Mohammed “Moe” Rammouni and son.

If you scroll through the Instagram feed for Pal’s Apparel, you’ll see mostly pictures of clothes and customers, which characterizes the store well.

In between the rows of photo squares showing off carefully curated outfits are pictures of customers, smiling with a Pal’s branded bag in hand. Others show the flagship downtown Harrisburg storefront through the years, serving as digital evidence of the work put into revamping the store.

With every several swipes through the social media feed, you’ll see the smiling face of owner Mohammed “Moe” Rammouni. Sometimes, he’s posing with a customer. In other pictures, he’s showing off his clothes.

A post dated Feb. 1, 2020, shows Moe in front of his second Pal’s location in the Capital City Mall, which he was just opening. The photo’s captioned, “Working on it—Our 2nd location the #grind continues Big things coming.”

Big things would come for Pal’s, and still are coming, but not without deep tragedy.

In June, Moe, 34, suffered a heart attack. One moment, he was helping a group of regular customers at the shop, and, later that evening, he was gone.

Moe left behind a close-knit family—his wife Dana, a 1-year-old son, friends and a growing business.

“Everybody’s still in shock,” said Rani Rammouni, Moe’s older brother.

But Pal’s didn’t close. Since Moe’s passing, Rani and Rizz, Pal’s longtime store manager, along with the rest of the family, have come together to keep the business, Moe’s passion project, alive.

“I’m doing this for a couple people—not for me,” Rani said. “It’s for his kid, his wife, mom and dad, Rizz and the community. I think it’s fair to say that the community needs this store.”

Rizz

Couldn’t Be Stopped

Rizz remembers his first visit to Pal’s soon after the store opened in 2017. He saw a red carpet lining the sidewalk up to the front door and was instantly intrigued.

Inside, he’d find the streetwear-style clothes he loved, but what he didn’t know was that he’d also find a best friend.

“Immediately, me and Moe clicked,” he said. “We were both like the same soul in different bodies. I’m a happy-go-lucky guy, and so was he.”

Rizz became a regular customer and supporter of the store, even giving Moe money out of his paychecks to help the young business. Several months later, Rizz started working at Pal’s, and the pair became partners in striving for success. In the early days, Rizz had three other jobs while working at Pal’s. He believed in Moe’s vision and would hustle to be a part of it.

“There wasn’t any other store like this in the area. Moe was the first to do it,” Rizz said. “I saw his vision. When we came together, it was like we couldn’t be stopped.”

Early on, the duo would go out daily to hand out flyers and business cards advertising Pal’s. They’d hit the bars to meet potential customers, and Rizz would even hand out flyers during his shifts driving for Uber.

“I was here day in and day out,” Rizz said. “I used to work seven days a week in this place. This was my life. It still is.”

Over the years, Moe would expand Pal’s into the Capital City Mall and even into the Hershey Tanger Outlets. Both stores have since closed, as Moe decided to focus solely on his downtown location. In recent years, Moe had big plans in the works. He wanted to upgrade the Harrisburg shop, stock new clothing brands and planned to again expand to another storefront.

But for Moe, it wasn’t just about getting new patrons in the door. Moe and Rizz were all about building relationships with customers, special ordering items for them, and even occasionally handing out jackets or sweatshirts to homeless community members.

“It’s more than just a store; we show love to our people,” Rizz said. “We like to be here for the community.”

When Moe passed, Rizz stepped up to run the day-to-day operations of the downtown storefront. His best friend’s passing “lit a fire under him” to keep pushing for Pal’s growth. He’s taken on new responsibilities like meeting with clothing brand representatives and going to apparel trade shows.

The responsibilities can be overwhelming, but Rizz never questioned staying at Pal’s.

“I knew I was staying,” he said. “I would never let this close.”

Rani Rammouni

Small Victories

When Pal’s originally opened, Moe’s brother Rani was very involved in the business. Rani, owner of LBR Properties and a consultant for Touch of Color Flooring, owned the building and leased the space to Moe, helping him paint and fit out the space. But eventually, his involvement lessened.

“I didn’t really know what he had until he left,” Rani said. “I underestimated what he had here. He had something really good.”

When Rani talks about Moe, he paints a picture of the always-smiling baby of the family, the loveable one, everyone’s favorite. Moe was smart, driven and kind, he said.

Rani and Moe grew up in Ann Arbor, Mich., the children of Palestinian immigrants. The entrepreneurial spirit ran strong through the family. Their father was a small business owner who taught his sons the value of grit and hard work. Like many in his family, Moe was driven to find success.

“Moe wanted that,” Rani said. “He wanted to defeat the odds and he did.”

Moe’s death has been traumatic for Rani. Losing his younger brother “ripped open old wounds,” as his older brother also passed away 21 years ago.

But for Rani, keeping Pal’s open helps him keep a part of Moe with him.

“It’s like the only lifeline that we have for him, outside of his kid and his wife,” he said. “When you walk in this store, you think of him.”

While Rizz manages the store, Rani handles the business side of Pal’s, with intentions to keep the store not only open, but growing.

In October, Rani and Rizz painted and installed new clothing racks at Pal’s, something Moe had wanted to do. They also stocked up on new apparel and “‘fits,’ or whatever they call them,” Rani said with a chuckle. He’s working on learning the industry lingo and brand names, he admitted.

Rani also plans to add a new upgrade to the store every several months.

“Those are going to be our small victories,” he said. “People underestimate the small victories. There are small victories every day that get you to the big picture.”

Rani hopes that, with each small victory, Pal’s inches closer to his goal for the store: to make it the leading men’s apparel store in the tri-county area. That was Moe’s vision, and now it’s Rani’s.

As Rizz manages the store and interacts with customers, he keeps in mind Moe’s values—whether it’s through warmly welcoming every customer or staying until closing, even on the slow days.

Moe’s lasting presence is also felt by loyal customers.

“I had just talked to him that day,” said Chiun Wallace, a longtime Pal’s patron, of the day Moe passed. “It was a horrible feeling. He was one of the coolest, most genuine people.”

For Moe, Pal’s was never just about selling clothes, but about making people feel good—helping them feel comfortable and confident. Rani has been learning to embrace that. Once a suit-and-tie guy, he’s dressing more casually these days.

“I want to be who I am and be comfortable with how I am,” he said. “And maybe I establish a little more urban apparel in my lifestyle.”

The Pal’s Instagram page is just as active as ever. These days, you’ll see posts from Rizz and Rani. They narrate several videos showing renovation progress, advertising sales and displaying new apparel.

In September, a post showed Rani behind the front counter, smiling, talking to a Pal’s customer of seven years; Rizz is filming.

It’s a new era at Pal’s, and while everyone’s still grieving, they also have a lot of hope and a drive to continue what Moe started.

“I’m proud to be a part of this,” Rani said. 

Pal’s Apparel is located at 306 N. 2nd St., Harrisburg. Find them on Instagram at @palsapparel717.

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