How 3 Brands Brewed Buzz With Café Pop-Ups at New York Fashion Week
Fashion Week isn’t just about runways anymore—it’s about experiences. From croissant-inspired lipsticks to Italian gelato bars and lychee-infused fragrances, brands are leaning into café pop-ups to serve up more than just style. These immersive spaces blend taste, scent, and design to spark conversations and social shares, while making everyday neighborhoods feel like the front row.
Here are three pop-ups that stood out (and why they worked):
🥐 L’Appartement 4F x Eadem
Something was literally baking in the West Village. Parisian bakery L’Appartement 4F teamed up with beauty brand Eadem to celebrate the launch of its croissant-inspired lip shades. The collab brought Le Chouchou’s buttery new hues, Croissant au Beurre and Pain au Chocolat, from Sephora shelves to pastry cases. Guests lined up for flaky treats, glossy rituals, and a menu that blurred the line between beauty and bakery.
✨ Why it worked: Eadem’s Le Chouchou balm was already a social media darling and often sold out. By pairing its buzzy product with a cult-favorite NYC bakery, the brand created a moment that felt both exclusive and Instagram-worthy. The free lip balms for early arrivals and a cheeky limited-edition cereal gave fans even more reason to show up.
☕Caffè Guess
Guess went full-on Italian with Caffè Guess, a pop-up inspired by the café culture of Milan and Rome. Visitors sipped espresso, sampled gelato, scored exclusive gifts, and even posed for custom fashion illustrations, all while trying on the brand’s newest handbag launch, the Camden shoulder bag.
✨ Why it worked: The timing was impeccable—the Camden bag dropped September 11th, right as Fashion Week crowds hit the city. The café drew people in with free treats and photogenic backdrops, but the real hook was putting the product directly into visitors’ hands. The fashion illustrations were a standout detail, nodding to Guess’s heritage while giving guests a personalized souvenir.
🍹Orebella’s Eternal Roots Cafe
Supermodel Bella Hadid’s fragrance brand Orebella launched its new scent Eternal Roots with a dreamy pop-up café at Bedford Studios. Guests lounged in an immersive café space, sampling lychee-inspired drinks and treats while discovering the perfume itself. Attendees left with keepsakes, samples, and even custom-embossed compact mirrors.
✨ Why it worked: With Bella Hadid’s name already guaranteeing buzz, the pop-up leaned into sensory storytelling. Lychee, a key note in the fragrance, connected the drinks and ambiance back to the product, turning scent into a full-bodied experience. The café felt both grounding and joyful, much like the fragrance itself.
Café pop-ups are more than trendy—they’re a recipe for brand storytelling that sticks. By blending flavor, fragrance, and fashion, these activations give fans an experience worth lining up for and posting about.
So, if you could see any brand launch a café pop-up, who would it be? Drop your dream collab in the comments.
