As the holiday shopping season kicks into high gear, CF Shops at Don Mills is getting a new, temporary tenant — Air Miles has chosen the location for its first-ever bricks and mortar shop. The temporary shop, known as Gifted by Air Miles, will carry items from Canadian artisans including candles, artwork and home decor.

The pop-up concept is a first for the brand, and Rachel MacQueen, VP of marketing for Air Miles’ LoyaltyOne brand, told MiC the company is hoping to take the concept across Canada.

“We thought this would just be a nice way to engage with our collectors face-to-face, but at the same time we’re bringing them a unique experience because most of what they’ll find in the shop is stuff you can’t find anywhere else.”

The shop will promote the use of Air Miles’ various rewards programs, and will allow users to cash in their miles on the items, as well as earning miles on their purchases. MacQueen said the goal is to align the Air Miles brand more closely with holiday shopping.

The activation is being promoted through emails to current Air Miles rewards members as well as through boosted Facebook and Twitter posts. Public relations agency North Strategic executed the social media buy.

The shop first opened its doors to select Air Miles members on Dec. 7 and is now open to the general public. It will remain in its space at CF Shops at Don Mills until Dec. 28.

MacQueen said North York mall was chosen first out of “pure convenience” because the company wanted a GTA mall for its team to be close by. However, the Shops and Don Mills ultimately won out because the pedestrian mall is known for having a large Christmas market and numerous holiday-themed activations. She added that the pedestrian nature of the mall will allow for better discoverability.

She said that the pop-up is aimed mainly at young families and a slight female skew.