Big ideas in a small space
If you have a creative, interactive or unique retail business idea, PopBox is the place for you! Fill out the form below to be considered for the 2022-2023 cohort.
We are now accepting applications for 2022-2023 participants! Three business owners will be chosen to use the PopBox space for 4 months, with a 1-month break between residencies.
PopBox is a 320-square-foot space within the Boxyard RTP development that hosts pop-up style shops on a rotating basis. In our first year, applications from 55 entrepreneurs from around the Triangle were reviewed and 4 finalists were selected.
Coupled with a micro-grant from NC IDEA and the Research Triangle Foundation, the mission of this initiative is to propel women and BIPOC-owned businesses back into the market amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.
Boxyard RTP has also partnered with Durham Technical Community College. Durham Tech will provide technical assistance and small business counseling to the 2022-2023 selected cohort through a bespoke playbook based on each recipient's strengths and weaknesses.
2022 Applications Have Closed
Applications for our second cohort close April 15, 2022.
Important dates
February 15, 2022, 8:30 a.m. Applications open // April 15, 2022, 11:59 p.m. Applications close
May 2, 2022 Interviews begin // May 20, 2022 Three businesses selected and scheduled for the program
Learn more about our 2021-2022 grant recipients
Popped up back in August 2021. You can still visit their Carrburro location or shop online
Haley Bunting started her business selling fashions, accessories and gifts in a trolley car, so we knew she was already comfortable operating in small spaces! Her dream is to have micro-shops all over the Triangle and PopBox seemed like a perfect testing ground. She comes at every situation with an entrepreneurial mindset and is always thinking 10 steps ahead to plan her next move, project or concept. Case in point, the Vessel Candle Co., began as a Covid-project-turned in-house brand of hand-poured candles that are top-selling items.
Lit up PopBox from mid-November 2021 through early February 2022.
SkyeLight candles are created using a premium soy wax and cotton wicks. Skye has fun naming her signature and seasonal scent creations. For example, "If You Love Him, Don't Let That Mango." To maintain the integrity of each and every product, all candles and wax melts are handmade in small batches with loads of love.
Owned and operated by Skye Ordonez, SkyeLight opened its first storefront through the PopBox program.
Our curators open to the public on February 18!
Pop Box Gallery is a new venture by Mavis Gragg and Laura Ritchie. As co-curators, Mavis and Laura invite visitors to contemplate what is happening in the world through art.
Pop Box Gallery’s format will spark new ideas about where art can be and who can access it, providing a platform that will connect new communities of artists, audiences, and collaborators.
Visit the gallery website for show opening dates, artist information and other special events.
Coming Soon ...
Be Like Missy offers handmade jewelry and leather goods in-step with with trending styles and colors. Owned by PhD chemist and former chemistry professor Erica Vogel, Be Like Missy can be found at many makers markets in the area, like Triangle Pop-Up Market. PopBox will be the first storefront for the brand.
In the news
Boxyard RTP wins "Top Retail Development" award Triangle Business Journal
Boxyard RTP grand opening begins with events all weekend WRAL TechWire
Boxyard RTP program offers boost for women, minority businesses Triangle Business Journal