When TheSuperCool launched 10 years ago, pop-ups were still a new and exciting concept, something founders Kate Vandermeer and husband Noonie are well aware of.
“Pop-ups were a fresh and new idea 10 years ago and now are de riguer,” she says.
“Homewares and interior items were not as saturated as they were then―there were less competitors. Carving our your own point of difference nowadays is more challenging and the costs of running a business are much higher; wages are crazy, freight for goods is nuts and general operating costs are much higher.
“A great change for the better though is the focus on organic, ethically made, sustainable making and packaging. This has been a super pleasant change to see more brands getting on board. We’ve always supported these philosophies but with more groundswell, more brands are making these choices more affordable,” she enthuses.
A lot can happen in 10 years on both a personal and business level.
“Think of a child and how much they grow in 10 years―from baby to tween, that’s us. We have learned a lot; what began as an experiment has become a serious business that is our combined family income and during that time we’ve had two ‘real’ children, launched 30 pop-ups, done quite a few collaborations, launched four different versions of our online store and expanded three times into our current flagship emporium.
“I think we’ve been lucky; we’re still married and we still have the business. We’re fortunate that our skillsets are complementary―I like to do all the creative roles and Noonie is great at the operations, staff management and tech stuff.”
However, like any other business TheSuperCool had to deal with the impact of the global pandemic and two long back to back years of extended lockdowns which really challenged the Melbourne based couple.
“Fortunately online orders and loyal customers support helped us but it was hardcore,” she adds.
Something else that challenged Vandermeer during those 10 years was expanding the business while starting a family at the same time.
“Any mama will attest to that late pregnancy, birth and first year being the toughest time in your life and then we (naively) decided to have three pop ups at once (two semi-permanent and one temporary) over the same Christmas time. Let’s just say it was hectic.”
Want to read more? Check out the full article in our January digital edition, which is out now!
