OXFORD — Jesse James Knights runs Jesse James Outlaw Pawn on Route 26 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. When he applied for a license for his store, he requested 7 a.m. to midnight. Once the casino opens, he plans to take advantage of his late hours.

“Casinos and pawn shops go hand in hand,” Knights said Wednesday. He said when people lose money gambling, they look for quick cash. That’s where he comes in.

Last month, Knights moved his business to Oxford to take advantage of the planned casino. He said he’s heard other pawn shops are making similar plans, but won’t say which ones.

Knights is one of two stores moving to the Route 26 corridor in hopes that the casino will bring traffic to their doors.

Oxford Town Manager Michael Chammings said several businesses have moved to town or started up in recent months. “Any time we can pick up any net jobs we’re happy,” Chammings said.

On the southern corner of Route 26 and Fore Street, Louisa Westleigh recently opened The Secret Garden, a gift shop formerly located in the Crane Block in downtown Norway.

Westleigh said she hated to leave Norway and still keeps close ties to downtown businesses, but she was outgrowing the space. The flower cooler wasn’t wheelchair accessible and the layout made it difficult for the crafters who sell their work there.

When Westleigh learned a friend planned on building on the corner of Route 26 and Fore Street, she jumped at the chance. She was able to customize the layout of the 2,400-square-foot second floor to include a walk-in flower cooler and a room for the flower arranging and jewelry design classes she runs.

“Hopefully, the casino will help,” Westleigh said, but business has been going well so far. She hopes to eventually buy the building and run her store full time. These days, she waitresses at Buffalo Wild Wings in Auburn after the store closes.

She said she still directs customers to downtown Norway to her former neighbors’ stores, and hopes casino patrons check out Norway when they’re in the area.

Knights is confident the casino will be good for his business. His store, located across from the Number Six Road, is just a few miles from the casino. He ran the business in Windham for six months and in early November opened a second store in Oxford. He said business has been so good that he closed the Windham store and moved to Otisfield.

Knights describes himself as a “horse trader” who loves bartering and haggling. A former sign painter, Knights said he spent years on the other side of pawn shop counters. “I was tired of losing my stuff to pawn shops,” he said.

He said he’s already doing better in Oxford than he ever did in Windham. He has dozens of NASCAR collectibles brought in by local residents, as well as tools, DVDs and electronics. On Tuesday, he was demonstrating to a couple that a Skil reciprocating saw worked. “The biggest sellers are DVDs and video games,” he said.

Knights said a lot of people need money. One man brought a freezer filled with frozen meat, asking if he could sell it. He said business is steady, but he expects it to explode once the casino opens.

“When you lose all your money and you’ve got to go home and tell your wife, if you’re driving by the pawn shop, you might think, ‘How much can I get for this watch?’”

He said he’s heard rumors of other pawn shops planning moves to Oxford, but won’t say which or even what towns they’re coming from. “If I tell you where, you’ll know who I mean.”

treaves@sunjournal.com

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