Pop-Up Business For Dummies
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After your pop up business closes, remember that you need to get the space you used ready to hand back to its owner. The space you used was absolutely essential to the success of your pop up business. You got that space because you invested time in building a relationship with the owner. You don’t want to damage that relationship right at the end.

Always aim to hand the venue you used back to its owner in better condition than you got it. Make sure that you take the following steps:

  • Remove everything you brought into the shop, except the things you’ll need to clean up and redecorate.

  • Take down your branding, including shop vinyls and any signs. You can remove vinyls from windows with a sharp blade and use window-cleaning products to remove any sticky marks.

  • Repair any minor damage, including scuffed paintwork or holes you’ve made to fix things in place. Fill holes, sand and repaint. It’s unlikely that you’ll need to redecorate top to bottom, but do touch up paintwork with the colours you used to redecorate in the first place.

  • Make sure that all light bulbs are working.

  • Clear all rubbish. Any rubbish must be disposed of carefully and correctly. Your pop up is a commercial venture, as far as the authorities in charge of waste are concerned. You may be able to dispose of small amounts of day-to-day rubbish in your bins at home, but larger amounts of rubbish may incur costs.

  • Check with your local authority about how it deals with commercial waste. Try to reduce the amount of rubbish you generate by reusing and recycling as much as possible.

  • Sweep floors, clean windows and scrub ancillary areas, such as toilets and kitchens. You won’t make your shop spotless, but it needs to look clean and tidy, ready for the next user.

  • Put anything that was found in the space when you were given the keys back where you found it.

After the space is clear, clean and tidy, arrange to meet the owner on site to return the keys. Make sure that the owner is happy with the condition of the space and make him aware of any improvements you’ve made to it.

Hopefully, he’ll be happy with the work you’ve done and the way you used the shop. If so, you’ve still got a partner next time you want to pop up.

About This Article

This article is from the book:

About the book author:

Dan Thompson is an artist, writer and founder of the Empty Shops Network. An expert in the creative use of empty shops, Dan has pioneered the use of shops as community hubs and has written about the problems facing town centres for The Independent and The Guardian.

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