We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Susan Sandler. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Susan below.

Hi Susan, thanks for joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

On the morning of 9.11.2001 our world changed forever. As a resident of lower Manhattan, our neighborhood was uninhabitable, and simultaneously, as the universe will have it, my work as the general manager of an interactive advertising/marketing agency with corporate clients was becoming extremely challenging. Many of the digital 1.0 agencies and companies that supported them were overvalued at that time, and going through mergers or shutting down.

After weighing the option presented by our insurance company to live in a hotel with our two children indefinitely until Tribeca, their local school and our apartment building was deemed safe to return to, we decided to temporarily relocate to a small home in East Hampton, NY. The community there was welcoming, children were enrolled in schools, and I tried commuting to NYC to work, which I quickly realized wasn’t sustainable. Within weeks, I began fleshing out an idea and building a business model to work with emerging designers and brands in a multi-brand pop-up enterprise that would merge in-real-life shopping and digital media to allow curious consumers to discover new lines, products and brands, and designers to acquire new customers and build followers and fans, not only in the resort community of the Hamptons, but in NYC, Los Angeles, Miami, Aspen and beyond.
Since then, I’ve worked with hundreds of clients and partners on alternative retail/distribution and marketing strategies, planning and activations.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’m from a small town in the Midwest and grew up with progressive, educated parents and grandparents who succeeded in entrepreneurial businesses and professions. I believe they helped shape my ability to embrace futuristic concepts, and see the potential in developing new ways of doing things. In a pre-internet world, I was very attuned to lifestyle and marketing trends. When introduced to digital media as an undergraduate at BU, I pivoted my focus on broadcast journalism to learn about the emerging internet and how it could impact our relationship with brands, and got a masters degree in Interactive Telecommunications from NYU. That involved attending classes at night and labs on the weekend while working full time as an account director at an intl. PR firm. While there, I was the first employee to develop a made for TV movie to support a client’s campaign, win a President’s award for cause -related marketing and publish a white paper on the future of digital media for the communications industry.

When visiting London in the early 2000’s, I was introduced to a secret pop-up restaurant, and fully understood the power of a limited edition consumer experience that led to increased sales and social shares. Upon my 911 upheaval, I knew that integrating marketing and retail by programming live activations and inviting target audiences to attend and share content via digital media was a good combination for brands.

Today, I primarily work with clients to craft their own strategies for pop-ups and alternative sales and marketing activations. That includes evaluating brand goals in specific markets, resources, timing, budgets and more. I often introduce co-hosts and partners, including non-profits, to participate and expand the impact of ventures.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

The digital agency I was working for as a VP/general manager of one of three divisions, miscalculated with a purchase of a support services company and couldn’t repay a large loan. After making difficult staff and resource cuts, the CFO ultimately chose bankruptcy and the board voted to close the agency at the end of the year. My division remained profitable throughout the chaos, and we had business booked with reputable clients for the next quarter and beyond. As the only woman on the senior management team, I made a strong case to either keep the division going as a stand alone business, or sell it to a distinguished buyer who would value our staff and capabilities. I was turned down, and had to fight with them to retain compensation for the accomplishments of the previous year.

I made the decision to pursue a buyer for the division on my own. This involved traveling to meet with potential buyers and conduct meetings with clients to insure their commitment with the impending change, during the last half of December, while wrapping up existing business and shutting down the larger company. Employees were anxious about whether or not they would receive end -of -year bonuses and have jobs in the new year.

At the time, I had never been more stressed in my life, feeling the weight of my family’s needs, employees’s concerns and colleague’s actions.
By the end of the month, I had accepted an offer and inked a deal with an agency with whom we shared a key client, and agreed to open and manage a new office for them. Whew! All but one client moved with us, and we quickly grew the business of the firm. Little did I know that an even larger stressor in my life was about to happen, on 9/11/2001.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I’m one of The Firsts–the first in a small group of digital marketing and advertising pioneers, the first to trial interactive shopping with new technologies and one of the first to conduct multi-brand pop-ups and experiential retail activations with brands.
I respect people’s core beliefs and talents, and believe they respond to considered, strategic innovation. I’m about moving things forward with new platforms and partners, about seeing alternative ways of doing things while not trying to change the essence of a brand.
My choices typically exhibit good taste, and I have high standards for myself and the people and things around me. I’m eager to learn new things, willing to take risks, and I genuinely care about the welfare of the people I interact with.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://popupsummer.com
• Instagram: @popupsummer
• Facebook: @popupsummer
• Linkedin: http://linkedin.com/in/susansandler

Image Credits

Sarah Merians Photography