Hometown History  

From L to R: Connor, Alison, Jamie, Megan, Tristan, Allivea, Maddie, & Gavin

"Life is all about relationships. In this business, it's the relationships you have with your customers and the relationships you have with the companies you work with. If you manage those relationships well, you're going to be successful. If you can't, it's going to be a disaster." - Jamie Travis 

In 1999, Jamie Travis was struggling financially to support a growing family. When a door opened for him to find a place with Hometown Agents in Greenfield, he couldn't turn it down. With the position starting with no pay, just a draw against future commissions, Jamie was motivated to sell. Jamie remembers going door-to-door to get customers in the door. Eventually, the business took off and he was able to grow into renting his own office space and work comfortably off commissions. A few years later, Jamie's father, Bruce, approached him with the idea of getting involved in crop insurance and adding it to the agency. Bruce, Jamie, and his brother Adam all split the business and have a shared passion for crop insurance. 

In 2002, the owners of the Greenfield agency decided they were ready to retire and sell the company to a bank in Fontenelle.  With 9 other agents, the bank was looking for someone to manage them, so they asked Jamie. At 25 years old, Jamie found himself managing 9 other agencies throughout Southwest Iowa. 

In 2007, Jamie got an offer he couldn't turn down. The bank was looking to sell and Jamie purchased the growing agency. Since becoming the manager of Hometown Insurance, Jamie has doubled the number of locations and has about 30 agents working for him. 

He doesn't stop there. Along with the insurance agency and crop insurance, Jamie finds a little more time to squeeze in other business. He finds himself involved in:

• Travis Truck & Auto ran by his uncle, Dave Travis.
• Travis Hay and Straw sales run by his two sons, Tristan and Connor.
• Travis Quarter Horses - a quarter horse breeding business - owned and operated by himself, his father (Bruce) and his brother (Clint).
• A calf sales business run by Jamie and his sons.
• Manages 100 acres of row crop with his sons .
• Recently opened up a horse tack store - The Rocking T Western Store - with his daughter-in-law, Allivea.

Although he may seem like he never slows down for fun, Jamie and his wife, Megan, make it a point to go on 3 vacations a year. About 10 years ago, the family discovered Cowboy Mounted Shooting and have enjoyed being involved in that ever since. 
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In the past few years, Jamie's family has grown exponentially. All three of his children will marry the loves of their lives in 2022 and 2023, and it can only go up from there. With the family growing, the family business is also growing. In 2020, Jamie's daughter, Maddie, became a full-time insurance agent , and in 2022, Jamie's daughter-in-law, Allivea, became a full-time real estate agent. One of Jamie's favorite things is seeing his family thrive, and that's exactly what they're doing. His son, Tristan, runs a successful cattle operation and farm supply business - Travis Ag Supply. Connor, Jamie's youngest son, is an up-and-coming salesman at the local John Deere implement. Jamie's daughter-in-law, Alison, owns & operates a successful boutique - The Paisley Rose Boutique. And his son-in-law, Gavin, has plans to start his own custom anhydrous business, while climbing the ladder at Nutrien Ag Solutions.

We are excited in looking at the future of the Travis family and Hometown Insurance. Running many businesses with family is not easy, but at the end of the day, there's no place that Jamie would rather be than in Creston, Iowa, working with the people he loves in the community he loves.
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