In 1976, my Dad left his teaching career at East Orient middle school to pursue a start-up business "Stewart Custom Tackle." During the 90's, he went to specialize in fly fishing and renamed the business "Stewart's Fly Shop" located on 242nd and Halsey.
1983, Floyd Schneidermann from the Oregonian wrote an article profiling my Dad, Doug, and his business, Stewart Custom Tackle. The business was operated out of our garage for the last 5 years of his teaching career until he opened a storefront on Halsey street in 1976.
After earning his degree at the University of Portland, he was hired as a teacher and basketball coach at East Orient Middle School. After 15 years, he decided to teach people how to fish and started his own business. He had know-how, passion and skill to make it work.
There was always an attitude of helping, not selling. Of course, you need to make sales and earn a profit to stay in business but profits were a result of providing a good service to others. I never heard him talk about the "Golden Rule" but I saw it in operation. He didn't over-sell. He listened. He made friendships. And he put the customers interests first.
Schneidermann said that Stewart had "customer-friends." Dad once told me that if he didn't have this attitude, he never would have lasted so long. That's about 40 years in business.
In the article, my Dad says, "A lot of my customers are my friends." Schneidermann continues, "As Stewart speaks, a customer-friend enters the store with some information on fishing conditions over the weekend... But, the time the man leaves, Stewart has promised to both go fishing and play a round of golf."
The ethos of "customer-friends" and Stewart Custom Tackle is continued with Life Benefits Group today. It may be a different business, but it continues in the same tradition.
