Some serious teamwork goes into making the holiday season at Oak Park Mall a success.
"Preparations for Christmas really start in the summer when you don't think about it," marketing director Kasey Vena said.
Vena says Oak Park almost becomes its own little city. Landscaping, housekeeping, security, management, and all the stores increase communication to handle the holiday rush.
That means more messes to clean, more handrails to wipe down, changing out holiday signs and banners, and beefing up security.
"People maybe get impatient, they're always in a hurry," Vena said. "We want people to come in and just slow down and be nice."
As online shopping increases, it's important for malls to set a festive mood to draw in the crowds.
"Having holiday music playing, seeing Christmas trees when you shop, seeing Santa - you can't get that at home," Vena said.
Seasons has been a staple at the mall for 25 years - a holiday store packed with festive Christmas trees and just about any ornament you'd ever want.
Preparations for Seasons' manager Michele Parrish started in March.
"We go to market in Atlanta, purchasing all the product for the season. Then we start in September and open packages up and work on displays, getting everything ready," Parrish said. "We have a lot of return customers, and beyond that it's just trying to keep up with keeping trees full and product out on the floor."
For Parrish, it's about providing that holiday feeling to customers.
The mall has a two-story Christmas tree, thousands of twinkling lights, and new attractions. Families can go through a new interactive holiday house, where kids get to meet Santa at the end.
While you're watching their little ones with Santa, mall security has their eye on you and fellow shoppers with more than 120 cameras.
"Just to make sure that we're not a place where people are coming to commit crimes," said Vena.
There are more security calls during the holiday season, just because of the high volume. Calls range from people needing to find their cars, to shoplifting.
"We've got really strong video and strong facial recognition so that if someone does commit a crime and we're looking for a suspect, chances are we're going to find them," Vena said.
In addition to eyes in nearly every corner of the mall, security cameras are also watching the parking lots. They are able to zoom in and read license plate numbers to help Overland Park police find a potential suspect if they've left the mall.
Vena suggests having a plan before you shop at the mall during the holiday rush, because it gets packed. A busy Black Friday foreshadows a busy two weeks leading up to Christmas Eve.
Oak Park is open from 9 a.m. - 10 p.m. from December 16 - 22, 8 a.m. - 11 p.m. on December 23, 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. on Christmas Eve, and closed Christmas Day.
The mall returns to regular hours the week after Christmas.
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