At A Glance

Jim Stewart is the Owner of Musky Shop, the largest musky shop in the world. Musky Shop sells products from rods and reels to baits and tackle boxes. They also sell hooks, clothes, components for building your own lures and more. If you enjoy musky fishing, this is the place to go for all of your needs, from beginning to end. 

Who is Jim Stewart?

Jim Stewart is the Owner of Musky Shop.

About Musky Shop 

Musky Shop actually started back in 1989, with its founders Rollie and Helen. The business sold the necessary equipment for musky fishing including lures and braided line, planer boards, and more. They were a one-stop shop for musky enthusiasts, and the business has only continued to grow since then, selling even more merchandise and more variety to those around the world who are interested in musky fishing. 

Jim’s Journey

Even though Musky Shop was founded back in 1989, it was much later that Jim found it. He started out his life on a farm in Harlan, Iowa, where he lived and worked with his family. In fact, he and his brothers started their own farming business when he was still young, going to the bank to take out a loan for the purchase of their equipment and supplies. 

But throughout his life Jim was always interested in fishing. Of course, in Iowa there certainly weren’t muskies or many other large fish, like Jim always dreamed of catching. The family had to travel in order to make that dream a reality, but he would go fishing in Minnesota when possible, to get the experience he really wanted. 

Ultimately, he found Rollie and Helen’s Musky Shop and that was when he took his first musky fishing trip. He was hooked. And later, when Rollie met with him at the Chicago Musky Show and offered the shop, he thought it might be a sign. And when he was able to get the funding to purchase the business, he decided that he wasn’t going to walk away from the opportunity. 

In May of 2003, Jim Stewart became the owner of the Musky Shop, which is still a mighty force in the musky fishing world.

There are approximately 12 employees during the off season and during the peak season it’s around 22, with only 1 of those working remote and no one working offshore, because the entire business is based in the US.

What E-Commerce Looks Like at Musky Shop

Musky Shop is the largest musky shop in the world, which is a major feat for a small business. But it’s held onto that title for a number of reasons. Even though musky fishing is a small niche within the larger world of fishing, it’s a sport that brings people together and draws in plenty of tourists besides. 

Right in the area are over 2,000 lakes, as many as 400 of which have muskies. That means it’s a great place to buy products and go fishing right at the same time. But Musky Shop also does a great deal of business through E-Commerce, including their website and traditional print catalogs, one of only a few places that still does. 

Where Does the Time Go?

Jim operates a small business, and even though he trusts his team to make judgement calls and do what’s best for the business, they often still rely on him to make final decisions. As a result, he’s highly involved in the day-to-day operations that go along with running the business. Even still, he knows he has a great staff.

If he had a little extra time, however, Jim has some big ideas that he really wishes he could spend more time on. Ideas he would love to bounce around with his staff and even with some of the bigger names in the industry. There are plenty of people he believes to be super intelligent within the fishing, and specifically musky fishing, sphere that he would love the opportunity to reach out to and communicate with. 

Musky Shop’s CX Philosophy

When you’re a small business it’s important to focus on your customer experience to get customers coming back again and again and at Musky Shop the philosophy is simple; treat others as you would want to be treated. 

Jim and Musky Shop communicate with a lot of people in a lot of different ways, but by keeping the customer at the center of the focus Jim believes great things are possible. He admits that there are times that they might fall behind or not meet the expectations that a customer has, but as long as they lead from the heart, treat people with respect, and act in a kind way, it’s always possible to improve and to make a great experience. 

By going above and beyond in answers and service, Musky Shop can keep customers returning. That’s exactly what happened with one special case where a Musky Shop was approached by a customer with a huge order. They wanted tens of thousands of screw eyes and were looking for a discount on the order. 

Jim decided that for this type of order he would offer a discount when he normally wouldn’t and that customer has since been back many times over the years buying tens of thousands of items again and again. It was a choice that made a big difference for the business and the customer, and it proved Jim’s theory that if you take care of your customers they’ll support you back. 

Balancing Investments and Profits

Since Jim purchased the business there were a number of expenses to consider. For one thing, there was the mortgage on the business. For another, all of the normal expenses that go along with owning a business like taxes, inventory, and payroll. That meant, for a long time, everything that the business made in profit went right back into the business in some form or another. 

Now, a lot of the profit is turned around for inventory, because Jim loves keeping the inventory of Musky Shop large and varied for his customers. 

Moving Forward

What does the future look like for Musky Shop? Jim believes that AI is definitely coming in strong. As are other forms of technology, social media, and search engines. That means ramping up the opportunities to use all of those features. But more importantly? The future is all about having a strong team with different talents and skills that can continue to help the business succeed.