eBay pops up offline

Contrary to the common tendency of brands moving online, the online auction and shopping website eBay now open with a pop-up store in London.

The shop opened this week and will close on Friday, after the end of what is expected to be the busiest online shopping week before the holidays. However, there are no tills and cashiers in the outlet. People will be able to shop, using their smartphones to scan a code on the price tag, which will direct them to eBay’s website and its payment section. The purchases will then be delivered to homes across the UK.

According to a spokesperson for eBay, the outlet is providing consumers with the chance to shop in a convenient and relaxed way, without having to wait in long queues. The shop offers the website’s 200 best-selling items, including the House of Fraser party frocks and The Entertainer toys.

eBay, which has a similar outlet in New York, is capitalising immensely on the public’s growing interest in smartphones. Currently, more than a quarter of UK adults and almost half of UK teenagers have a smartphone and an increasing number of them are using the mobile devices for browsing, shopping and researching prices.