Raspberry Pi Store 2023 pop-up tour
TL;DR – The Raspberry Pi store is popping up four times throughout 2023 in Southampton, Birmingham, Leeds and Gateshead.
Welcome to 2023. We’re sending our favourite (and only) store on tour again this year and we thought the very first week we’re all back at work was the perfect time to announce which locations it would be popping up in around the UK.
We posted some polls on our social media accounts before we vacated Pi Towers for the Christmas holidays. We wanted to see which cities you were most excited about from our UK shortlist and, of course, to find out where else in the world you suggest we pop up in the comments. I too am campaigning to pop up in expensive-to-get-to but beautiful locations such as Hawaii, Toronto, and all of Australasia. This is not working for me yet, but hope springs eternal.
Vote results
Here’s what Twitter had to say:
And Mastodon voted for:
LinkedIn like the look of:
And we kind of messed up Instagram by posing the poll as a question but the results in the back end show us that most Instagrammers wanted to see us in Southampton. Though we are 86% sure that’s just because Southampton was the first option and we always just click the first option when Instagram asks us multiple choice questions.
Where are you popping up in 2023?
Anyway, despite being only left with one piece of homework for the Christmas holidays, it seems like you couldn’t all reach a strong consensus on which of the four shortlisted locations we should pop up in next. So we’re visiting all four.
Here are the official locations and dates for the Raspberry Pi Store’s 2023 pop-up tour:
- Southampton
Friday 7th April (Good Friday) and Saturday 8th April
Find us inside Westquay Shopping Centre on Harbour Parade
- Birmingham
Sunday 28th and Monday 29th May
Find us at the Bullring
- Leeds
Friday 2nd and Saturday 3rd June
Find us at Victoria Gate
- Gateshead
Friday 28th and Saturday 29th July
Find us in the Metrocentre
More stock
In case you missed Eben’s supply chain update at the end of 2022, we are pleased to report the stock shortage situation that has plagued so many industries for the last couple of years is subsiding. Our Approved Resellers and our permanent store in Cambridge, UK have been seeing all Raspberry Pi boards and peripherals flowing much more freely, so we expect to be able to pack out our pop-up stores with more stock than ever before.
We’ll update you closer to the time before each pop-up to let you know exactly what stock you can expect to see and whether we have chosen to impose any buying restrictions to make sure we don’t sell out to the first few customers through the door.
57 comments
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Phil
Great news, look forward to seeing the shop in Gateshead’s Metrocentre again, at least this time, I won’t be on holiday and will be able to visit.
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
Can’t believe you don’t book your holidays around our pop-ups Phil. (See you there!)
Cmac
howbout Austin Texas for 2024
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
Putting my hand up in advance to staff that one 🙋♀️
solar3000
Not just York, come to New York!
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
Would adore.
NickNY
Big second on that!
JoAnn P Brereton
Yes please!
Rich
Yes New York City …. City of the World
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
Official hand up to staff that one 🙋🏻♀️
Ben @MAKE Gosport
Can’t wait to tell our Makers about this!
We’ll see you in Southampton
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
YAAAAAAAAAAAY AAAYYYYYYYYYYYYY
Virginie
When are you visiting other countries? A store in Paris France would be a blast!
Andrew Davies
Need visit Wales, speak nicely to Sony to open the onsite shop to the public.
Mark Hart
Is this just an English tour or is it a UK tour?
Raspberry Pi Staff Liz Upton
It’s an ongoing thing: we’ve been popping up for just over a year now, and yes, it’s a UK tour. Check out https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/edinburgh-shoppers-queue-out-door-24620867
Bobby
Wrong side of the pond…
Amin
Wow. What an opportunity that I missed. R u guys also considering Germany? Ex. Stuttgart or Frankfurt.
Cheers to all u do.
neuro
soooooo by “UK”, you meant …
Raspberry Pi Staff Liz Upton
We mean the UK. We were in Scotland last year, and the locations here aren’t the only places we have under consideration this year!
Ed
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania?
Liam
Will your pop-up stores be accepting cash? My disability makes, it difficult to use cashless payments, and it is proving to be a barrier to many things, and so many shops now effectively exclude people like myself.
I don’t want to make a trip to the Bullring specially to go to your pop-up shop if I then find that I can’t buy anything.
Raspberry Pi Staff Liz Upton
I’m afraid not: we don’t have a safe and other facilities there for cash and are only set up for card transactions, so we’d invalidate our insurance if we were to take cash.
If you’re able to use a card but don’t have one, you could buy a pre-paid Visa at WHSmiths. Otherwise you might be able to find another customer in line who you can give some cash to and ask to make a payment on your behalf with their card.
Liam
Thank you for your reply and the explanation.
Unfortunately, a prepaid card presents the same difficulties for me as a regular bank card. I will see if I can get a friend or relative to go with me, but it might be something to consider as an accessibility point for the future. I am, of course, aware that you’re not the only business in this situation, and I am aware that there is no requirement to accept cash in the U.K. other than for the settlement of a debt.
I assume that your permanent shop in Cambridge is the same?
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
We can do cash at the Cambridge store as it’s a permanent site with security and a till system fitted. So that might be a better option if you’re not too far away?
Liam
I will be in Stevenage for a couple of months in early summer, so I’ll be sure to go to your shop in Cambridge whilst I’m there if I can use cash. It’s just an hour by train, I believe.
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
Waaaay less than an hour last time I did it 🤞 it’s half way between London and Cambridge which is just over an hour.
AubsUK
If you have an Android mobile phone that is compatible with Google Pay (almost all modern ones), depending on your disability (i.e. if you can use a finger/toe print or other pre-entered ‘print’ to approve payment), you should be able to pay at the store (e.g. MasterCard allow unlimited amounts, but stores may have a limit). See this link for info: https://www.mastercard.co.uk/en-gb/personal/ways-to-pay/google-pay.html
Jason
We would be thrilled to see you in San Francisco, sometime! Very happy to hear the shortages may subside a bit.
Brian Inglis
Glasgow, Cardiff, and Belfast area and other urban region visits should also be considered: maybe based on local Jam/CoderDojo/Code Club etc. counts and/or membership numbers.
Of course, it would be better to welcome you to any/all of Halifax, Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary, Vancouver!
They are only an hour or two by plane from each other or the closest US cities, and have direct flights to the UK in summer (maybe not visit November thru April unless you want to ski the Rockies!)
Mark
Hi, is this pop-up shop just for purchasing products or are there other things to do?
I have 12 year old who’ll be 13 when you pop-up in Leeds and he was asking me if there is any opportunity to learn more about making things with Raspberry pi.
Kind regards,
Mark
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
Hello!!!!!! It is largely for purchasing bits but we bring along Pi-powered robots, magic mirrors, and other things to look at and play with. They’ll also be able to ask about what kits are good to buy if they’d like to build something in particular.
Mark
Thank you Ashley, I think we’ll try pop in.
Kind regards,
Mark
Dan3008
I guess it’s time to book my next outing to leeds
Paul Taylor
Why say “around the UK” when you actually mean “around England” only?
UK != England.
Paul Taylor
Ah, I see Liz’s clarification, thanks. The intro to the article says that you’re popping up four times in 2023 and announces the four UK locations, then only lists four places in England, so an easy misunderstanding. I think you’d be welcomed in every corner of the UK, not just the urban areas! 🙂
Danny
Oye! Would love to see you here accross the pond! Come on, Cuz… Show us some special relationship love 😗😜
Cheers!
Adam Hepton
I cannot wait to see the juxtaposition between the shoppers of the high end / high price luxury fashion brands and the Pi when you visit the fancy schmancy Victoria Gate in Leeds.
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
You intrigue me…
Oh is Victoria Gate the one with the big cinema inside and the glass bar at the top? That IS posh.
Bill Roth
How about Northern California? You can stay at my place, and I can get you a spot downtown…..
Richard
Fantastic news, really looking forward to seeing you in Leeds 👍
Arca C
Would be great if you could have one in London. Cambridge is a little far from here
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
Ahhh we’ve been to London twice, you missed us! Thought we’d try some further flung cities this time.
Lee T
I’ll be visiting your Southampton store next week 😀. Any news on the stock you’ll have available? Will you have any Compute Module 4’s for sale 🤞 ?
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
I have JUST had firm, firm, final confirmation from the keeper of the store, who informs me that we will have:
3B+, Zero 2W, Pi4 2GB,4GB & 8GB sold as kits.
Raspberry Pi 4 Desktop Kits in 2GB, 4GB & 8GB variations.
Zero W and Zero WH for sale standalone.
Sorry for the lack of Compute Modules. We won’t be bringing any this time. There is very limited stock of them at our Cambridge store.
Lee T
OK thanks. Gives me a dilemma as I’m currently staying in Kettering, about an hour from Cambridge- do I make the round trip for a CM4!?
Raspberry Pi Staff Liz Upton
The A14 is an untrammelled joy these days. I’d say do it! (If you’re worried about the trip, please feel free to drop me a line at liz (at) the domain at the top of the page once you know you’re coming, and I’ll make sure we put one aside for you.)
André & Luca
We’re looking forward to seeing you in Southampton next week. What time will you open and what kit will you have ? Looking for a RPi 4 8Gb and CM4. Merch too ! Any details would be good. Thank you !
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
Hey, hi, how goes it? We will have…
3B+, Zero 2W, Pi4 2GB,4GB & 8GB sold as kits.
Raspberry Pi 4 Desktop Kits in 2GB, 4GB & 8GB variations.
Zero W and Zero WH for sale standalone.
André & Luca
That’s great, thank you. We’d better make a shopping list ! 🙂
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
You might, MIGHT be showered with free embroidered Raspberry Pi patches to sew/iron onto your favourite beanie/tea towel/backpack. Plz don’t make fun of the amazing raspberry-coloured tray I dispense them from while you queue.
Tannith
Excited to come visit you in Southampton on Friday!
Do you know whereabouts in West Quay you’ll be setting up? And the times?
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
YAY! We are inside the Sook retail space in “Unit 22” of the shopping centre. At past pop-ups we’ve tended to trade from 10am ish until 5 or 6pm ish but let me triple check for you…
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
Grown up in charge of the store says 10am – 6pm opening times on both days of the pop-up.
Tim Mortlock
Any stock and buying restriction updates?
Daniyal
What unit will you be at in Leeds and what time will you open at and what is the stock levels at the store be like? I am very excited to get my hands on a pi if you didn’t already know :)
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker — post author
Ta daaaaa: https://www.raspberrypi.com/news/what-can-you-buy-at-our-may-and-june-raspberry-pi-pop-up-stores/