Bend man lives his dreams
Traveling decal business earns him an appearance on TV show
By Rachael Rees / The Bulletin
Published: May 15. 2013 4:00AM PST...
For the past six years, Mark Hopkins has spent his summers driving across the country and selling decals out of his 30-foot custom-built trailer.
The Bend resident — known as “The Decal Guy"— has garnered national attention for the stickers he makes and sells, and he expects to appear this month on an episode of the History Channel's “Only in America" TV show with Larry the Cable Guy.
But Hopkins isn't satisfied. He has additional goals to pursue.
“It all started in 1976, when I was 10 years old," he said. “It was my dream to join the Army, sell stickers and have an ice-cream truck."
He joined the Army. He's selling stickers. And recently, he embarked on his next dream: the ice-cream truck.
On May 3, Hopkins and his wife, Paulina, opened Ziggy's Ice Cream, a mobile business selling natural and organic ice cream.
The couple also owned Eco Bistro, Bar & Boutique, which closed in April after the city raised a zoning issue. Hopkins and his wife couldn't find a new location for the bistro, so they decided to change direction and focus on the ice-cream truck.
They are developing routes throughout Bend, currently stopping in NorthWest Crossing and other west-side neighborhoods and around St. Charles Bend. But visiting a single neighborhood can take up to three hours. So, they've decided to add a second truck.
“If we have two ice-cream trucks, we can actually make it more of a business, as opposed to just a hobby," Hopkins said.
The couple also sells ice cream at birthday parties, weddings and other events, locally and out of state.
But Hopkins does not plan on abandoning his summer tradition of taking his decal trailer on the road.
“I have responsibilities," he said, referring to his waiting customers. “I feel I need to go back out."
Hopkins started selling decals about 12 years ago as a hobby in Tacoma, Wash., at local fairs and rodeos. He later opened two stores to sell decals, one in Tacoma and one in Beaverton. He closed his stores in 2006 and 2007 and decided to go mobile, traveling with his family. They've visited Disneyland and Mount Rushmore and attended the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota, selling decals along the way.
Today, he sells more than 20,000 decals a year through his travels and via his website, he said.
“The heart of it is being creative and being able to express yourself," he said. “Decals are kind of like tattoos, but for your car."
On just the outside of his trailer, he displays about 3,200 different decals, and he's designing more daily. He said there are literally million of designs for customers to choose from, ranging from stick-figure families to animals and automotive brands. He also sells signs and embroiders items with his designs.
“The things that I like the most and have fun at are what I like to do," he said. “I love making stickers, and I love selling and eating ice cream."
— Reporter: 541-617-7818, rrees@bendbulletin.com
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Blog Post May 13, 2013
http://lifeway.net/Community/Blog/tabid/266/entryid/497/Ice-Cream-Truck-2-0.aspx
