Grand Opening of the Student Boutique

By Julian Wilson 
Staff Writer

LIU Post’s new boutique, located in the old gaming lounge in Hillwood, attracted faculty, staff, and students to its grand opening, Nov. 12.

The anticipation was high as guests waited for the special ribbon cutting, which symbolized the official debut of Post’s first student-run store. Contrary to what might be expected at a grand opening, no food or refreshments were served. However, that didn’t stop the boutique from filling quickly with intrigued students, faculty and professional photographers.

“This boutique is a great way for students to gain hands on experience, and to become entrepreneurs,” said Christina Principato, a senior Accounting major, who works at the boutique.

Nicole Balnis, a sophomore Social Work major, was excited when it came to revisiting the boutique in the near future. “I think it’s pretty nice, and I like that it has nice clothes, that I can definitely see people wearing,” Balnis expressed.

Tamir Dayya, manager and representative, spoke out about the interest, the boutique’s aim, and its progress from the earlier stages. “We had the boutique up and running, from the ground up in two weeks. Everyone from the facilities, to President Cline helped us out. It was true, genuine, teamwork,” said Dayya.

“The whole point is to get the students to run it, so they can learn about executive choices, and envelop themselves in management that can be fun, but also hard work,” Dayya said when asked about the boutique’s purpose on campus. “Thus far, we’ve gotten nothing but positive feedback, and we are very proud of the work we’ve done up to this point,” he added.

“I think it’s a good idea but I don’t know how many students it’s really going to bring in as customers,” said Stephanie Morales, a sophomore Art Therapy major. Morales had a notion that the boutique would definitely draw in various eyes from every direction, but she was unsure if the interest would stay alive.

“Everyone that I’ve spoken to about it, hasn’t shown any real excitement, or interest about it,” she added.