MVP Monday: Brendan Weinholtz

Hello there! Welcome back to yet another installment of the highly praised MVP Monday from Dave and Adam’s! As the weather starts to heat up, so does our Hit Parade division! You don’t win repack brand of the year awards without bringing some fire! That being said, it is important that the individuals in our Hit Parade division work their buns off to offer you some of the most exciting products possible! That’s where our MVP comes in; Meet Brendan Weinholtz, a member of our HP Card team! As always, we sit down to talk and learn more about our MVP!

What are you most looking forward to this Summer? 

The thing I’m looking most forward to this summer is some baseball! Also to go kayaking downtown and spending time on the beach. 

Ahhh, the beach. There’s something you don’t typically think of when you’re talking about Buffalo, NY!

What are your interests outside of work? 

My interests outside of work are playing video games with my friends, playing board games, building legos, and puzzles. 

Do you have any hobbies? 

My hobbies are learning to play the guitar and piano, and going rollerblading with my girlfriend around buffalo when the weather is actually nice.

The best part of summer is seeing Brendan serenade a crowd with his guitar while simultaneously ripping around on some roller blades. He’s a man of many talents!

What’s your favorite movie and why? 

My favorite movie of all time is ‘The Dark Knight’. I love all the action, Heath Ledger (Joker), and the mystery of what is going to happen next in Gotham with the Joker around. No matter what I’m doing, anytime this movie is on TV, I have to sit down and watch the whole thing. 

We agree, The Dark Knight is unmatched. Even with all of these new Batman movies coming out, The Dark Knight is still in a league of its own. Don’t forget: “What doesn’t kill you makes you stranger”. 

Do you have any pets? 

I don’t have any pets, but my girlfriend’s parents have 7 cats, 2 dogs, a ferret, and an axolotl. I know… it’s a lot. 

Dang, that’s a lot of pets! Seems like you guys have your hands full, and to anyone who is wondering, an axolotl is essentially a sea salamander!

What are your favorite sports teams and why? 

My favorite sports teams are the Bills, Sabres, New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Pirates, and the LA Clippers. I grew up with the Bills, Sabres, and Yankees through my parents and the love for them grew over time. With the other teams, I have family in LA and Pittsburgh so naturally I root for them every once in a while. 

Although you might have to fight off some Red Sox fans in the office, we’re just glad that some Buffalo teams made the list! And don’t forget, the LA Clippers lineage can be traced back to Buffalo from the Braves days!

Are you a former/current athlete? What sports did you play? What was your favorite? 

I am a former athlete. I played baseball for 15 years, basketball for 10 years, and soccer for 5 years. My favorite sport to play was baseball. 

A lot of baseball players around the office! We’ll have to take a field trip to the batting cages and see who can hit the most dingers!

What’s your favorite product that we sell? 

My favorite product that we sell is Hit parade platinum football. 

And you’re not alone! A lot of customers enjoy this product as well! Check out this product here!

Do you have any collections of your own? 

I have a decent sized shoe collection. I have been into shoes for about 8 years now, and going after rare shoes or even shoes that I think are cool are very fun to collect and hang on to. It’ll be interesting to see if they are worth a lot of money in the future. 

Talk to me when you get the Nike MAG Back to the Futures! 😉

What’s an interesting fact about you? 

An interesting fact about me is that I have played the saxophone for 8 years and was also in a jazz band for 7 years. 

It was always fun to see Brendan and his band rollerblade from venue to venue back when they were touring. You’ll have to display your talents for the office someday! 

Tell me about your background with DA/HP? What attracted you to work for us? 

What attracted me towards DA/HP was that I enjoyed collecting sports cards and enjoyed looking at rare cards online as well. Once two of my friends started working here and told me what DA/HP is all about I knew that I had to come work here. 

What amazing friends! 😉 We’re glad that you’re able to work closely with something that you’re passionate about!

What was your career before DA/HP? 

I worked at Dash’s food market for 8 years. I started as a cart guy, then cashier, and then worked in the frozen food department. It was a fun job to work at in highschool and college, and I made a lot of close friendships with customers and co-workers there. 

The editor of this blog post is a big fan of Dash’s; Think you could still get me any sort of discount? 😉

Is there a particular moment or time that sticks out about your experience here? 

I would not say there is any particular moment that sticks out, but I enjoy when Tom and Tyler come back from a show and bring back cards that you really don’t see a lot.

It is a very surreal feeling to hold a card that is incredibly rare. Tom and Tyler always bring back the hits!

Is there an achievement or contribution that you are most proud of? 

A contribution that I am most proud of is just working hard everyday with all my co-workers to ensure that cards aren’t damaged and are nicely organized into our system. We make sure that the customer always gets the best product.

We appreciate all of your hard work!

What inspires you to be the best at your job?

Family, friends, girlfriend, and my co-workers inspire me to be the best at my job. I always strive for excellence and give you the best of my abilities with any job I take on.

Luckily for us, Brendan’s attitude is paralleled by all of our employees. We all put our best foot forward to ensure that the customer’s experience is a pleasant one.

What makes you love your job? 

I love waking up everyday knowing that I’m coming here to see more cool cards that I possibly haven’t seen before. I also enjoy talking with my co-workers.  

Yes, seeing these cards up close and personal is always fun, but to share that experience with other individuals who share the same passion as you makes it 10x better.

What has been your biggest challenge here, and what did you do to solve it on your own? 

My biggest challenge here at first was trying to fully understand how the software worked with putting cards in, understanding how we organized different cards, and so on. I just kept doing trial and error until I fully understood it, and after time I finally got it. When it comes to difficult challenges, I never give up; I always try to find the answer by sitting back and thinking about the best way to get around a certain challenge. 

It’s always tough to learn new software with a new position/company, but we’re glad that you have this attitude to take it head on! Thank you for everything Brendan, we wouldn’t be the same without you!

Thank you for once again tuning into our MVP Monday spotlight! Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for updates on all things Dave and Adam’s!