How do you spell fun? S-T-E-V-E-N-S Sports Center
Joell Kipfer is the general manager of Stevens’ Sports Center in Midland.
Her husband, Travis, is the service manager and also leads sales. Joell, her brothers, Bill Stevens, Jr, and Mike own the business with their dad, Bill Stevens, Sr, and his wife, Debbie. Bill, Senior, founded the business.
Stevens’ Sports Center is located on Airport Road, visible from the US-10 highway, in Midland. They also own the original shop, Stevens’ Cycle Sales, on Huron Road, in Bay City. The two shops combined have 25 employees. Both stores sell Polaris, Honda, Suzuki, Can Am, Kawaski, and Yamaha products including side-by-sides, ATVs, motorcycles, scooters, generators, lawnmowers, snowblowers, and power equipment. The Bay City store also sells personal watercraft.
They service everything they sell including oil changes, heavy service, tires, and “anything that they need.”
Joell and Travis have been married for five years. They have two kids and two grandkids. She’s a graduate of John Glenn High School while Travis graduated from Southern Lakes Academy in Fenton. The couple lives in Midland.
How long have you owned your business? Joell: My dad started in March of ’67. (in Bay City, added the store in Midland in the mid-1990s).
What inspired your dad to start this business? Joell: His love of motorcycles.
What makes Midland a great place to own a business? Travis: It’s a nice community, clean, populated. Perfect location to service most of Michigan. Lots of lakes and trails that really cater to the machines that we sell.
What are some ways your business is active in the local community? Joell: For many years, out of Bay City, my dad has a done a charity golf event to help people in need. We loan out vehicles for staff and volunteers to haul supplies at event including the River Road, Pig Gig, Center for the Arts Art Fair, swap meet at the fairgrounds here. Travis: We donate different items to charities. We’ve donated to the Snowmobile Museum in Naubinway in the U.P., charity event for kids. Across the state, we like to help everyone who needs it.
What are some of your interests and hobbies? Joell: We own a side-by-side, riding through the woods. Take the grandkids. Fishing, camping. We own season tickets for the Loons.
What are some businesses you work with that help make your business a success? Travis: We work with Circle Auto a lot, Mickey’s Sleds. Our banking is with Huntington. We do financing with Dow Credit Union. Joell: We get office and store supplies with Staples, Costco, Gordon’s, try to keep our dollars local.
Final thoughts to share with the community? Travis: We’d like to thank the community and the people in it for supporting us. Without them, the lights wouldn’t be on. We’re just thankful we are able to get up every morning to do our part to help the community grow. Joell: We like think of ourselves as one big happy family. We have customers who are like family, our staff, too.
Our slogan, “How do we spell fun? S-T-E-V-E-N-S.”
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