St’ArtUp 317 Retail Pop-Up Program Announces Participants for Second Season

Develop Indy, a business unit of Indy Chamber, and PATTERN are thrilled to announce the artists and businesses selected to participate in the second season of St’ArtUp 317, an art and retail pop-up program launched in 2018 to activate vacant and underutilized first floor commercial spaces in and around Downtown Indianapolis.

In this second season, the program will engage 30 pop-ups by businesses and creatives, linking them to 10 spaces in the downtown area. The selected brands range from handmade leather products and custom mattresses to realistic paper flowers and luxury clothing. Pop-ups will be open and on display during the month of May.

Piloted May of 2018, this month-long program uses the pop-up model to incubate viable retail businesses and long-term tenants, while supporting the creative class and improving the cultural profile of our city. The pop-up model is a nationally-practiced and proven method for a company or a creative to test the market, understand demographics, build brand awareness and grow business.

With nearly 29 million people visiting Indianapolis in 2018, coupled with an ever-increasing interest in living and working in Downtown, May is a key month to showcase Downtown. It’s also an ideal time for businesses, who might otherwise not consider a Downtown location, to test a Downtown presence with the hopes of attracting new customers.

“After launching St’ArtUp 317 in 2018, we saw there is plenty of demand for pop-ups in Indianapolis,” shared Catherine Esselman, Senior Project Manager at Develop Indy. “Last year we activated fifteen vacant storefronts with seventeen businesses and creatives. As a result, several of our participants were able to secure downtown leases after testing the market with their business concepts.”

MAY 2019 LOCATIONS INCLUDE:

*Denotes retail pop-up location

*Circle Center Mall (both windows and 2^nd floor retail) – 49 W. Maryland St.

*Circle City Industrial Complex – 1125 E. Brookside Ave.

*602 N. Park Ave.

*10 E. Washington St.

Piccadilly Building – 111 E 16^th St.

CityWay – 320 S. Alabama St.

130 E. Washington St.

Stenz – 985 Dorman St

Milhaus HQ – 460 Virginia Ave.

240 N. Meridian St.

MAY 2019 ARTISTS AND BUSINESSES INCLUDE:

Komafi, Florals by Emma and Brittany, The Paper Peony, Amy Ward, Project One Studio, Wishful Thinkin Clothing, Paper Acorn, The Shop Indy, Comfort Option, Eat, Drink, Paint, Here Meditation, Indiana Fashion Foundation, Blacksheep Collective, The Model Brand, 2eze, ReStyled By, Classa Boutique Inc., Luxury Affordable Boutique, Howl + Hide, Witty by Codi, Jake with a Shot, Lari Pati, ATTEND, Stuart Troxel, Steiner Studios, Greenscape Geeks, Hey Day, Joy Hernandez, and Denis Kelly.

St’ArtUp 317 is part of Develop Indy’s economic development efforts and BuyIN, a new campaign aimed at advancing Indy’s retail strategy. The BuyIN campaign officially launches May 15, when Develop Indy will reveal a new report on downtown Indianapolis’s retail buying power. More information about the launch event can be found at indychamber.com/events/buyin-launch-party-advancing-indys-retail-strategy/.

All pop-up shops and window displays will be open/displayed from May 1^st to May 31^st. More information is available online at startup317.com.

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About PATTERN

PATTERN is a 501c3 public charity that uses fashion arts to catalyze, and connect communities of creatives, in Indianapolis and in the Midwest. We want to enable creativity, and creative small businesses, to thrive. Learn more at patternindy.com.

About the Indy Chamber

The Indy Chamber is the voice of progress and improvement for the Indianapolis region's business community. With membership of nearly 2,000 businesses in the Indianapolis region, the Indy Chamber is leading the effort to strengthen the business climate, improve the state of education, revitalize neighborhoods and enhance the region's workforce. For more information, visit IndyChamber.com.