"The Jungle Jim Story" plays all day inside a small theater next to the European Village in the back of Jungle Jim's International Market, 5440 Dixie Highway, and recounts how Jim Bonaminio started out and when "the craziness" started — which was in 1988.
“This story tells you the history of Jungle and he’s such an interesting, dynamic individual and this just chronicles the whole start from fruit stand to destination it’s become,” said son Jimmy Bonaminio, who also works in creative services at Jungle Jim’s.
Exactly how many people have seen 8-minute “The Jungle Jim Story” is not truly known as people can freely come and go in the theater, but Bonaminio said “on the weekend it’s packed.”
Most longtime residents of Fairfield, and Butler County, know the story of Jungle Jim’s, which started in 1971 at High Street and Erie Avenue in Hamilton and popped up in Hamilton and Fairfield until Jim Bonaminio purchased land in 1975 on Dixie Highway near Holden Boulevard.
But Jimmy Bonaminio said there are plenty of people who don’t know how the story evolved, and the movie “reinforces the history but also exposes the history.”
The movie, which has been playing since the 1990s, is just one of many features that makes the grocery store unique, said Kert Radel, President and CEO of the Fairfield Chamber of Commerce.
“I think Jungle Jim is one of the best experts in terms of marketing and branding his products,” he said. “When it comes to marketing, he absolutely knows what he’s doing.”
In fact, Radel said, shopping at the store is “like going to an amusement park a little bit.”
“He knows how to market to the entire family, and that’s the key to it,” he said. “He is unparalleled on how he markets and brands his business.”
The movie theater is just one of many features in and out of the store. The most well-known include the monorail in front of the store, jungle-themed lagoon by the exit, Elvis-singing bear with the candy section and a fire truck by the hot sauces.
“People will come from many miles away,” Radel said. “They’ll come from other states because it’s an experience.”
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