The opening of the new outlet malls this summer means more to students than just another place to blow through their piggybank savings.

Over the course of the summer, two new outlet malls opened in the Chesterfield Valley: the St.Louis Premium Outlets and the Taubman Prestige Outlets. The outlets offer many new stores ranging from Michael Kors and Kate Spade New York to Nike.

Not only does the opening of the outlet malls offer new shopping opportunities, but it also provides hundreds of employment opportunities that many students have taken advantage of.

One of the students who has been recently employed at the outlets is junior Carsen Swallow, who began working at Nike at the St.Louis Premium Outlets in August.

“I got offered a great job opportunity and thought it would be really fun to work at the outlets,” Swallow said.

Junior Eric Ballesteros, who received a job at Pacific Sun at the Taubman Prestige Outlets this summer, also enjoys working at the new outlets.

“Its really fun getting to see my friends and help people shop,” Ballesteros said. “Plus we offer killer discounts, like buy one get one free jeans.”

The outlet malls are outside, and while this can be to its advantage in nice weather, the heat has affected business according to Ballesteros.

“It was crazy when we first opened, but now the heat has slowed business down,” Ballesteros said. “Business is still good, but not overwhelming.”

This makes for a laid back work environment that the students love. Junior Rennell Payne, who also works at the Nike outlet, agrees.

“Even though it can be very busy at work sometimes, it is still so fun!” Payne said. “I love getting to work at my favorite store- its an amazing experience”, Payne said.

Another pro to working at the outlets is getting to meet people from all over the St.Louis area.

“We have a lot of different customers from all different areas like St. Charles, not just Chesterfield,” Swallow said.

Ballesteros also enjoys the variety of customers.

“The shoppers at the outlets are different than the ones at Chesterfield Mall,” Ballesteros said. “There are less mall rats to mess up my folds.”

The only con of working at the at outlets according to Swallow is that they are slightly farther away than the other possible places of employment.

If a couple minutes extra drive doesn’t pose a problem, Payne recommends getting a job at the outlets.

“I would recommend as many people to apply as possible,” Payne said. “There is not a single thing I don’t like about my job.”

Some stores, like Nike, are still hiring. But whether its to work or to shop, Swallow, Payne and Ballesteros all recommend taking a trip to the new outlet malls to visit the students that work there.