For years, Jon Churchill worked as an electrical engineer at the Kohler Company in its generator division. Microprocessors, digital design, software design — he did it all.
There is a wistful tone in his voice when he talks about the days of old, using FORTRAN and punch cards while a student at UW‑Milwaukee, and later eight‑inch floppy disks, and then assembly language programming, which he adored.
Yes, good times. Until Kohler’s rounds of downsizing in 2001‑03 left him out of a job.
What to do? Naturally, open a soccer retail shop in Sheboygan. And why not? He and his late wife, Libi, didn’t want to leave the city because their three children were doing well academically and athletically in school, where Churchill served as their soccer coach. But there was something else.
“It’s detail‑oriented being an engineer,” says Churchill, owner of Not Just Soccer at 1226 N. 8th St., Ste. 102 in downtown Sheboygan. “You have that wired in.”
Couple that bent for business and technical analysis with retail experience running a mom‑and‑pop liquor store when in college, he and Libi decided to give it a go.
More than two decades later, that has proven to be a good decision. Take a walk through Not Just Soccer and you’ll see plenty, and, well, not just soccer.
Sure, there are balls and shoes of every type, but also scarves of the globe’s top teams, the right tie to this summer’s World Cup, along with choice European clubs. You’ll find warm‑up jackets from soccer stalwarts Diadora and Kelme, goalie jerseys and socks. But upon entrance to the store, you’ll also find spirit wear from all the region’s high schools.
But those early days were touch and go, Churchill muses.
“We spent a few months at whether it could be a reality,” he says. “We opened Oct. 1, 2003. It was a Wednesday. The least opportune time to open a soccer store would be October.
“We were kind of hoping we could get established, get a name out there and see. Because we had high school spirit wear, that was a huge plus. We were doing high school letter jackets, and my wife was doing the sewing. We were doing something no one else had, and no one else has.”
In other words, the Churchills found a niche. Their product availability and counsel were particularly important to parents whose kids were (and are) new to high school. Churchill says it’s often a matter of, “My kid plays for school X; what the heck color socks do I need?”
It also helps that Churchill is a rabid soccer fan. He watched the World Cup final July 19 between Spain and Argentina at home with his mother‑in‑law and not surprisingly had pointed commentary about that contest — especially the post‑game fisticuffs between the squads.
“It’s hard enough in any game when there are emotions,” he says. “We’re struggling with soccer in the U.S. anyway, and what does this do [for] the adoption?”
Running a small business, Churchill says you need to be focused on every detail to gain that edge, even if there isn’t a true competitor nearby. Most things you can learn, but there is something crucial that bears mentioning to anyone looking at that form of entrepreneurship.
“Make sure your partner has health insurance,” Churchill says. “Everything else is doable. Health insurance isn’t, at least in Wisconsin.”
