BBA Pop-Up Surprises in More Ways Than One
The Burlington Business Association held its Annual Holiday Social on December 1, 2011 with a bit of a twist. “out of the blue” was marketed as a 'pop-up' event, which is an event that takes a vacant space and converts and repurposes it for a very short period time.
This year's Holiday Social was attended by nearly 150 people who had to walk by old bookcases and construction tape on the way into the party; held in the old Borders space on Church Street. Once guests passed the ‘construction zone,’ though, they found themselves in an intimate and beautifully decorated space with wide views of the Church Street Marketplace.
“People walked past the tape and through the curtains then stopped short,” said Kelly Devine, Executive Director of the BBA. “We wanted to create a "WOW" factor. That is what "pop-up" events are all about. I think we pulled it off."
During the evening, Jeff Nick, of JL Reality, gave a special advance announcement. In his brief speech, he announced that City Sports had just signed a lease for the building and would be opening in their new location in the spring of 2012 on the ground floor. He also informed the guests that the space they were standing in would be empty again by the next morning and soon would be converted into 2nd floor office space.
According the Burlington Free Press, who wrote about the announcement following the social, City Sports is a Boston-based athletic gear chain with stores in 21 cities. This will be their first store in Vermont.
