The Holiday Mall, known this year as The Big 2016 Shop-A-Palooza, kicked off the new semester.

Originally, the mall was scheduled before Winter Break in order for students to purchase holiday gifts. However, due to Mr. Dura’s unavoidable absence, the Holiday Mall was pushed forward and rescheduled for the end of January. Students were disappointed because of the last-minute schedule change but continued to wait patiently, and the Shop-A-Palooza turned out to be a success.

On the day of the Shop-A-Palooza, students eagerly lined up outside the cafeteria to purchase their tickets. After purchasing their tickets, with prices as low as a fifty cents apiece, they went in and looked around at the various stands.

The time and effort put into each detail of the mall was evident. The mall was very well organized and the beautiful decorations showed the entrepreneurship students’ creativity. The cafeteria was completely transformed; the tables were rearranged and formed separate sections for each shop. More decorations and posters were hung up all around the cafeteria. The sections were organized by what each shop was selling. There were many stands with different types of food and accessories.

A lot of preparation went into the Shop-A-Palooza. Many students took time and put in a lot of effort to hand-make items. Hanna Cartagena’s store, Hanabee Boutique (also found on Etsy), sold personalized accessories such as hair bows, cell phone charms, necklaces, and phone cases. She also sold Key Club necklaces that Hazel Cartagena handmade. Other items included food, electronics, and even clothing. Various stores, such as Nathan Le’s and Juvenal Gonzalez’s sold colorful earbuds and portable chargers.

The Shop-A-Palooza was enjoyable for the customers, but for the students working behind the counter, it was an enhancing experience. The entrepreneurship students learned a lot about communicating with customers and advertising. Andrea Ortiz, a senior working at a jewelry booth, commented that “although there were some setbacks, the overall experience enhanced [her] ability to speak with a different age group of consumers in a way [she] hadn’t before been exposed to.”

Overall, the Shop-A-Palooza offered HMSA students a large variety of items to purchase for loved ones and even teachers. It was a great opportunity for students to gain advertising and communication experience while enjoying the afternoon.  

A big thank-you goes out to Mr. Dura for compiling a video of this year’s event!