LOCKESBURG, Ark. -Boot and shoes fill the shelves in Jim Graves' Sevier County, Arkansas, store and are spread out on his work table along with pieces of leather.
At Jim's Boot Shop, customers can have boots, purses or other leather items repaired.
Graves also sells feed, tack and flowers and plants.
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Jennings Osborne
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He has operated the shop at 3434 S. Camellia St., in Lockesburg since 1987.
"I drove a propane truck for a living but summers were real slow," he said.
During one of his slow times, Graves took a trip to Cheyenne, Wyoming, where he met a man who worked with leather and could repair leather items.
"He could fix your boots in about 30 minutes," Graves said.
He was inspired to learn the trade himself and eventually started Jim's Boot Shop.
He has worked on countless pairs of boots since then, along with other items including saddles and other tack.
His shop smells like leather and is also a place where friends feel welcome to stop and visit for a while.
"Lots of leather in here and lots of conversation," said friend Jim Morris.
Morris and his wife owned the North Forty, a feed and plant store in Texarkana, before they retired.
Now they often visit Graves and help out with his plants and other items. The men joke around while Graves works.
The bright flowers and green plants out in front of the shop are bringing in customers ready for Spring, Graves said. Bags of plant fertilizer are stacked up outside the front door.
During the snow storms this past February, Graves opened up the store for a few hours most days so he could sell propane to his customers.
COVID-19 has affected most businesses but Graves said it could have been worse.
"I don't want to fuss about it too much," he said. "People were staying home more so they were buying things for their yard."
Feed for animals was also something that had to be purchased despite COVID.
"Everybody had to eat," he said.