Following years of working in factories, John Cox decided to take a leap of faith.
A couple of years ago, he and his family were walking through Traderbakers in Seymour when he spotted some Tops sports cards from 1992-93 for $1.19 per pack.
After he purchased them and opened one of the packs, it contained a Michael Jordan card.
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“It was only like a dollar or two Michael Jordan, but it just relit it,” he said of his longtime interest in collecting cards. “I spent hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of dollars on cards, and I just started getting more and more and more into it.”
Then he started selling ones he didn’t want on eBay, and the ball just kept rolling, Cox said.
“The more that I did it, the more it was like I was headed in the right direction,” he said.
He realized the factory jobs weren’t for him anymore. He and a former coworker at Cummins Inc. tried to get a business going where they could work on cars, but it didn’t take off as planned.
“I finally told my wife, I said, ‘You know what? I’m going to do my own business,’” Cox said.
He looked into some potential locations for his store and wound up opening JC’s Odyssey in Suite 301 at Shops at Seymour. The first day of business was July 27.
“It’s just a matter of getting the word out that I’m here because I’m getting really good feedback when they come in: ‘It’s great,’ ‘It’s not like any other store,’ ‘We need a store like this,’ things like that,” Cox said.
The store specializes in sports cards, but there’s a variety of other items available for purchase, including jerseys, electronics and accessories, fitness products and autographed memorabilia.
“The cards, I had a pretty big set I put in here, and then I bought a collection, and it had a ton of those figures and a bunch of cards and sports memorabilia,” Cox said.
The electronics and accessories includes cellphone cases, charging cables, car chargers and headphones. One side of the display is for iPhones, and the other side is for Android phones.
With other offerings in the store, Cox said he relies on customers’ input. For example, people asked for Magic and Yu-Gi-Oh! cards, so he now sells those.
“I listen to everybody,” he said. “If you are a repeat customer, I’m going to give you a good deal. That’s the main thing I like. And I like the freedom of it.”
He also encourages people to like the store’s Facebook page because he plans to post pictures of items for sale and offer special promotions and contests.
Cox said he likes being a part of Shops at Seymour. The complex used to be an outlet mall but now mainly consists of locally run businesses. There are even a few churches that meet in suites at the center, and there is an event venue, a pain clinic, a martial arts studio, a family entertainment business, a laser tag business, antique shops, a community theater and a movie theater.
“I’ve told several people I’m going to do everything I can to help other businesses that want to start out here,” he said. “I want to see it build back up, and I want it to all be local people. I don’t want it to be corporate like it was before. I would love to see every one of them open. If it gets to that point, it’s going to be a very unique mall.”
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JC’s Odyssey is at 357 Tanger Blvd., Suite 301, at Shops at Seymour.
The store specializes in sports cards and memorabilia, jerseys, electronics and accessories, fitness products and autographed items.
Hours are noon to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, noon to 8 p.m. Friday, noon to 4:30 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.
Information: Call 812-530-7006 or visit facebook.com/johncox3931
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