Jim Jezik, who runs the local antique store Random House, 12 W. State St., has been interested in antiques since age 16.
Jim Jezik often refers to antiquing as his own personal “treasure hunt.”
The now Athens resident bought his first antique — a $10 oval library table — at the age of 16 after he stumbled upon an auction while riding his bike in his hometown in northern Ohio.
“I stripped it and sold it in my mom’s yard sale for $45,” Jezik, now the owner of the antique store Random House, 12 W. State St., said.
Following his initial passion for antiques that began as a teenager, Jezik has been managing Random House since the 1980s. Students and travelers can often find anything from animal heads to African ceremonial masks for sale in the shop. The store is open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Jezik moved from Lancaster to Athens after his friend asked him to work in the shop.
“The first weekend I moved here I went to a big flea market and bought a bunch of stuff,” Jezik said.
Jezik helped around the shop and ran his own vintage clothing store in Athens called Classic Clothing, and later he expressed interest in buying Random House if his friend, the store’s owner, ever wanted to sell it. Jezik bought Random House three years after the vintage clothing store had opened.
“I was getting a little antsy to do something on my own,” Jezik said.
Jezik ran Random House by himself, finding eclectic pieces to purchase for the shop through newspaper ads and estate sales. He also bought items from customers who brought in their own pieces.
Within a few minutes of walking through the store, customers eyes can skim over collections of pocket knives, typewriters and a few musical instruments underneath detailed tables. Prices can range anywhere from $10 to $300 or $400.
Jezik once responded to an ad placed by a taxidermist selling animal heads. A few still sit on the walls of Random House, including a water buffalo and a ram, watching customers as they peruse the store. A caribou head that used to observe the antique shoppers now sits in an office in Ohio University's Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium.
One time the live radio show Mountain Stage performed at OU, its lead guitarist fell in love with a caribou head mounted on the wall of Random House.
The band members couldn’t take the caribou head with them because of all of the equipment in their van. So the caribou head sat with Cullen Beach, an assistant director at MemAud, who also used to run a record store with Jezik from 1995 to 2002, at the same time he was running Random House.
“He had a clothing store, we decided to (make) it into a record store,” Beach said, adding that he plans to hang the head off-stage. “It’s kind of a little secret we have.”
OU students who stumble across the antique shop often buy special pieces of furniture for their apartments, Jezik said. He recalled an oak desk that he sold and bought back five times to different students.
Jezik was able to offer more space for distinctive pieces like the animal heads and other creative finds when he expanded Random House in 2006, absorbing the building next door by knocking down a wall and ripping up some old carpet.
A few years later, Donna Morgan, began to work at the store, which Jezik said changed things for the better.
“The store had a reputation before she came along for being really unorganized. They said it was like a treasure hunt,” Jezik said. “She’s really the reason why we’re successful these days.”
Morgan was in the shop one day looking at the antiques when she joked with Jezik that he needed someone to clean the shop. To her surprise, Jezik called her later that day and offered her a job.
“I was more just messing with him,” Morgan said. “Jim always had really nice things in here, but it was very, very crowded.”
When business is slow, Morgan researches items online to keep the shop’s prices competitive and rearranges the store to fulfill her need to decorate, she said.
“Having it organized and everything is visible, I think that makes a difference,” Morgan said.
Morgan said part of the reason she loves her job at Random House is that it feeds her love of antiques. While she cleans and helps price items for sale, she can also admire special items.
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One of Jezik’s favorite parts of running the store is seeing customers get excited about certain pieces. Whether it’s a $10 coaster, a vintage camera for the photography major or some jewelry, students faces always light up when they find their own “treasure,” Jezik said.
“A lot of dealers probably wouldn't mess with some of the stuff that I do,” Jezik said. “If the thing has certain integrity, and it’s functional or decorative, and the price is right, I will probably buy it.”
@Fair3Julia
