After more than 50 years of service and memories in the same location on Vine Street, Jim Faiths’ Office Supply will close its doors for the last time by month’s end.
First opened in 1971, Jim Faiths’ Office Supply has been a landmark in Downtown Poplar Bluff. Jim, along with his wife, Crystal, started the business, which has been a family affair for over half a century.
Daughter Barbara Faith spoke of how the long-standing business came to be after her father made the decision he wanted to do something different with his life. A business called United Business Machines resided in what is now the apartment complex next door. Her father worked there before deciding to open his own business.
“They did all kinds of work on typewriters, cash registers, you name it. Then my dad got kind of tired of that,” she said. “So this building became available and he bought it and opened up with office furniture. He wanted to do something different, so that’s how that got started.
“We worked hard. My mother and I were very close — we’ve always been a close family and there were never any arguments,” said Faith.
Jim Faith was a patient man, recalled his daughter.
“But when he got his patience tested up to a certain point, that was it, he was done with you. But he had a long fuse, so when he got upset he would sit and talk and say, ‘No, we’re not gonna do it that way, we’re gonna do it this way,’ Whatever works for you. He was the boss but he wasn’t bossy, let’s put it that way,” said Faith. “He was really easy to work with. My dad was a really good guy. He was fair right down to it and I got that fair gene.”
A strong work ethic and a drive to succeed kept the family business running smoothly, according to Faith.
“His goal was really, I think, to just slump over at his desk. He loved coming to work. He loved the customers,” she said. “All the businessmen downtown were always really good friends.
“They would come in and sit and talk with my dad and you could hear some stories. It was kind of fun. I would sometimes, depending on who was here, kind of make my way up front and listen in because it was just funny to hear them — men never gossip,” she chuckled.
Faith remembered a time her dad had to go to be rushed to St. Louis for medical care.
“I think it was after that that he asked me, ‘I’m never gonna be able to go back down to the office am I?’ And I said if there’s a will, there’s a way. I will get you there,” Faith recalled. “He came back down here on a walker. And he worked every day, he loved this business.”
Faith said that after her dad’s passing, she and her mother were, “terrified for the first six months that we weren’t going to make it.”
She said there was a lot to learn and all the bookkeeping throughout the years had been done by hand.
“My dad did a lot of the paperwork and he taught me how to do the books,” she said. “I’ve never kept books in my life and he taught me how to find mistakes and that’s been invaluable to me because if you don’t know how to find your mistakes, you’re up a creek.”
Faith said since the announcement of the store closing, she is working harder than ever before, selling what is left in the store, as well as trying to get the building in shape.
“I have to get it cleaned out and I’m doing the second floor all by myself,” Faith said. “A lot of that is just storage, personal things from my folks, it’s a long haul up there. So when I finally get this place taken care of, I say I’m gonna take two months off and I’m gonna sleep, then I’m gonna go look for a part-time job because I don’t want to sit at home.”
Faith extended a sincere thank you to those who have helped her and the community that has supported the business throughout the years.
“I would like to mention my absolute praise and admiration for those who have helped me,” she said. “Cheryl Bazzel, I just can’t sing her praises enough, and Kathy Williams. Sometimes it was all that all three of us could do, they have just been invaluable to me through this.”