Instagram to Host Retail Pop-Up Store in NYC

To commemorate the third anniversary of Instagram’s @shop account, the social media company will be hosting a two-day, physical retail pop-up store in New York City next week, the company announced Monday (May 16).

That will let people browse and buy some popular products from the @shop listings. Instagram said that @shop has featured more than 1,000 small businesses and their products since 2019, when it started.

The company also said @shop recently crossed over the 1 million follower threshold.

“To celebrate its 3rd birthday and hitting 1 million followers, come discover some of @shop’s greatest hits for spring and summer on Instagram and in-person at Instagram’s first pop-up boutique in New York City,” Instagram wrote. “Score home, beauty, and lifestyle finds mostly from minority-owned small businesses, including products exclusive to this @shop pop-up!”

This isn’t the first time Instagram has hosted a pop-up store, as it has done so before in London and Berlin.

Having more offline purchase accessibility is part of the company’s attempt to broaden its reach. Video has long been the focus for Instagram, but people also use it to browse retail items. Instagram has said 70% of users use it to discover products, and 87% of users said influencers on the platform have got them to buy something or go on a trip.

PYMNTS wrote that Instagram has also been getting into the non-fungible token (NFT) game.

See also: Instagram Trials NFT Sharing With Select Creators, Collectors

Select creators and collectors of NFTs, the digital collectibles that have become super-popular on the internet in recent months, will be invited to share their creations as part of a pilot program.

Meta, Instagram’s parent company, said it was “looking at what creators are already doing across our technologies in order to improve the experience, help them create more monetization opportunities, and bring NFTs to a broader audience.”

The company plans to test digital collectibles with features like connecting the digital wallet where the NFTs are and automatically tagging the creator and collector.