On Thursday, November 3, students lined up to attend the Cougar Pop Up Shop. From 12:30 to 4:30 p.m., the Cougar Pop Up Shop was an opportunity for students to get nice fashion pieces to help towards their futures.
Attendees have saved this event in their calendars for weeks in advance and knew they didn’t want to miss this chance. All items at the event were donated by members of the campus community. The goal was to provide students with access to professional clothing items such as suits, skirts, blazers, blouses, shoes and more.
This event was put together by many important organizations on campus. The hosts of the Cougar Pop Up Shop include:
- Kean's Bridge to Success
- Office of Student Retention and Educational Innovation
- Career Services
- Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
- Kean Wellness Center
- Cougar Connections Center of Social Work
Inside the Miron Student Center, Room 228, everything was wonderfully organized. The front of the room had scarves, shoes and accessories. The left side had dressing rooms for students looking to try things on. In the center, tables had bottoms while shirts and blazers hanged from racks.
Upon entering, students signed in and were informed of the ten item limit on free clothes. The room was filled with people enjoying the shopping experience while helping their peers make fashion choices.
“I got these two cute patterned skirts,” said Freshman Jasmin Langomas. “One has a music key on it…I want to be a music manager, it is literally perfect.”
Langomas also shared her love of thrift shopping. She even arrived to the event early to ensure that she could find the perfect items.
The Cougar Pop Up Shop aimed to provide people with free, professional clothing. Throughout the event, many student were on the hunt for professional pieces.
“Blazers,” said Mysara Elsayed.
Elsayed was most excited to find blazers at the event. She found the pop up shop on Cougar Link and wanted to find clothes to contribute to her wardrobe.
Amongst the staff and faculty, there were some student volunteers running the event. Volunteer Layah Lopes helped with preparations and how her internship led to her involvement.
“They were explaining to me about how they got the staff and a lot of people to donate the clothes,” said Lopes. “To see students coming over here and looking at the clothes from the staff, it’s interesting . . . I think it’s cool.”
The Cougar Pop Up Shop exemplified the excellence of the community. Students were able to find additions to their professional wardrobes whilst simultaneously absorbing the positive energy that filled the room. Kean Cougars care about each other and this event truly solidified this fact.
