Maria Reyes, 67, and Eduardo Reyes, 66, shop for piñatas for their nine nieces and nephews at Hailey’s Dulceria, a candy shop located inside La Gran Plaza’s El Mercado.
El Mercado, the Mexican-market-themed space inside the mall, houses local businesses and provides a taste of home to residents.
“I grew up in Tijuana, and my brother and sister worked in a candy shop,” Maria Reyes said in Spanish. “This is the closest to that candy shop that there is here.”
Maria came to the United States from Tijuana, Mexico when she was 18. She and Eduardo live in Weatherford but drive to El Mercado to buy piñatas at the candy shop.
El Mercado inside La Gran Plaza, 4200 South Freeway., offers residents a mix of businesses from hairstylists to candy vendors. The space was officially opened more than a decade ago. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
El Mercado is a three-floor, Hispanic-focused shopping space inside La Gran Plaza. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Nelly Cruz, 24, brings a piñata down inside Hailey’s Dulceria. Cruz has been working at the store for a bit longer than a month. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Hailey’s Dulceria sells rompope, an eggnog-like drink traditional to Mexico, and chamoy, a sauce made of plums and chiles. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Hailey’s Dulceria, a candy shop inside El Mercado, sells Mexican candy and piñatas. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Shoppers walk toward a food stand on El Mercado’s first floor. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
A video game shop, Mascorro Bros., is located on the third floor of El Mercado inside La Gran Plaza. The shop fixes old consoles, sells video games and vintage consoles. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Mannequins wearing dresses stand outside a vendor’s shop inside El Mercado. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Some El Mercado vendors display dresses. Shoppers can also find food, jewelry and legal services inside the space. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
A candy shop hangs piñatas outside of their store inside El Mercado. The candy shop sells Mexican candy which is usually spicey or sour. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
A mural on the first floor of El Mercado depicts Mexican mythological creatures. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Dresses hang outside a shop inside El Mercado. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
A stand inside El Mercado allows residents to send money to relatives in Mexico and Central and South America. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
The architecture inside El Mercado resembles a traditional Mexican market. The center of the shopping space has a play area for kids. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
A store inside El Mercado sells boots and other Western wear. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
La Gran Plaza is busiest on Sundays when they host musical performances. El Mercado offers residents a piece of home. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)
Hailey’s Dulceria, located on the first floor of El Mercado, imports piñatas from Durango, Mexico; Michoacan, Mexico; Monterrey, Mexico and cities lining the U.S. – Mexico border, Nelly Cruz, 24, said.
Cruz has worked at the dulceria for more than a month — she lived in Houston before moving to Fort Worth with her family.
Two floors above Hailey’s Dulceria lies Jose Luis Mascorro’s video game console repair shop.
Mascorro, 67, a retired musician, opened his store Mascorro Bros. nearly 10 years ago. Before his latest venture as a video game shop owner, he traveled through Mexico, the U. S. and Canada as a musician performing at jazz festivals and composing music.
“I retired in Hidalgo, Texas, in 2010,” Mascorro said in Spanish. “I got tired. It was very tiring.”
Now, Mascorro is happy running his video game store where he repairs vintage consoles like Nintendo 64 consoles and XBOX 360 consoles.
Hailey’s Dulceria and Mascorro Bros are only two of the more than 200 businesses located at La Gran Plaza. The businesses range from herbal medicine merchants to hairstylists to Mexican snack merchants.
Cristian ArguetaSoto is the community engagement journalist at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him by email or via Twitter. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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