One-Eighty: PacSun

March 20, 2011
Filed under Opinion

Copy by Elizabeth Gilligan

The small fashion industry in Great Falls is about to experience a devastating loss.

Holiday Village Mall features a limited number of stores already, but it’s losing another. PacSun will be closing its store before the end of March.

Employees at the store feel the closing is unfortunate, and I could not agree more. The mall includes relatively few stores that sell classy, vintage-inspired clothing, but PacSun was filled with an abundance of floral dresses, comfortable t-shirts, and beachy tops for any occasion.

And who didn’t love those abundant sale racks in the back of the store? Those racks always featured plenty of sizes and were discounted to awesome prices. PacSun served as the go-to spot for fabulous  jeans or a bright swimsuit, and never disappointed when it came to the perfect bag for the new school year.

When I heard the news of the store’s closing, I suddenly began to realize how much I love that store. I immediately thought of my trusty PacSun skinny jeans that I have worn for years. I thought of one of my favorite skirts that I dug out of a sale rack and bought for a grand total of $4.99. I thought of the friendly staff that always greeted me with a genuine welcome.

However, as one great store sadly exits, another will soon prepare for its entrance. Rue21 is scheduled to open a store in the mall within the next several months, but may or may not take the place of PacSun. PacSun employees say they new store is purely coincidental and is unrelated to the closing of PacSun.

Personally, I am disappointed with the the addition of Rue21 to our mall. From what I have seen online, the store consists of a small variety of items that seem very similar to Wet Seal and are not especially unique or shockingly inexpensive.

Hopefully I will be proven wrong and Rue21 will be a refreshingly pleasant addition to the mall, but until then I will be mourning the loss of PacSun by purchasing one of their new spring dresses before the store closes.