Last year, Mark Lopez, a former student at Grayslake North, created his own business of buying and reselling fashion/vintage clothing. He started his business, Mark’s Pop Up, during his junior year at North.

Mark started his business in his own house as a high school student. Mark said it can get difficult owning a business while going to school full-time. He noticed he was regularly struggling in one or the other, but after a while he got better at time management. He had to put more focus in it for a bit to balance things out. On the contrary, he also said that there were in fact benefits to having a business and working at school, that he’s learned marketing, management, finance, and more.

Mark first began as a customer to other vendors, and he began asking them questions. They taught him ways to source and make his own store. Mark’s Pop Up is currently located in his house, but he also sells on Snapchat, offers shipping, delivery, and pickup.

“I almost only advertise on Snapchat right now but occasionally on Instagram,” Lopez said.

“I had my first sale in April of 2021 so I began at the end of my junior year in high school.”

Mark complained about issues of not having enough time by himself or having the time to spend with family and friends due to working and going to school.

“Just like anyone else our age who works for a corporation, I have learned many powerful skills in marketing, time management, finance, et cetera,” he said.

Mark said if he could go back in time, he would advertise his business a lot more. He would hold himself back from putting his name out there because of other people’s opinions on what they would say about him.

“I’ve learned that people will always talk about you no matter what, so it’s best to live the way you want,” Lopez said.

Bekah Monciavis, Mark’s friend, said she had actually just gone to Mark’s Pop Up. She said she really liked it, and she admired that he was paying for his college tuition by himself.

“It’s really cool because a lot of his friends have been helping out and reposting to spread the word,” Monciavis said.

She said she thinks it’s good for someone our own age to go out and shop for clothes that he thinks teenagers would like. He knows all the latest trends. When you normally go thrifting, it can take hours to find something you like, but when you go to Mark’s Pop Up, it’s just all there and doesn’t take very long.

”It’s like five minutes and you find a handful of things that you really like,” she said

She also said that she would recommend other people to go to Mark’s Pop Up as well, and that she would be taking some of her other friends there sometime. While Mark doesn’t go to North anymore, his friends still carry the word of his store, and students like Bekah still attend regularly.