GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – The gift shop at Green Bay Austin Straubel International Airport has been around for 50 years, and it’s anything but your usual corner store full of snacks and tropical postcards.
The star Packers quarterback was still named Starr when Jack and Donna Hill started slinging merchandise to travelers in Green Bay. Some things have changed since then.
“We’ve seen TSA come about. Prior to TSA, we used to sell individual bottles of wine and beer and they could just carry it onboard,” Jack said.
Other things haven’t changed too much.
“I don’t consider it a job when it’s fun,” he added.
But that shop is anything but your typical, cookie-cutter airport gift shop. It’s almost more reminiscent of the fan section of a sporting goods store.
And they have everything.
Autographed Green Bay Packers helmets on display at the gift shop at Green Bay Austin Straubel International Airport. (IMAGE/WTAQ News)
“Autographed stuff. I go all the way back to Lombardi, Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, Herb Adderly to Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers…I can’t count the number of cheeseheads we’ve sold over the years. We’ve shipped cheeseheads all over the world,” Jack said. “Whether it’s a Wisconsin t-shirt, a Packers t-shirt, or the Bucks – I think Wisconsin as a state is very fortunate sports-wise.”
But sometimes a Bears or Vikings fan might stumble into the store. They might be keen on grabbing a souvenir that won’t get them beat up when they make it home. In fact, some offerings could get them a nice, solid high-five.
“There was a need, and Wisconsin is cheese. We carry strictly stuff that’s made in Wisconsin,” Jack explained. “We carry a variety of cheeses that are not available anywhere else in the state. In addition to fresh cheese curds, we have cheddars that are up to 15 years old.”
Fifteen years ago, the Hills added an extra spot in the airport to their lease to open up a separate cheese shop – which offers cheeses and meats from across the state.
Five decades of dealing unique items, particularly at an airport, doesn’t come without meeting at least a few interesting people either.
“Many of the entertainers that have come through here and obviously the players that have come through,” Jack told WTAQ News. “Terry Bradshaw was probably important to [Donna]. She had no idea who he was until he said to her – ‘I’m a football sex symbol!'”
Donna also sold a golf club to comedian Bob Hope when he made a stop in town. But it’s not all about the rich and famous people for Jack and Donna. Every person who steps into the shop is just as important as the last.
“We’ve had the fortune of all those people coming through, in addition to your average Green Bay individual,” Jack said. “A lot of people just coming in or flying out. Or because we’ve been around so long and some of the products we have, nobody else has, a lot of locals come out here and shop also.”
Locals are more common customers than one might expect, Jack says, because the shop is located before the TSA security checkpoint.
Even with some struggles and fewer frequent flyers during the pandemic, Jack still expressed hope that they’ll still be around for years to come.
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