1. POP UP
http://www.leipzig-popup.de/
Next event
20-21.05.2011
DESCRIPTION
Built to spill, we are building a new town!
Down with the borders between fans and creatives, the fair is dead, long live the
dialogue. The debris of traditional structures and experience from one decade are the
bricks to build a new town. But the cornerstone is you!
We invite you to the 10th (Pop Up fair in Leipzig at Werk II hall which will take place
on May 20 and 21, 2011. To leave behind even the last barriers between industry
and audience the stands will make room for a concept of complete openness. For
two days the (Pop Up will present itself as a room of exchange, interaction and
information for makers of music and pop culture as well as for music lovers. For this,
we will build a town with town hall, post office, DIY store, record store and other
places to communicate, try and discuss at Werk II. Music makers, experts and
interested folks from Germany and abroad will meet somewhere between museum,
art café, club and cinema as citizens among their own kind. New impetus within the
pop discourse is given by four panel discussions about controversial topics and
various festival stages provide what it’s all about: great music.
NOTE
Leipzig Pop Up is on Facebook!
REGISTRATION
For the registration see the following link:
http://register.leipzig-popup.de/

2. PRESS RELEASES
http://www.musicdish.com/mag/?id=12653
(Pop Up 2010: Leipzig Becomes Music Independents' Fallback Position
The capital of Germany's federal state of Saxony will again become "the place
one can see the whole world in one"
By Anthony Kammerhofer, GATEWAYmusic
(more articles from this author)
2010-04-28
Bach? Wagner? Schumann?
Mendelssohn? Yes, all of these classical
composers were once "there". On May 7-
8, 2010, the capital of Germany's federal
state of Saxony will again become "the
place one can see the whole world in one"
(quoting German philosopher Gotthold
Ephraim Lessing). This time it's about the
world of German independent music,
building on the debris of the old music
industry. MusicDish caught up with (Pop
Up trade fair's Matthias Puppe to talk
about it.
Looking at your website, we find that the
focus on live performances is clearly
innovation. When organizing such a trade
fair in Germany, is it like you are being
"forced" into offering diversity when not
trying to cover mainstream music and, in
addition, trying to bank on competitive
admission fees and rental space?
Matthias Puppe: Right from the start,
(Pop Up has been organized by the Pop Universell e.V. association, which operates
strictly through volunteers. Specifically, there is a team of 20 people who dedicate
their free time to prep-work and programming the content of this trade fair for a year.
With the trade fair actually coming to fruition, there are another 70-80 hands involved
in setting up and breaking down, checking admission to the venue, being the most-
friendly security worldwide or carrying monitors around as stagehands. Basically,
voluntary work saves a lot of money, which means we don't have to add any
additional costs for our (expert) audience to pay. Further, all artists, bands and
speakers have to be eager to attend (Pop Up, as we are not able to lure them into it
with high fees. However, all those attending know we really kneel into it, and are not
in it just for our own good, but want to organize a great event for everybody involved
for everybody's benefit - even if it "only" boils down to a great weekend in Leipzig.

3. What is your booking policy? Do you prefer to liaise with booking agents and artist
managements, or with the artists directly? What has your experience been when
working with local acts that bring their own fan base to the (Pop Up events? Can acts
from North America, Asia or other European countries also find a new fan base at
(Pop Up events in Germany?
Matthias Puppe: There is no preferred booking strategy, except that we have to love
it and it has to be affordable. We put the focus on new music and would like to
surprise our audience with things they have not been exposed to before - in Leipzig -
and which will not too easily slip their minds again. We’re not as concerned with the
manner in which things transpire – whether it happens because of our well-informed
booking team pursuing their own ideas, bands introducing themselves, or via offers
by labels and agents. As long as our "budgeting fairy" Jana does not suffer a stroke,
we have a pretty wide leeway. Of course, we are also trying to reflect the local
Leipzig music scene in our programming - Pop Universell e.V. has taken up the fight
to also show the music business what is available in our hometown.
What are the main challenges you are facing when booking acts from overseas,
particularly from outside the European Economic Area?
Matthias Puppe: There is always one big challenge: Funding a band's way into
Leipzig. Great ideas sometimes fail due to travel expenses.
There is no question about your regulars being open to new developments in the
arts. What are the avenues of "customer retention" you consider most favorable for
promoting your events (regular newsletters, postings/presence on social networking
sites like Facebook etc., text messaging campaigns, vouchers, meet-and-greet
events for artists and fans, etc.)?
Matthias Puppe: The best strategy for customer retention is creating a great event.
Of course, we know that our trade fair suffers setbacks when it comes to big deals, if
only because of how it developed in an area remote from the so-called major music
business. Or, let's put it this way: If a potential exhibitor is keen on meeting the
minister for cultural affairs at the trade fair or striking a five-year-deal with a ring tone
giant from the Far East, then he will be utterly disappointed. However, on the other
hand, (Pop Up means that there are no smoke-and-mirrors as each exhibitor is given
the same priority. You are mingling with creators who may not have a business plan
at their fingertips, but do have a lot of ideas and fancies. You can’t reach those
people by deploying voucher or text messaging campaigns. However, we are in favor
of newsletters and working the social scene.

4. What are the advantages of networking with other trade fair organizers/event
promoters and clubs (locally and/or worldwide)?
Matthias Puppe: Networking is one of the cornerstones of (Pop Up, even if it might
not always be easy to maintain. When we started 9 years ago, the trade fair was a
collective effort by various promoters and clubs in Leipzig who then all became
involved. Without this structure, (Pop Up would not have been possible in the
beginning. Later, partners like VUT (Association of Independent Phonogram
Producers in Germany) and music magazine De:Bug teamed up with us on the
content side of things. For example, last year we had an exchange program
organized with c/o-Pop (another regional music business trade fair in Germany). To
make a long story short: Networking is a major concern, but networking is what (Pop
Up is all about.
How could (Pop Up act as a platform for acts outside the European Economic Area?
Do you think that such acts may consider Pop-Up as key to entering the German
market in terms of booking, PR, etc.? Could participating in Pop-Up even be
considered making sensible in terms of entering the Germany/Switzerland/Austria
market?
Matthias Puppe: It depends on what the respective band or artist wants to achieve.
(Pop Up is certainly not a train stop on a short-cut route to Rock am Ring (a major
German festival) or Sony's casting couch. We are more about having the reps of
small- and medium-sized music businesses meet (also known as the independent
scene), or, the way we would put it: the creative part of the music business. This, of
course, includes lots of booking agents, labels, web portals, magazines, campus
radios and, last, but not least: music fans. (Pop Up is especially acclaimed in this,
let's say, segment, and is used as a platform for communication and presentation.
However, we cannot promise that any band will have booked-up European tours after
performing at the trade fair. Wearing the copywriter's hat, I would put it this way
(tongue-in-cheek): People gather at (Pop Up whose ideas will be paying for other
people's big cars in the future.
What are the benefits to participating artists/managements/booking agents/labels,
etc. who work with (Pop Up?

5. Matthias Puppe: (Pop Up is a place where people from all over Germany and
neighboring countries meet to put the focus on music and not on compatibility with
target groups or possible rewards. You will meet the part of the music business and
audience who will, sometimes against all reason, move any mountain for artists.
Personally speaking, I can't imagine a better (expert) audience for music. For
creators, (Pop Up is predominantly a platform for meet-and-greet, sharing views and
networking. This has grown in importance particularly with the implosion of business
structures over the past years. Taking this further, intensive discussion at (Pop Up is
supposed to tackle the questions of our time within the business, weigh arguments
and, as a best-case scenario, present ways to move ahead. The latter is a particular
focus of the trade fair organization team so that, with a lot of effort, high-quality expert
panels can be offered – appealing to all exhibitors.
How is (Pop Up focusing on the local scene in the federal state of Saxony? Are there
any quotas or conditions issued by supporters/sponsors?
Matthias Puppe: There is no quota with (Pop Up. Still, as mentioned above, we have
also taken up the fight to presenting a high-quality local and regional scene to the
music industry.
Could we describe (Pop-Up as a kind of Central European South-By-South-West?
Matthias Puppe: Let's put it this way: South-By-South-West is a wonderful festival
and can be seen as a role model in a lot of ways.
Picture reference: All pictures © Klaus Nauber/Leipzig (Pop Up., Leipzig/Germany