Experience, Design, A Student Pop-Up-Shop

This paper presents the experiences of staff and second year BSc Design students at the Authors’ Institution in developing a ‘pop-up shop’ event over three consecutive academic years. Students were given a short period of time (3-5 weeks) in which to design and manufacture a small gift item, which could be sold at the event. They worked in small groups to explore the systems, service, marketing, graphic, and experience design of the show, and then in teams to produce, market, and run the event.
Individually, each student designed their product to the requirement to sell it for a demonstrable profit margin at the event, and the need to be able to batch manufacture it to order during the subsequent week. For many this was their first experience of working to an externally imposed deadline with the potential for real income generation from their design skills. Students developed a broad spectrum of design and entrepreneurial skills, deepening their understanding of the traditional role of a product designer while reflecting on the value of enterprise skills for their future careers in industry. This paper will contextualize the project within the Design syllabus at the authors’ institution and the wider industrial environment, and concludes with some reflections on the value of the project for student
learning, and suggestions for teachers of design in considering similar pedagogical approaches.