Who is Crazy Jim?

Who am I?  Good question! I’m just an ordinary retired soldier that has a knack for finding the unusual.  Even as a kid, I would look for ways to build stuff out old junk on the farm. I was raised adapting things for projects because the income was not there for new things. This was the start of Crazy Jim.

I started my career as a Combat Photographer, then assigned to the Television Section where I drafted contracts for actors and then I became a actor for the A/V section. A small tour as a Army Recruiter aid.  Later I was assigned as a cameraman for the 13th PsyOps. Then 6 years as an arctic light Infantryman, Mechanic, Cavalry Scout and Instructor. For the rest of my military career my job was to take care of the individual soldier’s basic items (payroll, promotions, medical, service records).  I was not afraid to do what was needed to accomplish the mission, causing leadership and I to clash constantly. The leadership was not interested in the method only the results and sometimes the results were a hard pill to swallow…

After spending 26 years, 8 months and 2 days in the military, I was mentally beaten and on the verge of becoming one the 22. Now that I was damaged merchandise (with the help of the military) leadership retired me, due to my disabilities.  Knowing it was too early to retire and our knowledge of the military, my wife decided I needed to go in business!  We started in a small room in a side room of a liquor store and started growing from then on. We have met so many good people along the way.  I have now owned my store for 18 years and many changes have occurred. I had a plan to put in more stores all over Minnesota, but change came to us in the form of the internet.  We watched the walk in customers decrease as the internet sales increased.  As painful as it was to shift from old school ways, I knew online stores was what the future holds for most retail businesses.