Meet Melanie Eischeid | Project Manager & Entrepreneur

We had the good fortune of connecting with Melanie Eischeid and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Melanie, how has your perspective on work-life balance evolved over time?
I want to answer this question by putting the utmost emphasis and importance on the intentionality of how one spends their time. As someone who struggles with mental health, I have gone through a number of highs and lows through my adult life, and one thing that always seems to be a constant through my good times, is the manner in which I am able to be intentional with my time and my desire to use my time to grow, whether personally or professionally.

I worked for a company from the end of 2018 through the beginning of 2022 where I learned everything I know about project management. I learned so much, and grew exponentially as a professional, but I also gave every bit of myself to the company. I had no work life balance. I was commuting an hour each way to go to work, then working anywhere from an 8-10 hour day in the office, then coming home and working into the evening from home many nights. I’ll never forget when I saw a paycheck where I had clocked over 70 hours in one week. I didn’t have time for my passions and often times family & friends even got put on the back burner to slave away to the man some more. I struggled to take time off work when I was sick due to having such a large work load. I knew in December of 2021 when I registered for my LLC that my work life balance was going to have to change if I was going to successfully launch my own business. Ultimately, I ended up leaving that company and taking a promotion as a Project Manager for AGI, where I have been able to redefine my work life balance and set healthy relationships and expectations on how much of my time belongs to the company I am employed by.

I made the very intentional choice to start fresh at a new company to establish a healthy work life balance. While once I would work as much as I possibly could, now I want to live as much as I possibly can and use my time intentionally so that I don’t feel the need to work excessive hours.

Now, as a business owner…. there is a lot less balance; to dome degree, I am always working. When I am working on my own business endeavors, however, it truly doesn’t feel like work. I will say that I try to carve out time where I intentionally am not using my cell phone or laptop to spend quality time with my incredible partner, Mike, or my friends or family. Even then, sometimes I can’t shut off the ‘brainstorm-about-my-business’ musings in my brain. The saying is true though, do what you love and you’ll never work another day in your life. All this roller skate stuff feels like I am living out a life long dream much more than it feels like work, and for that I have the utmost gratitude.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I am the proud founder, owner, & operator of SecondFoot Skate Co.

SFSC was founded somewhat on a whim, a passion project of sorts. 2021 was a difficult year for me, as it was for many. I found myself going through divorce and consequently needing to fix up and sell a house that I had been residing in since March of 2020. Luckily, it was a seller’s market, and I fared well with the transaction. I knew I didn’t want to blow through all the money I made, but don’t get me wrong I may have treated myself to a little bit of Botox and some new shoes,

I started park skating September 18th of 2021 and just absolutely fell in love with it. I knew almost immediately that I wanted to be a larger part of this community and I wanted to center my life around it.

I have always been a huge fan of thrift shopping, and the idea came to me to start a resale skate shop. That was ultimately where the moniker came from, a play on words of secondhand, ‘SecondFoot’.

On December 21st, 2021 I purchased my first pair of used skated and continued to scour the internet for good deals on used skates. I wound up running across someone who seemed to be selling quite a few pairs of skates, brand new, in the box skates, at that. I reached out to him. I found out he was a former owner of an online roller skate shop and he was liquidating his inventory and moving on to new business endeavors. & Thus began my inventory of new skates, protective gear, wheels, and more.

As far as lessons I have learned along the way, I will sum it up to the following 3:
1. Make organization a priority, in every aspect of your business, ASAP.
2. Schedule your time. BE INTENTIONAL WITH YOUR TIME, make sure to schedule in times to do nothing & rest, tooo!
3. You can’t do it all alone, collaboration is key.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Fort Worth absolutely has my heart and there are so many great places it is hard to narrow it down, but I think some of my favorite nouns (people, places, & things) of Fort Worth would be the following Food/Drink—— @StirCrazyBakedGoods, @Taco.Heads, @ShinjukuFW (Shinjuku Station), @PressCafeFWTX, @HotBoxBiscuitClub, @SpiralDiner, @DutchsBurgers & so many more; these are just a few of my favs!

Retail————- @BlaizeCulture (you can find my skates for sale here!), @MagnoliaSkateShop, Berry Good Buys & GoodWill off Berry St.
Services——— Massage: @InLovingWellness, Barbershop:
@SouthBarbershopFW, Hair stylists: @MadisonVilloHair & @HairByElaineTurnbow,
Places to see—- Fort Worth Water Gardens, Chisolm Trail Skate Park, [COMING SOON Fire Station Park off Hemphill], Trinity Trails for trail skating, The Central Library in downtown, and then my favorite Fort Worth seasonal events: Arts Goggle & Friday on the Green

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people in my life who have helped to shape me and mentor and encourage me to get to where I am am today, I’ll list a few below. To my boyfriend- Mike, thank you for having been a constant source of encouragement through this journey from the idea phase in December all the way to launch and beyond. I can’t wait to run skate shops with you ’til the wheels fall off (pun fully intended). I know I can be strong-willed & stubborn at times, but I know you wouldn’t have it any other way, I love you.

To Mom & Dad- I have nothing but appreciation for all the financial support you guys have provided me over the years to get me where I am. Thank you for funding my college education & helping me any time I need it.

To the owner & founder of Blaize Culture- Jake Bowen, thank you for collaborating with me and helping me to make my vision a reality, it’s been such an incredible experience becoming partners in business and friends.

To my current boss- Jimmy Boren, thank you for always believing in me & offering me a new opportunity to continue to develop myself professionally in an environment where I can also be mentally healthy & well.

To CIBDFW (Community in Bowls)- Thank you for allowing me to find my place within the skating world within your community. Park skating is what led me to discovering my passion and deciding the direction I want to take my life’s endeavors in.

To the city of Fort Worth and to everyone reading this right now- Thank you for coming on this journey with me, I am so stoked to see what the future has in store for SecondFoot Skate Co. and the skating community at large.

Website: www.secondfootskateco.com

Instagram: @secondfootskateco

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/SecondFootSkateCo

Twitter: @secondfootskate

Facebook: www.facebook.com/secondfootskateco

Other: TikTok: @secondfootskateco

Image Credits
Tribe Photography