Megan Mojica
Staff Writer
Over 100 community members showed up for the annual Los Angeles Quinceañera Expo presented by Quinceañera Magazine for a one-stop shopping experience filled with Latin traditions, dancing and music on Sunday at the Pomona Fairplex.
A quinceañera is traditionally a Latin celebration of a girl’s 15th birthday and signifies her transition from childhood to womanhood.
The event featured more than 40 vendors. There were DJs, makeup artists and live dance performances.
As guests walked up and down four rows, they were greeted with smiling and energetic faces ready to sell their products.
Booths offered everything from shiny tiaras to opportunities to test photo booths, and caterers offered free samples of nachos or steak with mashed potatoes.
Many vendors were also competing to be the best venue to hold a girls quinceañera or the best photographer to capture her special day.
Attendees were amused with live performances from singers and dancing groups of Latin music, and a DJ playing popular Latin and current pop hits in between.
Some guests even joined in dancing to songs like “El Payaso Rodeo” by the artist Caballo Dorado, a traditional line dance that is present at many Hispanic parties.
Girls were able to see models walking around in large quinceañera dresses as advertisements, and had the opportunity to try them on or similar ones along with many other dresses.
The expo also offered relevant businesses needed exposure, vendors said.
Eric Estrada, DJ and owner of Estradation Entertainment, said the event surpassed his expectations.
“Not only the foot traffic, we are getting… interactions of everybody and all the other vendors,” Estrada said.
Estrada added that after Pandemic shut downs of events and parties, he was glad to be back out there.
“Obviously with COVID hitting we haven’t been able to get that many leads, so I felt like it was a good opportunity to kinda come here and showcase,” Estrada said.
Sofia Pastrana, manager of Glamour Creation by CG, said the expo was good for promoting their business and building relationships.
“Once we build that customer relationship it becomes more of a family to us,” Pastrana said. “And we’ve been growing based off of recommendations more than anything.”
Shoppers also seemed to enjoy the event.
Linda Flores, a student at Hollenbeck Middle School, who plans to have her quince in two years, said she recommends the event because it really makes a person think things through about planning.
Besides the logistics behind planning a quinceañera, Flores also said the event was enjoyable.
“All I know is that it’s fun, I like it and that’s really all that matters to me,” Flores said.
Alex Serrano, owner of Rancho El Escondido, a company that rents out horses for photo shoots and lessons, was surprised the event turned out to be a lot better for him than he had anticipated.
“I’m actually pretty surprised, I wasn’t expecting to sell today, it was more getting out there,” Serrano said.
To learn more visit quinceanerasmagazine.com.
Megan Mojica can be reached at megan.mojica@laverne.edu.
Megan Mojica, a junior broadcast journalism major, is a staff writer for the Campus Times.
