When celebrating a business anniversary, people tend to look back on how far they’ve come. But in BG Lock & Key Owner Nancy Jeffers’ case, she has to figure out her future as well.

After more than 20 years of owning the business, Jeffers is considering retiring from her business, which is located at 906 Napoleon Road.

Jeffers goes out on service calls to repair, install and replace locks. She sets up master key systems and rekeys for new homeowners. Jeffers also cuts keys, makes combination changes and sells safes. She typically likes to be independent, but when there’s a big task, she hires her family members to help.

Jeffers has been in locksmithing for more than 30 years. The business was formerly known as Crawford Lock & Key.

“I started out with (another) locksmith shop in town,” Jeffers said. “I’m mechanically inclined and like to work with my hands. I basically tell people that I was one of seven girls. And I was a daddy’s girl. So, I learned to do a lot of things that a guy would normally do. I worked on cars, I worked on the house … I’ve (done) construction, I worked electrical, I worked in restaurants, and I worked in factory; I was maintenance. So, I’ve had a potpourri of jobs.

“So then I came, and I (worked for Jerry Crawford) for the next seven years off and on. And then he decided to sell because he was getting into the sheriff’s department. And I purchased it. And I haven’t looked back,” she said. 

Early on, there were doubts about being a businesswoman.

“It was scary. Can I do it? Can I (sustain), my livelihood?” Jeffers said. “But by working with him (Crawford) for those seven years, I was already kind of established with the clientele. … I didn’t miss a beat.”

Now, Jeffers is torn, trying to decide about retirement.

“(It’s) really tough. I’m like, oh, my gosh, what am I gonna do? Now would be a good time, which I was hoping that would have all happened last year.”

When she tells her clients she may be retiring, they ask her to stay.

“I honestly do care about my customers. And so that makes the decision really, really hard. Because all these years in business, the contacts, the people that you meet, and get to know they become a big part,” Jeffers said. “But then again, I have to think about myself. I’ve been doing it a long time. So, I want to do other things.

“Whoever buys the business, if they run into those roadblocks, I’ll be available to help them out. I’m not going anywhere,” Jeffers said. “I just don’t want to be available all the time.”

While the decision to retire has yet to be decided, a lot has changed for businesses like Jeffers’ over the years, especially with the coronavirus pandemic.

She said business has slowed down, the quality of things has become cheaper, prices have increased and more advancements in technology have occurred.

Jeffers hasn’t backed down from the challenges.

“If you don’t learn something new every day, there’s something wrong with you. I see something different all the time, locks that I’ve never seen before. I’m not afraid to tackle something that I’ve never seen,” she said.