It’s more big news for Ala Moana Center, the world’s largest
outdoor shopping center and Hawaii’s largest shopping destination.
Oahu’s retail icon will host Honolulu’s first major weeklong spring
fashion and shopping festival March 3-9. The event, named “Shop a
Lea Seven Blissful Days of Shopping Euphoria,” will become Ala
Moana Center’s new annual signature fashion event celebrating the
very best in global brands and merchandise.
The event’s name combines “shop” with the Hawaiian word “lea,”
which means “to delight or take pleasure in.” Its artistic
translation means “the joy of shopping.” And event organizers are
pulling out all the stops to make certain that this is the
case.
“Shop a Lea is an opportunity for Ala Moana Center to showcase
its expanding selection of great stores and restaurants, while
demonstrating to visitors that Hawaii offers more than just
beautiful beaches, balmy weather and great waves,” said Sharon
James, General Growth Properties regional vice president of
marketing. “We invite both visitors and residents to share in this
new shopping experience celebrating spring and fashion.”
The grand event will present shopping enthusiasts from all over
Hawaii and the Pacific with a myriad of experiences in fashion,
beauty, active lifestyle, home entertaining, family, travel and
cuisine. Included as part of the event’s line-up are high-profile
fashion shows, trunk shows, exclusive receptions, lifestyle
seminars, Hawaii Regional Cuisine demonstrations, center-wide
gift-with-purchase incentives, mall-wide shopping and dining
offers, a grand prize euphoric shopping vacation for two to New
York City and more.
“Shop a Lea will become Ala Moana Center's new annual fashion
event to be held each spring with the event growing each year,”
said Matt Derby, director of public relations and tourism for the
290-merchant center. “This year, the focus is the March 7 grand
opening of Nordstrom and our 30-plus new stores as part of the
center's multi-million dollar retail expansion that’s adding more
than 300,000 square feet of new retail to the world's largest
outdoor shopping center.”
Derby added that the center plans to significantly grow the
luxury event for 2009, adding even more experiential elements for
shoppers to walk away with helpful advice and tips on style,
beauty, trends and lifestyle.
Nordstrom, the center's new anchor department store, is the
centerpiece of the expansion with its three-story,
210,000-square-foot design.
“It's Hawaii's most anticipated retail opening, as our customers
have been requesting the addition of this store for the last ten
years,” said Derby. “General Growth Properties and Ala Moana Center
are pleased to present this store (Nordstrom) opening as well as
many new-to-Hawaii retailers. It surely changes the island's retail
environment with the addition of many new and established retail
brands for the enjoyment of local and visitor customers.”
More than 100 different Shop a Lea events and sales promotions
are scheduled to take place at participating stores and select
venues center-wide. Shop a Lea kicks will feature weeklong
discounts (ranging from 10 percent to 50 percent off regular price
and clearance merchandise) and special offers throughout the
mall.
Ala Moana Center’s Centerstage will be transformed into chic
style venue that embodies the heart of the Shop a Lea experience
with 35 lifestyle seminars highlighting the best in fashion,
beauty, active lifestyle, home entertaining, family, travel and
cuisine. Events run between 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and are free and
open to the public.
Of special note is Nordstrom Cosmetic Tailgate Party on March 7.
The early morning event will feature consultations and
demonstrations by a myriad of the store’s beauty experts, with
special gift-with-purchase items available. The Cosmetic Tailgate
Party begins at 7:30 a.m., with the store’s public grand opening at
9:30 a.m.
Other new stores opening that day will include Ann Taylor
(relocation), Bare Escentuals, Blue Hawaii Lifestyle, Chico’s,
Design Within Reach, J. Crew-on-the-Island, Janie & Jack,
LeGrand Marqet, Lululemon Athletica, Max & Co. (relocation),
Ponte Vecchio, Sunglass Icon, Vera Bradley, White House/Black
Market (relocation), Williams-Sonoma (relocation) and Wolford.
Most of the Shop a Lea events are free and open to the public
with the exception of select functions that require either a
special invitation or a paid ticket fee benefiting charity. Event
information is subject to change without notice.
Ala Moana Center continues to lead Hawaii’s retail scene with
over 2.1 million square feet of retail including Hawaii's largest
collection of luxury and high-end offerings in one convenient
location. It includes some 70 restaurants and late-night
entertainment venues, a full array of American and local brand
stores, and four major department stores featuring the state's
largest Macy's and Sears, plus Hawaii's only Neiman Marcus, and
Hawaii's first Nordstrom.
For rest between events, Ala Moana Center will also launch a
variety of Shop a Lea hotel packages with Oahu hotel partners Ala
Moana Hotel, ResortQuest Waikiki Beach Tower, ResortQuest Waikiki
Sunset and the Ilikai.
For example, a three-night Ilikai stay for up to five guests
with a complimentary room category upgrade is $519 to March 11. The
plan covers a shop-until-you-drop tote, ResortQuest Aloha Book of
discounts, $50 Ala Moana Center gift card, two-for-one luau offer,
commemorative Shop a Lea cosmetic bag, mini-tote, insider VIP
packet, shopping shuttle passes and more.
Additional package information can be found online at
ShopaLea.com or by contacting properties directly at 800-446-8990
or www.alamoanahotel.com; 866-774-2924 or
www.resortquesthawaii.com.
The celebration will continue even after the March 9 multiple
grand opening events. Here’s a look at Ala Moana’s Centerstage
excitement for the rest of March:
March 11: Enjoy the upbeat dance moves by The Steptaculars, a
senior group performing a series of tap, jazz and Broadway dance
numbers from noon-12:45 p.m.
March 12: A local favorite, the Royal Hawaiian Band, will
perform its smooth Hawaiian sounds from 2- 2:45 p.m. The Royal
Hawaiian Band is the second oldest and only full-time municipal
band in the U.S.
March 14: Hawaii State Ballet will dazzle shoppers with a
classical and contemporary ballet performance from 7-7:45 p.m.
March 15: Groups from Japan and around the nation will showcase
their musical, dance and cultural performances from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
as part of the 14th Annual Honolulu Festival. The yearly event
promotes understanding, economic cooperation and ethnic harmony
between the people of Hawaii and Pacific Rim region.
March 16, 23 and 30: The last three Sundays in March, Ala Moana
Center’s Keiki Hula Show graces Centerstage. Stop by from 10-11
a.m. and enjoy the beautiful hula of Halau Na Mamo O Kaala,
featuring Hawaii’s own talented youth, and the music of
Kanilau.
March 16: Enjoy day two of the Honolulu Festival, with acts
featuring Japanese music, dance and cultural performances from
noon-3 p.m.
March 22: Four musical youth groups from Australia and New
Zealand will perform orchestral and choral shows as part of the
World Projects Pacific Basin Music Festival. From noon-1 p.m., New
Zealand’s Darfield High School Concert Band and Choir will
performs, and from 2-3 p.m. enjoy the Canberra Youth Orchestra and
Wind Symphony of Australia. Their fellow Youth Big Band will
entertain from 4-4:45 p.m., followed by Youth Choir from 6-6:45
p.m.
March 23: The World Projects Pacific Basin Music Festival will
bring student musicians from the mainland to Centerstage. From
noon-12:45 p.m., the Harrisonburg High School Honors Choir from
Virginia will perform, followed by California’s Las Lomas High
School Symphonic Band from 2-2:45 p.m. The Symphonic Wind Ensemble
will play their repertoire from 4-4:45 p.m.
March 24: More acts with the World Projects Pacific Basin Music
Festival will showcase their musical skills. From noon-12:45 p.m.,
the Mountain View High School Wind Symphony from California will
perform, the Harrisonburg High School Concert Band from Virginia
will follow from 2-2:45 p.m. and Oregon’s Southridge High School
Wind Ensemble will take the stage for the final show of the
day.
March 27: The final performances of the World Projects Pacific
Basin Music Festival take the stage from 4-5 p.m. as California’s
Napa High School Choirs will perform.
March 29: Local band, The BeatBoys will perform a lineup of
cover songs from the ’60s and ’70s from noon-12:45 p.m. The play
list includes favorites from The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The
Eagles and many others.
Also, Ala Moana Center shoppers can also enjoy a hula, Tahitian
and Maori dance performance by the Iwalani School of Dance from
2-2:45 p.m.
All dates, times and performances are subject to change.
808-955-9517
www.shopalea.com
www.alamoanacenter.com
