By Katia Jenkins Brown
Staff Writer
To supply students with new and easily accessible Costa spirit wear, the Mira Costa Associated Student Body opened a new student store on Nov. 17 in rooms 101 and 102 to sell sportswear on Tuesdays,Wednesdays and Fridays at lunch.
ASB Director Lisa Claypoole said that in the past, only the Parent Teacher Association and Costa athletics department sold green and gold Costa gear and athletic wear. As a result, she decided to create the student store.
“Never in the time that I have been the activities instructor at Mira Costa has there been a student store.” Claypoole said. “[Claypoole and the PTA] wanted to get more kids to wear school colors, and so we decided to to make clothing and schoolwear more accessible to kids.”
According to Claypoole, ASB received $5000 worth of products before school started from their main sweatshirt company, Manhattan Stiching and Brendan Screenprinting and Embroidery, to fund the store. Claypoole explained that the new student store opened on a Thursday because ASB wanted the store to open on Fridays to sell football tickets, and help pay that money back.
“The hard part of opening a student store is that you have no funding,” Claypoole said, “I got our sweatshirt company to give us the supplies, and we will pay them back once we sell them.”
According to Claypoole, ASB is also working on selling the student store merchandise online through the Mira Costa website. Claypoole stated that, because of difficulties coordinating with the website creator and merchandise makers, the online page will open after the student store.
“We’re going to try it one more time by reopening the website in the weeks before the holidays,” Claypoole said. “It would be reopening during a week in December.”
Claypoole said the new student store offers a wider selection of spirit wear and school supplies when compared to the spirit wear the PTA or Costa Athletics department sells.
“We’re doing a few different things this year, like selling hats,” Claypoole said. “[The PTA] didn’t sell sweatpants or shorts. We don’t have shorts yet, but we do have sweatpants. We’re also selling new shirts and jackets with ‘Mira Costa’ on the back.”
Claypoole stated that she plans on expanding the student store and the website throughout future school years. According to Claypoole, ASB cuts the price of all products by at least $4 off the original price, and is currently working on ways to expand the profit margins.
“We’re working our way up,” Claypoole said. “I suspect that if we are successful this year, next year and the year after it will get better and better.”
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