Sugary deal for Myer
Department store to sweeten up offering
STRUGGLING department store Myer is counting on an Instagram friendly pop up celebration of sweets to get millenials through the door.
Sugar Republic, an interactive sweet museum which is the brainchild of Ballarat entrepreneur Allison Jones, will open in Myer’s Melbourne and Sydney flagship stores early next year.
Ms Jones launched the first Sugar Republic in the old MacRobertson sweet factory in Fitzroy in June, attracting 25,000 visitors over eight weeks.
Tickets for the Myer pop up, to be located on the sixth floor in the Melbourne store, will be priced from $29 to $35 and will go on sale soon.
It will run from February to May to fill the area which is home to the Giftorium over Christmas.
Visitors will be able to enjoy different experiences including jumping into a pink gumball like ball pit, jump out of a huge cake, blow up inflatable doughnuts and hop into an oversized gumball machine.
They also will be able to sample sweets such a fairy floss and other treats.
Ms Jones and partner Paul Matthews run Creative Nation, an events company which has used local businesses and artists such as Make Me Iconic to make giant Bubble O’Bill, Gaytime and Paddle Pop ice creams and other interactive props.
Confectionery brands Wizz Fizz, Arnotts and Hubba Bubba are also involved. Sugar Republic entrepreneur Allison Jones on the opening of her sweet museum pop-ups in Myer’s Melbourne and Sydney stores
As people walk through the pop up museum there are backgrounds, furniture and other props for them to take selfies with.
The hashtag #sugarreopublic has been used nearly 8500 times on Instagram alone since the first pop up launched.
“We have always had a love for sweet treats and this event has captured the desire for nostalgia and a return to the fun-filled days of innocence,” Ms Jones, who formally ran the successful giftware business Lark, said.
“We’re thrilled with the response to the Sugar Republic concept and partnering with Myer brings a whole new level of excitement.”
Myer retail operations director Tony Sutton said it was the “sweetest retail collaboration of them all”.