In honor of Greater Philadelphia’s second annual Small Business Week, we talked to one of our Excellence Award recipients, Jim Ewen, owner of Jim’s Jarhead Jerky, about his small business story.
“The first day that I had the vision of this company, I thought, ‘This could never happen. How can a homemade product be in PXs that I’ve been stationed at?’” says U.S. Marine Corps Veteran Jim Ewen. “It took hard work and rejection and determination, but now here we are.” Ewen, who owns local business Jim’s Jarhead Jerky, of Medford, NJ, just became an official vendor for the U.S. Marine Corps.
Ewen didn’t set out to start a business – he just wanted to send a care package of his homemade jerky to his son-in-law, Tim Missel, a U.S. Marine deployed to Iraq. Not long after the first shipment, Ewen received a letter from Tim saying “I don’t know where you got this, but could you please send more?” It turns out that Tim and his buddies had been taking the jerky with them on missions.
It made sense: The jerky was tasty. It was easy to carry. It had a long shelf life.
Word spread quickly. Next thing the Ewens knew, they were receiving emails from other deployed troops and families of troops asking for their famous jerky. “That’s when the light went on,” says Ewen.
Jim’s Jarhead Jerky started taking orders in 2012. Today, Ewen is busy scaling his business to accommodate growing online sales, multiple retail opportunities in the Greater Philadelphia area and elsewhere, partnership deals to pair jerky with beer and wines, and, of course, a growing presence with the U.S. Military.
Growing Pains
These days, Ewen’s biggest challenge is time. He oversees every aspect of the business with the help of his wife, Joette, and a few dedicated volunteers. “There are two of us knocking on doors, shaking the bushes. My wife is a huge help to me.”
That Jim’s Jarhead Jerky has taken off so quickly is no small feat, considering that both Ewens still work full-time at other jobs. Right now they’re on the hunt for a few people to take over some of the boots-on-the-ground operations of the business, such as manning booths at farmers’ markets in the region, so that they can focus on growing the business in other areas. “We need candidates we can trust with the product so we can be there without me being there,” says Ewen.
So what powers Ewen to keep going? “I love what I do. My dad passed many years ago, but he used to say that if you love what you do you’ll never work a day in your life. I’m up at three or, at the latest, four o’clock every morning. That’s quality time to catch up on email, review orders, look at inventory and accounts payable and receivable.”
Making it Personal
Above all else, Ewen prides himself on exceptional customer service with a very personal touch. “Business has gotten so impersonal. It’s ‘dial one and leave me a message.’ We look at it differently. The quality of our product is so intense I wanted to put my name on it,” he says. “If you like it, tell me. If you don’t, tell me that, too.”
What advice does Jim have for budding entrepreneurs? “What you have to have is a passion. If the passion burns out, then it’s only a hobby. But if the fire in your belly continues to grow, follow that.
“Starting your own business is not easy or else everyone would be able to do it,” he adds. It’s also important to seek out like-minded business people. “Surround yourself with successful people. Take advice. Learn from your failures. Don’t get discouraged. If something doesn’t work, don’t say ‘I can’t do this.’ Try something different. And then try something different again.”
