A UNI student is hopping into business

BY LINDSEY GIARDINO, FREELANCE CONTRIBUTOR

Emily Eaves was raised by an entrepreneur, so she naturally sees the world a little differently.

“Instead of just noticing the problems people have, I start thinking of solutions,” the 21-year-old University of Northern Iowa student said.

That mindset is especially evident through her new business, Hop and Drop, through which she’s bringing Easter magic to families by hiding eggs in yards the night before or early morning of Easter.

As of mid-March, Eaves already had about 30 houses booked across Des Moines, Cedar Falls and Burlington. Those houses alone totaled more than 3,000 eggs.

To prepare, Eaves has spent a few hours every day over the past month marketing, ordering supplies, filling Easter eggs with candy and toys, and packing orders.

Once the orders are prepared, Eaves delivers them to her team of “Easter Bunny delivery drivers,” mostly family and friends.

The idea for Hop and Drop was born out of boredom. As a photographer who mainly works during the warmer months, Eaves felt she needed something to keep her busy while waiting for spring weather in 2025.

“I had seen other people offer similar Easter services for fundraising and thought it would be a fun challenge to see how far I could take Hop and Drop,” Eaves said. “Once an idea comes to me, the rest just falls into place.”

Bringing Hop and Drop to life hasn’t been without challenges — namely, the price of goods. After seeing the cost of supplies at big-box stores, Eaves looked into ordering in bulk, but even then the prices were still too high.

Eventually, her research led her to a supplier for Easter eggs that fit within her budget. Then she had to figure out exactly what to put inside them. In addition to candy, she researched trending toys, landing on items like fidgets, slime, squishies and more.

Another challenge for Eaves is scaling the business.

“The opportunity for this business to be offered anywhere in Iowa, or even the whole Midwest, is possible,” she said. “However, finding reliable people to make deliveries isn’t easy. I can’t just have anyone I find on Facebook running around in people’s yards in the middle of the night.”

Still, her goals for Hop and Drop are big. Eaves envisions the business expanding into a year-round Midwest holiday service and entertainment company.

“Starting as the Easter Bunny, next we might be Santa, and then we will be the magic behind kids’ birthday parties,” she said. “The possibilities are endless. I would love to bring back the magic of holidays and encourage kids to be kids again.”

Eaves is no stranger to thinking outside the box and trying new things. In fact, name a side hustle, and Eaves has probably done it — from selling Christmas candy canes in grade school to creating a successful photography business in high school to running a full-out social media marketing business in college.

“Hop and Drop, along with other businesses I’ve ran, is just another way for me to use my skills and have fun doing it,” she said.

They’re also an extension of the goal Eaves has always set for herself: Don’t work for the man, be the man.

“I’m a woman, but that makes it even better,” she said.