Passing by DU’s Campus Green, you might expect it to remain empty, maybe even see a game of spikeball if you’re lucky.
The unexpected happened this Sunday. Forming a gigantic half-circle, booths wedged back-to-back wrapped the outskirts of the lawn. For the fourth consecutive year, DU Entrepreneurship, in collaboration with DU Launchpad, hosted over 75 vendors at Pop-Up Palooza.
When developing an idea, one must first identify a pain point in the market. Gina Parker, now a senior, founded Pop-Up Palooza in her first-year year. The “pain” was a lack of opportunity for entrepreneurs across campus to get involved and market to DU and its surrounding community.
The result is similar to a farmers’ market, if a farmers’ market sold an array of items ranging from prints, jewelry, ceramics and more. Add live music from DU bands to the mix, and the two are nearly interchangeable.
“I think it’s a lost art of learning how to share your passions with the community,” Parker said. “This [Pop-Up Palooza] is an opportunity to try to get people out of their shells and want to try something new.”
Pop-Up Palooza redefines what it means to be an entrepreneur. Parker defines the term a bit differently than you might expect.
“Someone who is working to do good in the world and bring happiness,” Parker said. “That can be someone making crafts, wanting to share that with their community, that’s gonna brighten someone’s day. Someone who’s looking to create something new for the greater good.”
For Nnemma Okwuegbu, a third-year psychology and art double major, it was her second year attending as a vendor. Okwuegbu’s booth was filled with various crochet pieces, collaged lighters and prints. Her various creations are formed through the mood she feels when creating.
“I was just feeling really silly, and in a great mood,” Okwuegbu said, pointing at one print. “I was like big brush strokes and loud colors and a lot of music.”
Just a row behind Okwuegbu was Rosie Ayala, a third-year hospitality major who recently added an entrepreneurship minor. The table before her, filled with silver jewelry — rings, necklaces and pendants — was surrounded by a constant crowd.
The booth was formed after Ayala’s participation in the Idea to First Dollar class, where she and her partners were first challenged to sell as much lemonade as they could in three hours. One successful lemonade stand later, the group entered into their quarter-long project and launched their company.
Groups in the class ultimately root for one another, even meeting outside of class to share challenges and strengths and determine the best path for each business’s success.
“We’ve been watching these quarter-long projects for so long and to see something made out of it is great,” Ayala said, referring to a classmate’s booth that had sold out.
The event itself was open to not just DU student vendors— instead anyone who wanted to sell their products was welcome. 12-year-old Aurora Curtis and 11-year-old Alexa Davie were one of four booths from the Ricks Center for Gifted Children. Their idea stemmed from the school’s annual Shark Tank project, where students are challenged to identify a problem in their lives and solve it.
“Our main problem was things spilling in your backpack and making a sticky mess,” Curtis said. “It’s always sticky, like even after you wash it.”
The prompt for the challenge was to “create something out of nothing.” For Curtis and Davie, the solution was stain-proof and waterproof bags made from upcycled stuffed animals and lunch bags.
“Used stuffed animals either get thrown away or they go to waste, so we thought why not make something out of them,” Curtis said. Davie quickly added that although valuable for practical use, stuffed animals are also cute.
Each booth displayed a unique product, showcasing the creativity of the community. But shopping wasn’t the only attraction for attendees. From free food to cornhole, every part of the green was alive with activities and live music.
Four bands played, with 7th Sense kicking off the event. Next in the lineup was As of Today, the recent winners of Battle of the Bands, and openers for MusicFest on May 30. Mid-set, the group announced that the headliner of the event will be Jeremy Zucker.
The Oxbows followed, shifting the vibe from indie rock to bluegrass, with covers like “Wide Open Spaces” by The Chicks and Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.”
Exhaler closed out the event. It was the third consecutive year the DU band performed at Pop-Up Palooza, and they don’t plan on making it their last.
“If they’ll have us again, we’d love to be here,” Elan Jimenez, the bassist of Exhaler, said.
Although the event ended early due to the weather, Pop-Up Palooza was another overwhelming success. While Parker graduates this Spring, she’s made sure the event will not only continue but grow, despite her absence.
