Just Pop-up if you want to, right?

There is a rising market trending in Houston, Texas in the form of pop up shops;

Usually held at hookah lounges, both Indoor and outdoor restaurants, and live events.

Small business owners are taking advantage of these vending opportunities and making it a common sight to see pop up shops all around the city of Houston.

You could find nearly anything at these pop up shops; from designer clothing and fashion items (like in the example pictured above in the diagram), to Herbal health resources, fragranced candles, CBD infused products, health and beauty products, African soaps and butters, Digital and physical forms of music, and more.

In talking with one of the vendors who participated in the Sip-N-Paint this past June;

Destynie Street, owner of Kreations by Kelis, detailed some of the ups and downs of operating a small business and why she believes that having her own business serves as a benefit for her and her family.

She expressed during an interview that she always wanted to do something more for her legacy to stand on and generate self support beyond the dependency of working for someone else.

She also explained that, everyone has their own reasons for starting their own businesses;

And the idea behind the motivation that had her act on her goal, sprouted during the time Covid-19 was becoming an actual thing as people panicked in response of the pandemic.

The discomfort of knowing that her job would not likely return to the status she was familiar with;

Was reason enough for her to move forward with her vision of creating another revenue stream, in the form of a self-owned business.

As a mother and co-parent of one, Destynie had to think beyond where she was in her life and consider an alternative that gave her true financial freedom.

A freedom that working for someone else could never provide alone.

I mean sure, anyone would enjoy the security of a check coming in every week, bi-monthly, or that has a predictable salary.

However, the knowledge of knowing that your money, along with your efforts, and time are going toward the sustainability of your own life for the future of your family’s namesake;

Is dare I say it … Priceless.

You got it out ‘The mud”!!

At first, it may not seem like the easiest process or even the smartest idea. But you get used to it, and in theory, you get better at it with practice. The rewards will show up in sales, results, and more time.

Instead of panicking during the outset of the government shutdown, Destynie says she saw a market in producing a product that she felt everyone could find value for everyday.

From a hobby she started as an experiment, materialized into a lucrative business venture.

“Kreations by Kelis”, named after her daughter, now supplies natural soaps, body butters, body scrubs, and candles.

As fate would have it, the next thing she would need that could provide an opportunity to test her products … was a public platform …

Delencia Collins, owner of Artistic Procreations, was at a function where Destynie was, and told her she liked her soaps and invited her to an event as a vendor.

That opportunity birthed what would become Destynie’s first pop up shop event.

She’s had several since that time, but I would be remiss in the fact that these types of communications need to be even more frequent and intentional in our cultural community.

Sometimes an opportunity or a chance to be mentored comes from those you may already know.

Inner-stand that, being a self operated business owner is not an easy thing to do;

By never allowing your dream to lose pace with how you source your reality is a rational place to begin.

When you start branding yourself as your product, you put your self in a place to access more energy, opportunity, and the ability to network and exchange resources and information;

Like in the case with business owners Destimie Streets (Kreations by Kelis) and Delencia Collins (Artistic Procreations) supporting each other’s brands respectively.

It is fascinating and exciting to see the spirit of entrepreneurship at these Pop-up shops as they consistently generate this amount of buzz and community involvement on a weekly basis.

Of course there are small fees for vendors that are provided access to these events and their customers, but that’s to be expected; it’s business appropriate.

Along with many of the vendors that attend these functions, there is also a fair amount of cultural exchange in the form of poetry, musical/dance performances, and culinary artistry.

With the energies and efforts in the likes of DJ Shoeboxx, Eman the CEO, Mr. Reverse It, and Artistic Procreations, to name a few;

Small black businesses in particular have been gifted a platform to offer their services and products, reaching out to broader ranges of customers from all walks of life.

It’s a recurring theme as vendors like Kelis Kreations (Natural soaps and butters), B’Plush (Fragranced candles and wax melts), Herbally Dope (Health & Wellness), The Oil&Gas Clothing Company (Clothing brand) and many other vendors reap the benefits from events that host and endorse the Pop up shop movement.

They’re not just popping up any more … as these events have become common space to relax and do good business.

There seems to be no art lost when it comes to the activities at these Pop up event venues either.

Live performances from poets, rap artists, painters, and soulful songstresses highlight as another attraction to entertain a buzzing crowd.

Rap artists like Drank (Sinatra), Poet, Rah the Venusion, Brother Malcolm the poet, and countless numbers of other performing artists have been seen presenting and performing at Pop up shop venues and several other events around the city of Houston in recent months.

Black businesses and the Pop up shop culture seems to have become synonymous with each other as it infuses multicultural and mainstream influences with the pulse of the local Houston night life.

Public venues have tapped into a much larger crowd, who is embracing the Pop-up shop wave as they indulge in what these small businesses have to offer.

Like food trucks, Pop up shops are providing options outside of the norm in the mainstream retail shopping industry and is creating a new avenue for many small businesses to sustain growth.

According to a (SBA) small business trends report in July of 2021, there are 31.7 million small businesses in the US. Out of which 25.7 million operate without staff. Leaving 6 million other businesses who have paid employees.

Saying that, to say this … As more small businesses find ways to sustain, the trend is tilting upward for people who want to start up their own businesses;

Versus building someone else’s worth without anything to show for it.

The time and energy you expend in addition to the daily effort you put into any job, will never put you in a favorable enough position to fully recoup the time you’ve invested into a 9-5, dream killer of a job.

That model insists that you will work until you retire in your late 50’s or early 60’s and essentially only have a little more than a decade to enjoy your fruits of labor;

then sadly, you die as your insurance runs out.

One might say you’ve been tricked or cheated out of your life’s true destiny in exchange for the promise of an extra life after you die from working to build someone else’s dream.

Sorry to disappoint folks, but America only offered you the “Pursuit” of happiness. The freedom and value of servitude is up to you to decide … with your life, no less.

There is no proof of a better second life and I’ve only seen the moon, stars, and firmament since I’ve opened mine eyes upon the stage we call ‘life on earth’;

Though ironically, the heavens and the earth were written in the same sentence.

At any rate, if you’re in the Houston area and you’re looking for a unique find in merchandise, a cultural vibe setting, in need of a festive weekend outing, or you desire a bargain that you can just not refuse;

be sure to attend venues that host and feature small business vendors at Pop-Up shop events.

While It’s fairly unknown whether pop-up shops are just a fad, trend, or a glimpse into the future of how brands will do business;

What is known, is that since the inauguration of President Biden, small businesses in the form of pop-up shops;

Have been thriving and is definitely a market you should invest time and research into moving forward.