St James Quarter, located in the heart of Edinburgh City Centre, is a landmark mixed-use development that has transformed the city’s east end. Combining contemporary architecture with shopping, dining, entertainment, accommodation, and residential living, it offers a vibrant destination where all audiences converge in one place — making it a prime spot for retailers to showcase their brand.
Why Pop-up Retail
Opening a physical store often means long leases, large investments, and complex logistics. A pop-up shop offers a smarter, low-risk alternative – helping you reach customers, test new markets, and grow sustainably without breaking the bank.

- Lower Investment Costs: A permanent store can require £100,000+ upfront, plus ongoing overheads, before you even know if the location works. Pop-ups slash operational costs while driving sales and building brand awareness.
- Face-to-Face Connections: Engage directly with customers, showcase your products, and build trust through memorable in-person experiences at high-footfall venues.
- Turn Followers into Buyers: Around 80% of shoppers prefer purchasing from brands they’ve seen in real life. A custom-branded kiosk transforms social media engagement into real sales while giving you valuable customer insights.
- Flexible & Scalable: Whether you’re launching, testing retail for the first time, or expanding into new regions, pop-ups let you adapt, refine, and scale – on your own terms
Why St James Quarter
One of Scotland’s most iconic shopping and leisure destinations, St James Quarter offers over 850,000 sq ft of premium retail, dining, and entertainment. Located in the heart of Edinburgh, it attracts millions of visitors annually – from local shoppers to international tourists exploring Scotland’s capital.
With a diverse tenant mix, exceptional design, and high footfall, St James Quarter is the perfect setting for brands looking to launch a pop-up shop, test new markets, or expand their presence in a high-profile location.
19M+
Annual Visitors
18%
Executive Wealth
105 Mins
Avg. Dwell Time
£156
Avg Retail Spend
The Edinburgh Advantage
With millions of visitors each year and peak traffic during the Edinburgh Festival, Christmas Markets, and Hogmanay celebrations, Edinburgh offers retailers a vibrant year-round marketplace. The city combines affluent residents with domestic and international tourists, all with a strong appetite for premium products and unique experiences. Excellent transport links make access simple, while seasonal surges create exceptional opportunities to maximise sales. Beyond these boosts, Edinburgh offers a diverse mix of locals, students, professionals, and visitors.
Macrotrends, Edinburgh International Conference Centre 2025
564,000
Edinburgh Population
4M
Annual Visitors
39.5
Avg. Age
So How Does it Work?
Our Rock Up and Pop Up retail solution offers a flexible way for retailers to open a pop-up shop for the first time, expand into new venues or sell their products at a specific time of year. We work with retailers from initial idea through to reality, with brands able to pick and choose the elements of the service most suitable for them.
Why SpaceandPeople
Bringing pop-ups to prime spaces
On average, SpaceandPeople book space for over 290 pop-up retailers monthly
A pop-up for every business
From home bakers to global brands, there’s a pop-up retail solution to match your needs
Exclusive rights to premium venues in the UK
Tap into 370+ venues with a weekly footfall of 63.5M across the UK and Germany
Testimonial
We love the Rock Up and Pop Up Kiosk. The configuration allows us to effectively showcase our product range, while providing the storage required for restocking. We have taken advantage of the staffing, merchandising and business planning options available with the service and moving to a larger bespoke kiosk in such a flagship location has enabled us to increase our customer reach significantly.
Heart Scent at Braehead Shopping Centre
We Work With A Range of Pop-Up Retailers, Including:
Start-Up Businesses, Established Brands & Online Retailers
CASE STUDY: HITSTER’S ENTRY INTO UK’S HIGH-FOOTFALL CENTRES
Case Study: Jumbo Play’s festive pop-ups at Trafford Centre and Westfield London….
SPACEANDPEOPLE ANNOUNCED AS RETURNING LEAD SPONSOR AS FMBE AWARDS TURNS
Sponsorship includes a collaboration with Network Rail for the flagship brand experience category….
Send Your Pop-Up Retail Booking Enquiry For St James Quarter Today.
One Of Our Retail Experts Will Be In Touch Soon!
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the process for pop-up retail?
Pop-up retailing is a contemporary and low risk way of trading in high footfall areas such as shopping centres.  Â
- Our Rock Up and Pop-Up kiosk service is a stylish, flexible and customisable end-to-end retailing solution – we can assist with a branded kiosk, retail space, merchandising, business planning and staffing.Â
- If you already have a kiosk or are looking to build one, we offer a range of mall space sizes and locations. We encourage you to speak to us before you start the kiosk design so we can advise on the venue’s design criteria.Â
- If you are looking for a larger space, it is also possible to open up a pop-up shop in an inline unit. Please contact us for current opportunities.Â
We will liaise with you and the venue and provide support in obtaining the relevant documentation in order to start trading. Use the booking form above to book pop-up retail space at St James Quarter.
- Who can be a retailer?
Our pop-up retail service is tailored to our individual clients, which includes start-up businesses, established brands and online retailers. We also offer inline retailers the opportunity to expand their customer base. We do this by directing shoppers to their inline store, promoting seasonal product lines and/or attracting a different demographic than usual.Â
- Are there benefits to using a Rock Up and Pop Up Kiosk?
Our integrated kiosk service will allow you to trial physical retail for the first time, test new products and services in a low risk environment or trial new venues before committing to a longer lease. The flexibility of our short-term leases can give you the confidence you need to get started with kiosk retailing! Our pop-up retail offerings allow you to meet face to face with prospective customers, which is particularly useful if you are an online business. Kiosks can help to increase brand awareness as well as drive consumer engagement. To use one of our kiosks, please contact us to book pop-up retail space at St James Quarter.
- What insurances and documentation do we require?
Generally £10m public liability insurance is required. If you currently have £5m, you can usually request a top up of your existing insurance (depending on your insurance provider). We require the following documents:Â
- Risk AssessmentÂ
- Method StatementÂ
- Proof of InsuranceÂ
- Photographic IDÂ
- Proof of AddressÂ
- Rights to Work in the UK EvidenceÂ
- PAT tests or receipts of any electrical items that are to be plugged in (A receipt is required if the item is less than 1 year old, otherwise it needs a valid PAT test which can be obtained from an electrician)Â
The average cost of PLI is £157 a year.Â
- Are there any additional costs / business rates?
Power usage is generally included in the rent, however excessive requirements may result in an additional charge. Should the access to water and drainage be required an additional charge is likely, you can discuss this with an Account Manager. You may be liable for business rates depending on the rateable value of your space and the size of your business.Â
- How much will it cost?
The cost to retail in a shopping centre varies depending on the retail set-up, product line you are selling, and the mall space chosen. The cost varies if you are renting an RMU, mall kiosk or using one of your own kiosks. One of our team will be able to advise on pricing when they know more about your business and requirements.Â
- Do you have any resources for first time retailers to understand the market?
Do you have any resources for first time retailers to understand the market?Â
Here are some links you might find useful:Â
About Us
Why Us
We place aspiring brands and businesses in high footfall venues for promotions, brand activations, sampling, and retail.
SpaceandPeople can place pop-up retail at St James Quarter and many other high footfall centres in Scotland as well as the rest of the UK and Germany.