Teen Vogue's Perfect Marketing Event

After working in the media industry for a whopping five months and three days, I've learned that the magazines that offer valuable, engaging events are must-buys for advertisers. Readers love their magazines, especially women. What's better than flipping through People (or AdAge/MediaWeek if you're a loser like me) with a glass of white wine after a long day? Well, cuddling with Erin, but that's beside the point.

So I was completely thrilled with Teen Vogue's pop-up retail concept for the holiday season. They are branding a space in a New Jersey mall where nothing is for sale, but everything is being sold. From the Times article:

Instead, the store will be a place for girls to relax, try on clothes and drink smoothies — all while marketers woo them. [...]

The stores will offer free snacks, informal modeling, a perfume bar, a makeup station, charging stations for cellphones and iPods, a gift-wrapping counter and racks of clothes.

Stylists and attendants at the store will advise visitors on lipstick, shoes and outfits.

And, to the delight of retailers, they will whisk visitors to stores in the mall where they can buy the products.

I am so impressed by this concept. It will succeed because:

• Teens are already immersed in a buying environment--it's not overselling.
• Like they say in the article, girls this age are "impressionable and aspirational." A Teen Vogue professional is knowledgeable but not parental, the ideal source for advice.
• FREE SNACKS.
• It sounds like these Haute Spots will be really laid back--a chance to sit down, have coffee, reapply lip gloss, take inventory of the day's purchases, maybe an impromptu fashion show to see if my new jeans go with her new heels. There's nothing else like this. It's the closest thing you can get to re-creating your best friend's bedroom inside a mall.
• Girls who normally wouldn't pick up a Teen Vogue will be introduced to the brand.

(Of course, I'm assuming the inside of the stores will match have a modern, welcoming, coffee-shop-meets-best-friend's-bedroom atmosphere. Teen Vogue would be smart to lure some of the stylists' younger sisters or a group of interns inside the store to avoid an empty, intimidating space.)

Make sure you read the Times article for all the details. I hope this spreads to MOA in 2009!