LEBANON, OH — Sometimes, the smallest acts of kindness can change a person's life. For Blake Alma, owner of CoinHub, that kindness came from an older gentleman at church who handed him a piece of paper money more than a decade ago.
Alma was just 9 years old when he sat beside Tom Estes during children's choir. Estes, whom Alma remembers as a kind man who handed out Jolly Ranchers to children, opened his Bible to reveal a 1957 silver certificate.
Curious, Alma asked about it. Estes explained that the certificate once represented silver that could be exchanged at a bank. Then he offered the young boy a gift.
"I want you to have this, but you have to promise to keep it until you're really old like me," Alma recalled Estes telling him.
Alma kept his promise. The certificate, worth approximately $3, is now framed in his new downtown Lebanon store.
Estes died a few years later, never knowing how his gift would influence the young boy's future.
"A small gesture of kindness can really change someone's life, and it did so for me," Alma said.
At age 19, Alma began making educational videos about coins and minting errors from his home in Sharonville.
"I just made videos about coins and coin errors with a $50 setup. I had no idea it would take off," he said.
His videos eventually attracted millions of views and followers. Alma learned to turn that audience into customers, introducing tens of thousands of people to coin collecting.
In 2022, he moved his growing business into a one-bedroom apartment in Lebanon and began selling coins through the livestream auction platform Whatnot, using his TikTok following to expand.
Today, CoinHub employs 11 people, including his brother, Luke, who serves as operating manager.
Alma has also written two books, one covering approximately 500 coin errors collectors might find in everyday change and another explaining how to sell and market collectibles.
Alma has also written two books, Although the business began in Sharonville, Alma said Lebanon was where it truly grew. He originally chose the community because it was between friends and acquaintances in Cincinnati and Dayton. But something else convinced him to stay.
"What really sold me was just the, if you will, the Hallmarkiness of the town, how quaint and peaceful it is," he said. "I've never left, and I don't want to."
His newest venture, CoinHub and Lebanon Coin & Jewelry, opened Oct. 31 at 110 S. Broadway St.
The store buys, sells and trades coins and collectibles and features what Alma describes as Ohio's largest Ohio-themed coin collection.
Alma shared that he poses Ohio's largest Ohio-themed coin collection.The expansion was not without challenges. Alma originally hoped to open in June, but navigating building permits, engineering and architectural requirements delayed the project for several months.
CoinHub is also preparing to expand sales through Walmart's online marketplace.
For Alma, the business remains rooted in the curiosity sparked by a silver certificate many years ago.
"It's a note that's worth about $3," he said, "but it was a valuable note to me."
Store hours: Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Closed Sunday and Monday.
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