You could say Josh Stevenson was born to fish. Better yet, you might even say it was a natural calling. “I just love the excitement of catching a fish and the pursuit of it,” says Stevenson, owner of Blue Ribbon Bait & Tackle shops in Oakdale and now in White Bear Lake. “I love being a guide and helping kids catch a fish. It’s such a rewarding profession and therapeutic on so many levels.”
No matter how you slice it, the reasons for Stevenson’s success lie with his mother, wife and some old-fashioned fishing wisdom. “When I was 4 or 5 years old, my mother would take me to Tanner’s Lake in Oakdale and we used to go swimming, and that’s when I started seeing sunfish and bass,” Stevenson says. “My mom got me started in fishing; she said my obsession with fish was a mystery.”
Stevenson would often ride around with his “Uncle” Al Knutson, the father of his second cousin Tom Knutson, who also fished with them. “We would fish Bald Eagle Lake and Lake Elmo a lot,” Stevenson says. “Those guys taught me the fundamentals.”
There were many days that Stevenson recalls riding his bike down to the local bait shop in Oakdale and soaking up all the knowledge he could from the fishermen there. “There was a family-type atmosphere in there and I looked up to a lot of the workers and fishermen,” Stevenson says. “Some took me under their wing. They taught me things I wouldn’t be able to learn on my own.”
Stevenson started working at the shop when he was just 14 years old, and continued working there through college. Upon graduating, Stevenson was looking for a career; as fate would have it, the owner of Blue Ribbon Bait & Tackle was looking to sell at that exact time.
“The funny thing was I had just applied to grad school, and the owner contacted me wanting to sell Blue Ribbon,” Stevenson says. The two fishermen, one older and one young, sat down to discuss the terms, and in October 2004, Stevenson became the new owner.
Overseeing a successful store for 10 years, Stevenson was looking to expand. His wife, Laura, helped him search in and around Hudson, Wis., and Stillwater for locations to open up a new shop, but had very little luck until they heard from a friend about an open location (which had been Bearz Sport and Hansen’s Little Bear Bait and Tackle) in White Bear Lake.
“I worked out a lease with the landlord and came to terms with him,” Stevenson says. “He was more than forthcoming on letting me do what I wanted to do here.”
Some questioned whether Stevenson could run two shops, but Stevenson kept his faith that everything would work out. “I prayed a lot about it,” he says. “I wanted this shop to sell all the things that I do in Oakdale, and when I quieted my mind, things started to come together.”
Keeping his faith and belief in his dream helped the grand opening succeed on December 6, and the shop is going strong. “We are actually running neck and neck with our Oakdale shop,” Stevenson says. “I’m so excited about it, and all it took was a leap of faith.” The White Bear Lake location will feature much of what is sold at the Oakdale location, including bait, minnows, worms, propane, guide services, and all other fishing essentials.
For Stevenson, the dream is now a reality. His fishing philosophy is simple. “Share my passion, make people happy and let the kids enjoy it,” Stevenson says. “I’m going to let the community shape what I sell at this shop and always allow room for change.”
