By Maureen Werther
Rude Betty is a new business in downtown Glens Falls that sells toys, books and other gifts at 18 Exchange St.
It is the second store owned and operated by Jeff Strief, who is originally from Iowa City and relocated to Bolton Landing in 2002. His background is in live theater, film and television, where he acted and worked with stars like Kirsten Dunst and Shaun Cassidy. He also worked with the famous Blue Man Group in Chicago.
After leaving the entertainment industry, Strief visited Bolton Landing and immediately “fell in love with the place.” He said he has always wanted to live in a resort community surrounded by forest and water.
“It took a few years and in 2004, I figured out what business to open,” said Strief. He opened Happy Jacks in Bolton.
He calls Happy Jacks a shop with “a whole bunch of fun stuff that I couldn’t find in the area, mixed with great swimwear, surf apparel and sandals.” The store was a hit and it grew rapidly, expanding into two shops, one for adults and the other for kids. In 2009, the store moved into its current location at 4963 Lake Shore Drive.
Strief said he had been thinking about opening another location and, when one of his loyal Happy Jacks customers told him that he had a vacant retail location opening in Glens Falls, Strief decided to open Rude Betty on Exchange Street.
“We didn’t want it to be an exact copy of Happy Jacks,” said Strief. He envisioned the second store as Happy Jack’s sister store
“We have such great stocking stuffers; funny quirky stuff that’s fun to give as gifts,” he said.
He said Rude Betty’s has gotten a lot of support from local customers, and he and his staff have gotten great feedback from the community and from other businesses.
He also said that his years of experience building theatrical sets was a great help in building the shelving and displays for the shop.
Rude Betty’s is currently open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, but will be extending the hours beginning Memorial Day, when the store will be open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday through Tuesday and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.
For more information about Rude Betty’s and Happy Jacks, visit www.rudebetty.com and www.happyjackshops.com.