100 years of kindness

It’s easy to make Jim Siebert cry. Just ask the right question.

Ask what he thinks about Siebert’s celebrating 100 years in business.

Ask him what he loves about coming to work.

Ask him why he’s so kind.

“It’s my goal to do what makes people happy,” Jim said through tears. “The day my dad retired, he was going out the door and he said, ‘Jim, just remember, make sure when people walk out this door, they walk out with a smile on their face.'”

“That’s what I try to do,” he added.

Jim’s wife, Jane, says he is a lot like his father, Bob.

But Jim says the kindness comes from his mother, Josie, too.

“There’s enough rascals in the world, and we learn the hard way sometimes,” he said.

Jim and Jane have been working in Siebert’s for 48 years now. Their daughter, Rachel, has been working with her parents since she could walk. Legally since she was 14, she jokes. There’s been times she spent away, but she had been working in the store regularly when Jim had his fall in 2016.

The fall is a mark in the history of the store that still weighs heavy on the family. It highlights the fragility of a family-owned small business in which the customers come for the kindness as much as they do for the clothing. But the family and many friends rallied to keep Siebert’s alive as Jim was struggling to recover. (We wrote a story about that here and go into more detail about the business history)

Admittedly, children don’t always follow in their parents footsteps regardless of how well laid out the path.

She wanted to be a veterinarian but fainted while job shadowing — an unexpected moment for a girl raised hunting, skinning, and cleaning. She considered culinary school and was working two jobs, including one at the French Lick Siebert’s location, while going to school. And then, she moved home and continued working in the store with the idea it would just be a job for a while.

Rachel was still unsure of her future in the family business and had been working consistently in the store for ten years when Jim fell and was in the hospital in a coma. His accident clarified her devotion to the family’s legacy on the square.

“It’s like everything I do now,” Rachel said.

The pandemic further clarified her future role in the business after Siebert’s was awarded a grant from Barstool Sports to help them when the world shut down.

“It’s just been a process in the past five years,” she said. “I’ve come to realize that I have so much pride in this place.”

“There is a lot of pride that comes from being a fourth generation,” Rachel added.

If you ask Jane, Rachel is like Jim; ask Jim, and he will tell you Rachel is a lot like her mother. And Rachel seemingly leans toward her mom in being direct and to the point, but she cries also.

The store has become so important to her.

“My grandpa (Bob) was everything to me,” she said through tears, adding that she feels he and her great-grandfather Wilbur are looking down on her and are so proud of her accomplishments in the family business. Especially as they prepare to celebrate a 100-year anniversary.

Jim and Jane’s children have worked for them over the years, willingly and unwillingly, depending on how old they were. These days, their oldest Andy has a painting business in Bloomington, and Ben is working for Toyota, but Jeff has rejoined his parents in the store in recent years after the pandemic impacted his business.

He’s 18 months older than Rachel, and the two are good friends.

As his parents think about retirement, he feels like it is a good time to step in and help. He enjoys helping people and appreciates the family’s role in the community over the years.

“It is neat that we have survived so long,” he said, adding that he attributes the store’s longevity to the community around them. “It is pretty unique in today’s age to see a business celebrate 100 years.”

He’s committed to keeping it going, too.

Rachel’s role continues to expand in the store as her mom and dad have slowed down. She handles purchasing, social media accounts and marketing and meets with customers daily. Between her and her brother, Jeff, new items and lines have been added to the store’s offerings. They are catering to men’s care and sportswear a bit more while still providing excellent suits and accessories.

Jim jokes that his dad retired when they modernized the business. “When we computerized, dad said, ‘I’ve had enough,'” Jim laughed.

But their children’s updates haven’t driven Jane and Jim away yet. Though Jane is trying to be part-time, Jim is constantly walking around with his pack of paper notes in his front pocket, meeting customers with a sincere smile, filling out orders, and finding anything anyone ever asks for.

He loves being in the store. Rachel jokes that her dad will be here in a walker if he has to.

Jim says he usually wakes up around 4 a.m. and spends a couple of hours thinking about what he needs to do at the store.

“I truly feel sorry for people that don’t look forward to going to work,” he said. “I look forward to it and even come in on Sundays.”

Even though they are closed on Sundays, he likes to straighten up and take out the trash or take care of other odds and ends.

“But, I truly do look forward to coming to work every day,” he said. “Quite simply because it is my goal to make people happy. It’s what I do best.”

Siebert’s opened in 1922 as The Modern and expanded to The Squire Shop for boy’s clothing, and they sold jeans in The Thread Shed. In the 70s, the family was considering consolidating everything under one name. While struggling to come up with a name, Jim and his brother, John, and his dad and family friend Bob Boyles were all discussing it together. “And we asked him (Bob) what the hell we should call it,” Jim remembered. “And without hesitating, Bob said, ‘Why don’t you call it Siebert’s cause that’s what it is.'”

And they did.

Siebert’s is about family, according to Jane. “It’s his dad, his mom, his grandpa, his sister,” Jane said, adding all the many people that have worked in the store over the years. “That’s what makes it special. It’s all the family, and there’s not a lot of places that can say that.”

And that means family for us too. The Siebert’s kindness endures and was returned to them in a recent card.

“I came in for two shirts and got so much more,” the customer wrote. “I have never felt so appreciated as I do when I step into your store.”

“Whether I am buying a three-piece or a bar of soap, you all make me feel like a million dollars,” he continued. “You just don’t find that any more.”

“Sometimes, I find myself coming in not to buy anything but just because I need a smile.”

Family, friends, and longtime customers are invited to celebrate the store’s 100 years Friday, Sept. 16, from 4 to 8 p.m. with live music, food and drinks, contests and memories.

Find out more and follow Siebert’s on Facebook here.