Husband and wife Kevin and Jana Landry and their friend Jay Lee are the co-owners of On the Run, a local shop specializing in shoes made specifically for runners. The store carries other items as well, from athletic clothes to water bottles to sunglasses and even CBD products.
Jana met Kevin at one of her first competitive races in 1985. Jana has since gone on to compete in eight Iron Man competitions and dozens of other triathlons and marathons, she said.
“It’s just me and the road and my thoughts. It’s just a peaceful time for me,” Jana said of the hobby. “It’s really been our whole life. It brought us together.”
Around 1990, Jana and Kevin married and became sports medicine chiropractors. Many of their clients were runners, a passion the Landrys shared. Eventually, the couple and Lee decided to pool their resources to open their own store to cater to runners’ needs, Jana said.
“We had been runners for years, and there wasn’t a running store in the area,” she said. “We wanted to do something for the local runners.”
At first, the Landrys and Lee ran the store, but they quickly hired a staff that now manages and runs the store for them. Jana works full time as an attorney; Kevin is still a chiropractor, and Lee works for Boeing.
“Maybe someday, when I retire, it would be nice to be part of the store,” Jana said.
On the Run has plenty of competition, from big-box retailers to online storefronts. However, the business has thrived because it employs a knowledgeable staff that gives expert advice about what shoes are right for different runners, Jana said.
Another part of On the Run’s success is the business’s dedication to the community. The store hosts and organizes a few community races, and On the Run is a local hot spot for social events where runners gather and meet local vendors and other small-business owners while networking with fellow running enthusiasts, Jana said.
“We help support running in the community in any way that we can,” she said.
On the Run has had loyal customers since day one, and Jana hopes to gather more moving forward.
“We hope to be open for many, many years to come because there’s always gonna be runners, and they’re always gonna need shoes,” Jana said.
