Brand Match: Birchbox x Gap Pop-In

US fashion retailer Gap is playing host to a pop-up by American subscription-based beauty company Birchbox in seven of its US stores throughout June and July 2015.

Dubbed The Gap + Birchbox Summer Beauty Shop, the sample-box company’s latest foray into the offline world following the launch of its New York flagship (see E-Tailer Birchbox’s Physical Store for more) delivers a mini shop-in-shop with an edited summer offering devised specifically for Gap customers. The participating stores are based in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston and San Francisco.

While the specific products vary from store to store, the partnership provides a physical, hands-on space for both men and women to check out popular items – even offering a BYOB (build your own box) option in the Herald Square branch in New York. Shoppers interested in signing up can buy special one-off Birchbox + Gap collaboration boxes which range from $30-60 – a cost which includes a two-month Birchbox subscription trial, along with a selection of additional beauty samples.

Featured stores will also host one-off special events that invite customers to take part in beauty treatments, and meet American lifestyle bloggers including Courtney Kerr and Julia Engel.

The pop-up is the second retail partnership for the two brands,  following the sold-out Birchbox + Baby Gap boxes for new mothers in March 2015.

Wider strategies regarding selling beauty can be found within 2014 Beauty Retail Trends andSelling Beauty Online and Bespoke Beauty: New Retail Strategies.

For more on pop-up retailing, see Holiday Pop-Ups 2014, Spring Beauty Pop-Ups NY andNomadic Retailing, part of our Future of the Store Industry Trend. Also look out for our report Evolution of the Pop-Up, publishing on July 23.

For more on co-creation as a core tool for engagement, see Product Hubs: Experimentation & Co-Creation, Bespoke Skincare, while the benefits of adding bloggers into the retail mix, are illustrated in New Brand Ambassadors and The Social Sell.

See also Frenemies: New Retail Collaborations and Brand Blending  for more on tactics for creating mutually beneficial brand matches, and Subscription Shopping, and Somni: Subscription for Sleep for additional insights into subscription services.