A non-food brand that needs a reason to stop
Coffee gives a fashion or beauty launch a queue that the product alone would not form.
Pop Up Cafe Activations for Non-Food Brands
A pop-up cafe serves coffee, tea, or treats from a branded vehicle, giving people a reason to walk up to a brand they were not shopping for. We build it, staff it with real baristas, place it, and run the service so the line keeps moving.
When a Pop Up Cafe Is the Right Call
Driving traffic into a store
Park outside the door, serve the drink, hand over the redemption card.
A premium brand that wants a slower moment
A cafe invites people to sit, which a sampling window never does.
A cold month
Hot chocolate in a shopping district in December is a line that forms itself.
What Is Included
- The cafe build
- Espresso and hot drink service, a pastry case, and a counter built into a vehicle we own.
- Menu and culinary
- A signature drink or treat built around the brand, sourced and prepared by our culinary team.
- Health permits and placement
- Health department sign-off and street or private property permits, filed by us.
- Branded cups and print
- The cup, the sleeve, and the card designed with the wrap so the brand is in every photo.
- Staff
- Baristas and brand ambassadors who can serve at queue speed and still have the conversation.
Vehicles That Work as a Cafe
All experiential vehicles
A Pop Up Cafe in Practice
Chez Loubi, a creperie outside the Christian Louboutin store
Christian Louboutin wanted New Yorkers to come in and browse the collection. We branded a red vintage Citroen as Chez Loubi, a mobile creperie and cafe, and parked it in front of the store at Horatio and Washington Streets, serving sweet and savory crepes and coffee. The cafe gave passersby a reason to stop and the store a reason to be the next step, and the shop filled with customers who had come for a crepe.
Read the Christian Louboutin case study
What to Know Before You Brief Us
- Lead time
- Six to eight weeks for one market. Health permits are filed with the location permit and set the floor. December shopping districts need eight to twelve weeks.
- Throughput
- An espresso drink takes longer to make than a sample takes to hand over. We design the menu to the queue you want, and a single signature drink serves fastest.
- Power and water
- Espresso machines and hot water need generator capacity and water tanks, which affects the vehicle choice. Tell us the menu and we size the vehicle to it.
- What changes the price
- Full espresso service over drip or hot chocolate, pastry and food beyond a single treat, days on site, and custom cups. A hot chocolate cart is the most efficient cafe.
- What we will say no to
- A menu that cannot pass inspection in the strictest city on the route, or a cafe with no reason to walk into the store afterwards. We will add the redemption step.
Pop Up Cafe FAQs
What is a pop up cafe activation?
A pop up cafe activation is a branded vehicle serving coffee, hot chocolate, or a signature treat in a brand's name, usually for a brand that does not sell food. The drink gives people a reason to stop and stay for the ninety seconds the brand needs, and a redemption card or store placement turns the stop into a sale.
Why would a fashion or beauty brand run a pop up cafe?
Because a handbag or a serum does not form a queue on its own and a free coffee does. The cafe buys the attention, the branded cup goes into the photo, and the store or the sample is the next step. Luxury and beauty brands use pop up cafes outside their own stores for exactly this reason.
Do you handle the coffee and the health permits?
Yes. Our culinary team designs the menu, sources and prepares it, and files the health department permits alongside the street or property permit in every city. Baristas and brand ambassadors are staffed by us, so the brand's team can focus on the conversation rather than the espresso machine.
Which vehicle makes the best pop up cafe?
The Airstream Bambi is the classic cafe silhouette, with a serving window and room to sit outside. A vintage Citroen suits fashion and beauty launches and works as a creperie or coffee cart. A tuk tuk fits a plaza or a store forecourt, and a food cart is the fastest route to hot chocolate at a door.
How many drinks can a pop up cafe serve in a day?
A hot chocolate or drip coffee service can reach well over a thousand cups a day with the right crew. Full espresso drinks run slower because each one is made to order, so a single signature drink is the fastest menu. We tell you the realistic ceiling for your menu before the day, not after it.