In 1947, following the turmoil of WWII, Al and Jewell Bidstrup moved back to Idaho Falls and started an electrical contracting company called Jewel Electric.

Starting with practically nothing, the "company truck" was really a 1936 Chevrolet sedan pulling a trailer around to haul material to the jobsites. The "shop" was a small shed behind where they were building a house. Because of the warped economy created by the war and the building boom caused by the returning GI's, many building supplies were in short supply. As a consequence, the building materials ordered for the Bidstrup's house often went to wire a customers building, and the young family had to do without.

The business continued to grow and by 1951 they were in a new cinder block building of about 1,000 sq. ft. Soon the company became unionized and was wiring large buildings all over the region. By 1954 space was so tight that a 1,600 sq.ft. addition was built and a retail counter was established. Soon after, a motor shop was established, and soon after that, Jewel Electric started repairing small appliances and pole line transformers for utilities.

About 1962, after a few years of labor problems caused in part by the diversified nature of the business, Jewel Electric spun off a company run by Al to do the large construction, which was done with union labor, and Al's oldest son Lyn took over the helm of Jewel Electric, which did all the smaller work.

The Low cost of electricity in the region spurred a large demand for electric heat and so the company was soon drawn into the heating business. As more people installed electric heat, the demand for air conditioning with it drew the business into air conditioning. As the business expanded, it eventually spun off the motor shop and closed down the appliance repair business. With space at a premium, in 1970 a 2nd story of 1,600 sq. ft. was added. In 1975, Al and Jewell sold their interest in the business to their two oldest sons (Lyn and Chris), and Al who had previously closed down Bidstrup Inc., went into semi-retirement.

1976 was a momentous year for Southeastern Idaho as well as for Jewel Electric. On June 5th the newly built Teton Dam burst as it was being filled for the first time, sending a huge cascade of water downstream devastating several towns, killing some people, and causing about a half-billion dollars of damage to the region. The resulting construction that took place caused a boom in the area and so Jewel needed more space. In what turned out to be kind of his swan song, Al spent a lot of time in the flood damaged area, donating his time to the people to help put the wiring back together in their homes, churches and businesses. The next spring he passed away while on vacation in Death Valley California. Jewel lived in Idaho Falls for another 20 years and passed away in 1997.

By 1977, it became painfully apparent that the fragmented nature of the company's physical facilities was hamstringing its ability to grow and serve its customers. A 6000 sq. ft. former grocery store was purchased and in early 1978 the company moved to 310 Northgate Mile. This facility allowed the company to grow and diversify. In 1993 a 4500 sq. ft. warehouse/shop was built on the back part of the property. As the company diversified, one of the concerns that had been felt for many years was with electric in the name, many people did not know we did heating and air conditioning. A decision was made to change the name to Jewel Inc, in order to help people recognize we did more than just electric.

In 1998 Lyn and Chris sold the business to Lyn's son, Bob, who again changed the name to First Call Jewel Inc. Because of the demand from customers for a full service company, it started to do plumbing service and repairs.

In 2007 a new facility was built on Hollipark drive that better suited the needs of our growing company. Because of competition from big box national hardware stores, we were forced to close down our parts counter, and focus on our service and replacement businesses. After 61 years and 3 generations later, First Call Jewel Inc. is the premiere provider electrical, heating, air conditioning, duct cleaning, plumbing, and drain cleaning services in South East Idaho.