(Body)Building a Stronger Community
You’ve got a friend in Gorilla Jack. Owners, brothers Bernard and Martin Pacak, sell supplements to build muscles. They also build a support system.
Bernard moves quickly from talking about the origins of the Gorilla Jack character – a Simpson’s style ape with Daffy Duck hair and an Incredible Hulk body – to the part of the business that brings greater rewards.
Gorilla Jack is a place where there’s strength in vulnerability.
“Men are told to be strong. Be brave. Handle it,” said Bernard. Meanwhile, he points to the high cost of toxic masculinity. Suicide is the second leading cause of death for young adults 20-29, with males accounting for 75% of suicides.
“People are looking for hope. They’re looking for answers. Men don’t have an outlet. A lot of what we do is being a friend, an ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on,” he said. Fitness remains a cornerstone. “Everyone knows what 16 weeks of chicken, broccoli and rice will get you. We’re here for guidance and accountability. We can be a motivator on the journey.”
He tells the story of one customer’s first visit to their store. “He came in on crutches and weighing 450 pounds.” On a recent visit, he rollerbladed to the Main Street store.
“We’re not just for bodybuilders. Everybody is an athlete. There’s plenty of people who can run further or lift more than me, or do hot yoga. We can all be active in different ways.”
And everyone can help. It’s something the brothers credit their dad, Mieczyslaw, for instilling in them from an early age. Mieczyslaw worked for 30 years at Motor Coach and catered at the Polish club for decades. Dad also happens to be the inspiration behind and the star of the Pacak’s social media for the brothers’ business venture, Baltic Brothers, producing craft spirits kits and botanical infusions.
“Dad taught us if you get, you have to give.” Gorilla Jack supports more than 75 local events. ‘We are not a franchise | We are the local guys’ is on the sign on the storefront. “It’s important to us to support local, too.” In the 13 years since they’ve been in the business, they’ve seen six chain supplement stores nearby pop up and disappear. The brothers want to continue to grow the business and their locally designed and printed Gorilla Jack clothing line. They are also working to improve their online presence.
“We’re the loudest and funniest,” said Bernard, and that’s helped them stand out. But they also appreciate everyone who makes the decision to shop with them.
“You can go buy Combat Protein at Walmart and it makes no difference to Walmart. But if 15 people make the decision to come to us, that could be a quarter of the people we see in a day. It’s an honour to have anyone come in,” he said. “We want to be like Cheers, where everybody knows your name.”
All Photos by Claudine Gervais
