Piloting a New Career

Jim Kreinbrink has never had a desk job in corporate America. After graduating from the Air Force Academy, he was in active service for nearly 12 years. He grew up in Ohio and was later stationed in the state, but he completed nine tours of duty flying AC-130s in Afghanistan over an eight-year span. [caption id="attachment_8518" align="alignright" width="220" caption="Jim Kreinbrink"][/caption] When he finished his service in 2010, he began toying with the idea of business ownership. “The franchise search was challenging,” he said. “I was trying to do it on my own and looking at things I probably would have enjoyed and liked, but FranNet really helped me out by giving me ideas on things I didn’t even know existed.” Kreinbrink’s franchise consultant, Barney Greenbaum, assisted and advised him by showing him opportunities he wouldn’t have considered — including CPR, the Cell Phone Repair store, he eventually opened. “I saw the fit with his background,” said Greenbaum. The Air Force prepared Kreinbrink with many transferrable skills to make him successful, including organization, discipline and an impressive good-old-fashioned work ethic, according to Kreinbrink. He adds that his background as a fighter pilot also allows him to deal with the complexity of being able to handle chaotic situations and juggle multiple tasks. “I like that there’s a lot of freedom of not working for someone else,” Kreinbrink said. “Working for myself has offered me the ability to control what’s going on and be the one responsible for how things are going.” But Kreinbrink sees a deeper value to owning a business in Dayton. He has seen how he has been able to make a difference in many local people’s lives who thought they were going to have to buy a new phone, but instead discovered that CPR could save all their data and their device. He filled a void in the marketplace, so the community has been able to embrace the specialty business with open arms, and he is happy to serve them. Kreinbrink has seen such success with his business that he is looking into opening a second store next year after he feels that his current location is running optimally. Plus, as a veteran, he is able to take advantage of a discount on the initial build out of the stores with CPR, helping him get his feet off the ground.