Google Chromezone Pop-up Store in PC World in Tottenham Court Road

I think this is the first of the Christmas pop-up shops.  Lots of goods are quite seasonal.  For example books, CDs & DVDs sell huge volumes in the run up to Christmas - one source (The Times, behind the paywall) says that 77% of comedy and entertainment DVDs are sold in that time.  In previous years HMV were reportedly thinking about opening pop-up stores in addition to their permanent stores, stocking relatively limited catalogues. Another great idea, that no one has done yet, is a pop-up fancy dress shop in the run up to Halloween...

Anyway, Google has just opened a pop-up store within PC World in Tottenham Court Road to sell their Chromebooks:

"The 285sqft pop-up "shop within a shop", which only sells Google's Chromebook laptop and a few accessories such as headphones, will run for three months up to Christmas.

But if the low-key experiment is successful Google could follow its great rival Apple in opening permanent stores around the world.

Unlike the hugely hyped launch of the first Apple Store in Regent Street, very few customers were even aware of the Google shop - officially known as "the Chromezone" - and there were certainly no queues round the block.

Arvind Desikan, head of consumer marketing at Google UK, said: "It is our first foray into physical retail. This is a new channel for us and it's still very, very early days. It's something Google is going to play with and see where it leads."

He said the company's research had shown that 80 per cent of laptop sales are through shops.

He added: "We found anecdotally that when people tried the device and played with it, that made a huge difference to their understanding of what the Chromebook is all about. People will be able to go in and have a play with the devices. We want to see whether people understand what this device is all about and monitor their reaction when they try it out."

To date the Samsung-made Chromebook, which costs £349 for the wi-fi only version and £399 for wi-fi and 3G, has only been available in the UK online from Amazon and PC World.

A second pop-up store will open at Lakeside shopping centre in Essex on October 7 and more pilot shops are planned around the world in the coming months. A spokeswoman said: "We've put a lot of effort into making it feel welcoming, homely and, dare I say it, 'Googley'.""

When - 30th September - 31st December

Where - PC World, 145 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 7NE

Map

Link - Article