NYFW POP-UP
Early 2023
About a year and a half into running my brand WDSC, I decided to try something new — a pop-up during New York Fashion Week. I figured it’d get the name in front of new faces and see how people outside LA would react. I had around 1,900 Instagram followers, no real budget, and a brand that was still pretty undefined.
My brother Adrian was gearing up for his first NYFW show the same weekend. He’d do his thing, I’d do mine. We’d both be in the city at the same time, but separate plans.
Planning and Challenges
I’d only been to New York once before and didn’t know anyone local. I tried DMing a bunch of LA brands to see if they had any venue connections but didn’t hear back. Out of options, I threw up a Story: “Anyone know a low-key pop-up spot?”
One lead came back — a $5,000 venue. No chance. WDSC was my only income, so blowing that much on a space would’ve been reckless. Then my high school friend Stephan connected me with Matt, who owns Thayer, a small coffee shop in the East Village. We jumped on a quick call, and he was down. Three days, no big strings attached.
Prepping and Getting There
Once the spot was locked in, I moved fast. I designed a few NYC-only tees and hats, teased them online, and ordered about 75 pounds of product. Couldn’t afford shipping, so I vacuum-sealed everything into an old army duffel bag. I flew out with Adrian and our friend Pat, who just wanted to tag along for NYFW.
We landed around 10 p.m., stayed at Stephan’s place that night, then moved to a cheap hotel. The next day I met up with Matt at Thayer to plan how we’d set up the space. It was small but felt right. I found a $4 clothing rack on Facebook Marketplace and dragged it across the city in 95-degree heat. Picked up hangers and a hat rack. On Friday, we cleaned the place up, got everything set, and gave some merch to the Thayer crew for letting me use the shop.
The Pop-Up
We opened the doors that Friday. At first, almost no one came in. All those RSVPs didn’t mean much once it was go time. The first hour, maybe one or two people showed up. By the end of the night, about 20 people had come through, mostly friends from LA who were in town. Over the three days, maybe 60 people total stopped by. Not huge, but I met a few solid people and ended up breaking even, so it wasn’t a total loss.
What Fell Short
Too Long: Spreading it over three days killed the sense of urgency.
Wrong Spot: The East Village was a little too far from NYFW’s main crowds.
Bad Weather: Hot and rainy all weekend — didn’t help.
Takeaways
I’d do it again but smarter. Keep it to one day, pick a location closer to the action, and build hype that actually pushes people to show up. Better to just run it and see what works than sit on an idea forever.
