If you love designer wear, pop-up shops are next big thing for you. As the name goes, pop-up shops are small temporary retail hubs that operate for a short period of time in one place and then shut down and open elsewhere. Though an existing concept in the West, the idea is now taking root in the capital.
Delhi-based duo, Mandira Lamba, a fashion graduate from Fashion Institute of Technology, New York, and Ridhi Bhalla, an Oxford University student, were the first to set up a pop-up shop in Delhi — FabConnection in Anand Niketan. “Pop-up shops are the in-thing in New York, so I decided to bring the concept to India. We curate fashion exhibition of designer apparels, accessories, jewellery, and fragrances. We visit designers’ studios and pick pieces from their current and previous collections,” says Mandira.
FabConnection has exhibited collections by Pakistani designers (including Maria B, Umar Saeed, Shireen Hassan) and resort and beachwear by Shivan Naresh, Rishta by Arjun Saluja, Atsu, and Rimzim Dadoo.
Another name backing the concept is Pernia Qureshi, who recently launched her fashion website and is planning a small pop-up shop. Starting next month, she plans to take it all over the world. “My website will have collections of around 31 Indian designers by the end of this month. I’m also planning to do an online limited edition soon with Suneet Varma, J.J Vallaya, Tarun Tahiliani. This collection would also be part of my pop-up shop. I want to take the designer wear to cities which don’t have huge potential for designer collections,” she sums up.