the e-retailer is reportedly putting up one almost every week across the US.
Inside Afghanistan's unofficial Apple Store
When a gap appears in the market, entrepreneurs will step in to fill it. A few years ago, we reported about a rash of unofficial Apple stores popping up, and being shut down, in China. Now Quartz is reporting about an unofficial Apple store in Kabul, Afghanistan. Unlike the fancy Chinese knock-offs this unofficial home to Apple products is merely a small operation nestled in the middle of Afghanistan's largest shopping mall. The store sells a few laptops and phones every day according to its manager, Mohammed Nasery, at a slight markup from their American prices. This is due to having to buy all of the products from Dubai at retail price. Due to economic limitations, only a small percentage of the country has the means to purchase an Apple product, but the status such luxury items affords leads some young Afghans to make the splurge. In an interview last year with USC Annenberg, Esmatullah Rahimi, one of the store's employee's, described the kind of clientele the store attracted. "Well, Afghans don't have a lot of money, so to own an Apple you need to have a good job. I'd say that most Apple consumers are pretty young, from around 25 to 35. These are the people who work either as translators for the military or who work on aid projects...Young Afghans work around foreigners who have iPods and Macs and iPads, and they want them too." The store has been profitable enough that the owners are expanding their operation, adding a repair center and a website soon, with a second location being considered. You can read more over at Quartz. It's fascinating look at how technology spreads unofficially to markets where there is demand.
Samsung crashes iPhone 4S block party, lures Aussies with $2 Galaxy S IIs
Can't say we didn't see this catfight coming after Apple boldly rejected Samsung's settlement offer in Australia, but man, the latter certainly isn't afraid of striking back in its enemy's front yard. The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Sammy's set up a pop-up store merely meters away from Apple's Sydney store, all for just stealing the thunder from the iPhone 4S launch this Friday. The campaign? For the first ten customers each day up to Friday, the Korean giant's offering its Galaxy S II for just $2 sans contract -- no wonder the line's already longer than Apple's, according to the Herald. But of course, Samsung's also effectively funding some of these folks for their iPhone 4S from next door, so it's pretty much a win-win situation for both companies. See? There's always a happy ending, and let's hope that the upcoming Nexus Prime won't add fuel to the ongoing patent dispute. [Thanks, Kevin]
PayPal to open NYC pop-up store next month, showcase new mobile payment services
The idea of a physical PayPal store may seem somewhat counterintuitive, but that's exactly what the company is planning to open next month, in Manhattan. As TechCrunch recently revealed, the forthcoming pop-up store is slated to open its doors on November 1st, as part of a campaign designed to promote PayPal's new slate of in-store technologies. Located at 174 Hudson Street in Tribeca, the outlet will also sport a large QR code on its exterior, which passers-by can scan with their smartphones to find more information on the company's new mobile payment services. Inside, merchants will be able to better familiarize themselves with PayPal's commercial offerings, which include location-based promotions, cross-device payment services and real-time inventory checks, among others. The store will be open for about three and a half months, and PayPal's new features should be making their way to physical retailers in the near future. No word yet on specific partnerships, though the company is expected to announce them soon.
