One cart. 120 seconds. 28,750 sq. ft.
On Friday, Nov. 12, eight lucky winners including five students, two alumni and an Aggie fan gathered for their chance to score free loot during the third annual Raid the Warehouse event at The Warehouse at C.C. Creations.
Vice President of Marketing for C.C. Creations Ashleigh Krause said the company received over 20,000 entries this year. 
“This was a really extra exciting year because people were getting to come back out after the COVID[-19] scare, and it was something fun for people to really step back from football season,” Krause said. “We’ve had a mixture of students as well as people that drove three hours away – Ol’ Ags, New Ags – we had a lot of families come to participate and help cheer on everybody as well as our staff here.” 
Business law masters student Joshua Oldenkamp said he was very surprised to be picked as one of the contestants. 
“It was crazy,” Oldenkamp said. “I thought it was a scam at first and then I was like, ‘Okay, no, I did apply for this.’”
Oldenkamp said he focused on getting an A&M canopy as well as yard signs and inflatables. 
“My family really got behind me to get as much as we could get with the things that we wanted  for sure,” Oldenkamp said. “The two minutes went by so fast. We only got half of what we were wanting, but we’re happy we got what we did.”
Engineering sophomore Nicholas McCray said before the event he scoped out the store to see where he would set his priorities. McCray said his favorite item he was taking home was a dart board as well as various polos and jackets.
“I was really going for anything,” McCray said. “If I didn’t get something that I was gonna wear, it’s gonna be a Christmas present — it’s the perfect time of the year.”
McCray said the hardest part of the contest was the time crunch with the large size of the store.
“The hardest part was because I was going kind of fast,” McCray said. “I kept on grabbing duplicates and knocking stuff over [and] out of my cart.”
Community health junior Kayla Pavlowich said going into the event, she was hoping to grab warmer clothes for the incoming cold. Pavlowich said one of her favorite scores was a doormat for her house.
Pavlowich said having a plan can make a large impact on the items you take home.
“[Prioritize] what you’re actually going to get and having to be realistic about it,” Pavlowich said. ”[I encourage others to apply so] you can get free stuff and it is a fun experience.”
Krause said Raid the Warehouse is one of the staff’s favorite events throughout the year. 
“It just brings some excitement and joy to all the Aggies,” Krause said. “[This puts] all the craziness in the world out of the picture and out of the way and [we] really get to focus on the true Aggie network and the fan base.”
Krause said The Warehouse will continue the tradition of the raid and urges fans to sign up next year for the event. 
“[It provides everyone with] a chance to shop for Christmas, shop for themselves, shop for their family, their kids or just get prepped for game day weekends,” Krause said. “It’s just something that’s really, really fun for everybody.”