Taking charge:
New Lenox man opens Batteries Plus store in Tinley Park
By Mike Nolan, staff writer
Thursday, August 24, 2006

The average household has 18 battery-operated devices.

It's a statistic that gives Mark Jensen a charge.

When you run out of juice, the 41-year-old New Lenox resident hopes you'll think of his new store, Batteries Plus - which he touts as a one-stop shop for battery needs.

From batteries for something as small as a cell phone or iPod, to a car or truck battery, Jensen will sell you one and install it. He also can drop a new battery in your vehicle in the parking lot outside the store, 16205 S. Harlem Ave. in Tinley Park.

Based in a Milwaukee suburb, Batteries Plus has 264 stores operated by franchisees such as Jensen, who previously co-owned a graphics company. Before Jensen's store opened about a week ago, the only other Southland location for Batteries Plus was in Oak Lawn.

Earlier this year, he bought the franchise rights to an area that takes in a large swath of the south and southwest suburbs. Plans call for additional stores in Calumet City, Joliet and New Lenox.

The Oak Lawn store is outside of the territory Jensen acquired development rights to.

As consumer electronics have plunged in cost, they've become more and more disposable, Jensen said.

"People tend to throw the whole device out and replace it, even though it may just be the battery that needs replacing," Jensen said.

Batteries Plus stores carry the company's own battery brands - Nuon (for most consumer electronics), Werker (cars, trucks and cordless power tools) and Xtreme (motorcycles, ATVs). Stores also stock brands such as Duracell and Energizer.

There are racks of garden variety AAs and D batteries, along with more exotic and hard-to-find rechargeable batteries.

"Getting a new battery for a device can be a hassle," Jensen said. "You can spend nearly a day driving around looking for one."

While the batteries in many modern electronic devices are rechargeable, those batteries still have a finite life. Over time, the batteries no longer will hold a charge and need to be replaced.

Some owners of Apple's wildly popular iPod are discovering that getting a new battery for their music player is expensive.

"iPods have been in the market long enough that the batteries are getting close to the end of their lifespan," Jensen said.

Apple, he said, charges $75 for a replacement, and iPod owners have to ship the players to the company. Jensen said he charges $30 for the battery, and between $20 and $30 for installation.

Batteries Plus also carries batteries for laptop computers, but Jensen said he hasn't seen a surge in business related to a recent recall of Dell-branded batteries containing cells manufactured by Sony. Dell issued the recall because of a problem with battery packs overheating, and in rare cases catching on fire.

The recall involves 4 million battery packs, and Jensen said it's possible some Dell computer owners might opt to buy new batteries, particularly if there is a long delay in getting new ones from Dell.

Along with selling batteries to consumers, Jensen's store does business with local companies and municipalities.

Jensen began selling to commercial clients, including school districts and local fire and police departments, three months before opening the Tinley Park store. Commercial products are shipped from a warehouse in New Lenox.

The Orland Fire Protection District buys batteries from Jensen for use in things such as two-way radios and flashlights. The police and fire departments in Frankfort turned to Battery Plus for new batteries to power portable defibrillators, he said.

The store stocks batteries for hand-held UPC scanners, and Jensen said he's selling those to the many warehouse-distribution centers that have cropped up along Interstate 80.

Batteries Plus also carries battery- and power-related items, such as flashlights and charging stations. The store also can custom-build battery packs.

"We have had people come in with items that have batteries that are no longer manufactured," Jensen said.

Jensen studied electrical and computer engineering at the University of Notre Dame, graduating in 1987, then worked for Boeing for five years.

He became familiar with Batteries Plus while he was part-owner of a company that produced in-store signs for Batteries Plus, as well as graphics for battery packaging. Jensen sold his interest in the business, OEC Graphics, to his partner.

"I thought there was a great need for a store like this," Jensen said. "There was an opportunity to fill a void in the marketplace."

For more information, call (708) 614-5055 or visit www.batteriesplus.com.