Alaska Focus on Big Ray’s

Welcome to the very first “Alaska Focus” blog. In this ongoing series, we will be highlighting Alaska businesses, sharing their origin stories, discussing their core values and bringing you inside information about some of Alaska’s finest and most enduring brands. We’ll also be on the lookout for up-and-comers, new Alaska businesses with an energy and drive to innovate. We decided to start this blog because Alaskan businesses are the lifeblood of the Alaskan economy, and as Alaskans know, working together and supporting one another makes us stronger.

It’s appropriate that the first business we will spotlight is Big Ray’s. This brand has been a vital resource for outdoor families since before statehood. In 1947, WWII veterans Glenn Miller and Howard Cruver founded the company as the Army Navy Store, focusing on outfitting Alaskans with military surplus and cold-weather gear. They opened locations in Anchorage and Fairbanks, and the business quickly found success. Over time, the store expanded its offerings to include a wide range of items families and outdoorsmen needed to thrive in Alaska’s extreme climate.

Ownership passed to other family members over the years, and in 1988, the second generation—Mike Miller and Mark Cruver—took control, along with a longtime employee and friend, Monty Rostad. The business continued to grow with Alaska’s booming economy and the company began to innovate their own products.

Between 2007 and 2010, Big Ray’s opened additional locations in Anchorage and Fairbanks and purchased Mack’s Sport Shop in Kodiak. At that time, the company operated under three different names: Army Navy Store, Big Ray’s, and Mack’s Sport Shop. To unify the brand, all stores adopted the Big Ray’s name in 2015. In 2019, ownership passed to Jessica Rostad and Jesse Glamann. I recently had the pleasure of speaking with both Jessica and Jesse to learn more about Big Ray’s and their vision for the business.

Big Ray’s Rooted in Alaska

Fish Alaska: Tell us about yourself and how you got into the business.

Big Ray’s (Jessica): I was born and raised in Fairbanks. My dad was one of the previous owners of Big Ray’s, and I literally grew up in the store, watching him and his two business partners grow the business into what it is today. Growing up in Fairbanks meant learning to embrace the cold and the long, dark winters, which gave me a real appreciation for quality gear and practical clothing. After graduating from college, I went to work for Gerber knives, starting out in customer service and then eventually working my way up to new product development. Those experiences, plus my love of Alaska, made it clear I wanted to come back home and be part of the family business.

My dad’s influence went beyond just running the store. He was always listening to families and figuring out what gear they needed to stay safe and warm. In Fairbanks, kids go outside for recess in temperatures as low as −20°F, and he saw firsthand that quality cold-weather gear for children was scarce. This was the impetus for the creation of our Activ8 kid’s clothing line, which is the warmest kids winter gear on the market. Listening to the people around us still shapes what we do, whether it’s designing a kids’ line like Activ8 with reflective safety features or creating adult gear like the Kavik line for the harshest winter conditions.

Big Ray’s (Jesse): My parents brought me to Kodiak when I was two, then moved to Sitka, spent about six years there. I caught my first fish and shot my first blacktail deer in Sitka. Then our family moved back to Kodiak from Sitka, and I have been here ever since. In 1997, I got a job at Mack’s Sport Shop. I worked in the warehouse and had custodial duties. Ever since I was about 18 or 19, I had a dream of owning my own fly shop, and providing relevant, useful products that I believed in. Tom Merriman, the past owner of Mack’s, recognized my passion for fly fishing, and I progressed to becoming the fishing tackle manager for the store. In 2008, when Monty, Mike and Mark purchased Mack’s, they offered me the job as store manager. I conveyed to them that if at some point an ownership position became possible, I would be interested. Over the next decade my job evolved into overseeing all the stores, with a large role in buying products. And in 2019, I had the chance to become an owner, with Jessica Rostad.

Designing Gear for Alaska

Fish Alaska: Big Ray’s continues to innovate their own products. Your Arolik line of waders, and Uganik and Ayakulik family of fly rods have been very successful. Tell us about how you developed them.

Big Ray’s (Jessica): We wanted to create a high-quality wader that we could stand behind — something that delivered great performance without the high-end price tag. Jesse and I spent years finding the right manufacturer and designing the waders ourselves, then put them through every condition we could think of to make sure they would hold up in Alaska waters in all seasons. We refined the design over several years, making adjustments based on real-world use, and had a few trusted team members help us put them through their paces in the field. After all that work, we launched three different models of our Arolik waders, and they’ve been really successful. We named them after the Arolik River — it’s one of my favorite rivers to float each year with my dad, and it just felt like the perfect fit for these waders.

Big Ray’s (Jesse): I really enjoy the process of developing new fly rods. My philosophy is to design rods around a region and the surrounding fisheries, and feel that a 5-weight through 9-weight covers most of the applications in our mission-specific line of rods. First I look at what existing blanks are on the market and I go out and torture test them. That gives me the information needed to choose the right rod blanks.

We are looking to develop rods that will be durable, are performance based and come in at a reasonable price point. These are the considerations that our customers express, so that’s what we want to deliver. Over time, I’ve come to see that three major factors that influence our customers to purchase these rods are price point, that they are made specifically for Alaska, and that they carry the Big Ray’s brand. It makes us feel very appreciative knowing that customers trust our brand.

Big Ray’s Team: 78 Years of Alaska Expertise

Fish Alaska: With locations across Alaska, Big Ray’s staff needs to be knowledgeable about a wide range of environments. Tell us about the Big Ray’s team and your core values.

Big Ray’s (Jessica): There are about 110 people on the Big Ray’s team, and we all live and recreate right here in Alaska. A few of our team members have been with us for more than 35 years, and that kind of experience makes a real difference in how we connect with our customers. We are so proud and appreciative of our team.

Big Ray’s (Jesse): Jessica and I recently revisited our core values and mission statement and ended up essentially rewriting the same core values. It’s what has made us successful for 78 years. We put the customer experience and customer service as our top priority. We operate with honesty and integrity with customers and with each other. It’s all about team work and collaboration, and that synergy is what makes our business possible. At the end of the day, it’s the entire team at Big Ray’s that makes success possible, and we have a huge amount of respect for the team.

Big Ray’s Alaskan Outfitters sets an excellent example of a business that listens to and values its customers, strives for teamwork and collaboration from its employees, and innovates new products to better serve Alaskans and those recreating in the Great Land. It’s one thing to do this for a decade or two, but to do this for 78 years is truly impressive. Thanks for taking the time to learn more about Big Ray’s and we suggest that you visit one of their locations the next time you need some local input on what products might better help you enjoy Alaska’s great outdoors.

Marcus Weiner

About the Author Marcus Weiner

Marcus Weiner is the founder and Publisher of Fish Alaska and Hunt Alaska magazines. Marcus has decades of experience fishing and hunting all over Alaska. In addition to managing the editorial departments for both publications, Marcus is a regular feature writer for the magazines and content provider for the websites. Check out Marcus’s YouTube Series “The Jig Life” on the Fish Alaska YouTube Channel.

For Marcus Weiner’s full bio, read more.