Today we’d like to introduce you to Sandy Eckard

Hi Sandy, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?

I am a shopper. I am the person who goes on vacation and ends up at every knick-knack shop along the way. I like to go to antique shops as well as tacky souvenir stands–and everything in between. If there’s a t-shirt for a spot on my vacation, I’m sure that I have one!

So, really, I have been preparing for this adventure my whole life. I never thought I would help with selecting materials or read books and articles on branding. But here I am–a teacher and writer who has a “side hustle” as they call it–and it’s become something that I am really proud of doing. I bring pleasure and fun to others, and the customers that I have met who have become friends have made all the hard work in this journey worth it.

During the pandemic, I was asked to help out with some tees on a table at the Mahoning Drive-In in Lehighton, PA. Because it was the height of COVID, people couldn’t be inside or in enclosed spaces, so they were a small business trying to figure out a way to stay open but also, maybe more importantly, provide people with something safe that they could do with their family, getting them out of the house and feeling a bit normal at a time when they couldn’t feel much normalcy anywhere.

So, since I had been helping with a few things like hostessing with guests or helping with lines, I was someone they could call for this “side service” that none of the regular employees would be able to do becuase they were working. Stand outside with a table of tees? Then watch the movie? How hard could that be?

I ended up having a blast, and people were so happy to actually feel normal and go shopping that I sold quite a bit that first night–and customers appreciated it. The drive-in asked me back. Then, they asked me to join the staff. A month later, I was a “manager” of the newly crafted merchandising unit of one. Ha. I did end up getting some help here and there from some good-hearted staff, but they were not as interested in merch as I was, so it was really just my play area to figure out. We added hoodies and then koozies–and that’s really when I realized that I could brand things and people would want them! It became so much fun to think of new items and figure out what would be a good price point, what would work (or what didn’t), and how to keep customers coming back for more each weekend. By the second season, I started having my own staff, and now, I have a group of employees to manage who help me run the tables when I’m not there, or busy chatting up customers, or simply because there are days we need more than one person. It’s hard to believe how far we’ve come in five years.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?

Smooth and bumpy are two entwined ways of viewing this path–or any new job experience. I had to learn as I went. In a way, my experience as a teacher really served me well, as I had to read and do research (I still listen to podcasts and read articles about branding and marketing). Once we moved past two items, it became a challenge to keep a full table that was fresh and exciting–but also manageable and profitable.

The smooth part will always be my customers. They fuel me! I have loyal buyers who come to see me regularly and purchase pretty much every new item, joking that their house or wardrobe is totally “Mahoning.” I also enjoy meeting new guests who are visiting for the first time, and they often remind me of me on vacation–and that has been my philosophy that has served me well. I’m not in it for riches; the goal is to find that one special item that someone would want to take home to remember their visit. I want it to be of high quality and durability–and yet it to be reasonably priced so that we make a little profit but the customer feels it is fair and within their budget. To me, it’s all about the memory-making.

The bumps are often about vision and compromise. What I think works for a unified season theme might not always work. Someone else on the team might have a different vision. Or, over time, the vision could change. It requires compromise–yet a clear sense of what the original mission is for the product or for the season. I can’t do everything all the time, so I have to choose. It’s like everything else: pick the battle you want to fight, but don’t lose sight of the bigger picture. For example, I like to have a color theme for each season. That way, the table of merch and the items change each year but also have a pleasing color palette–something I learned when investigating branding. You don’t want just one thing over and over–change has to happen so that you can pull in repeat business. So a “theme” became my trademark. This year, I wanted to go with traditional colors in our marquee (red and blue) for our anniversary year. I didn’t get to reorder some of the items that sold well. I did have to compromise there–but in the end, we had a blast with the fall line-up of our “pumpkin hoodie” in forest green–which is selling out faster than I can stock it–so sometimes, letting go is important, too. It’s always subject to change. And I really love what I do. It brings me joy, and I hope I add value to the team. We have tried to create a little family of sorts where we all bring our passions together to benefit the whole. And who knew my love of shopping for souvenirs would pay off?

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?

In addition to my “side hustle” as the Merchandising Manager, I am also a professor. I work at East Stroudsburg University in the Pocono Mountains of PA, where I teach English. My specialties are teaching writing, teaching with pop culture, and analyzing women in popular literature and media. I also enjoy teaching future educators with courses like Young Adult Literature and The Teaching of Writing.

What am I most proud of? I think that, after almost 20 years at ESU, I am proud of the students that I have helped see that they do have a writer inside of them who can enjoy expressing themselves on a page.

I do think what might set me apart is my odd collection of jobs! Ha. I enjoy people and am fueled by interacting with others. I volunteer at my local Pocono Cinema and Cultural Center, I hold educational events at the theater for my education majors by blending film with learning–such as watching “teacher movies” with other students and discussing what we can glean from popular media. And, in a way, it all does tie together. I love finding ways to help others–whether in the classroom or at the Mahoning buying a nightlight or a keychain or chatting in our Book Club.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?

I love being part of a city–and I like that can take many forms. Being near a larger city–Philly or NYC–can give opportunities for personal growth, and the smaller cities like East Stroudsburg or Lehighton allow for people like me to feel like we can contribute and make a difference within our community.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.mahoningdriveintheater.org
• Instagram: dr.sandy.e
• Twitter: @s_eckard