Von Maur Department Store Now Open in Fargo

Manitobans travelling to North Dakota had to brave two lanes of traffic and no passing lanes on Highway 75 from Winnipeg to the border until twinning took place from 1985 to 1994. The U.S. in North Dakota completed twinning in 1977 from Pembina all the way to Fargo. The old border stations were easy to cross. Even in the 1970s they were tiny things. Families easily crossed with no IDs. Just a few basic questions. It was the return back to Canada and the low amount of duty free that was a concern. Only in the last decade or so has it risen to higher amounts.

Before Grand Forks and Fargo had malls built, Winnipeggers shopped in their department stores downtown. They also stayed in motels near the downtown. North Dakota was years behind Winnipeg when it came to malls. Fargo would be the first with a mall called West Acres in 1972. It would take two more years for 13th Avenue to be built in front of it. Looking west was wheat fields. Fargo itself was more than a mile a way.

While Winnipeggers continued to stay in Grand Forks and shop in the downtown there, it was not uncommon for families to make a quick day trip to West Acres once the mall was built in 1972.  The lack of hotels nearby and two years of road construction thereafter put those off who wanted to actually stay in Fargo to shop at the new mall. For our family, we stayed for years at the Townhouse in Grand Forks near the downtown because it had an indoor swimming pool. Others stayed in the Holiday Inn from the Holidome that was built in 1966. The Ramada went up in 1973 next door. The pools and event centers inside were more important to people from Winnipeg than staying in Fargo where hotels near West Acres were not popping up till at least 1974.

Although Winnipeg had malls like Polo Park and Grant Park Mall, people were still quite used to going downtown for shopping and restaurants. So shopping downtown Grand Forks was not considered unusual. Still, the construction of West Acres Mall was a gamechanger in border shopping for Canadians.

But as the above picture shows, it was in the middle on nowhere and motels took a bit longer to materialize. It was a good day trip from Grand Forks but not enough to attract those headed down for a two day weekend. And remember, the Canadian part of the journey was on a two lane highway and the Interstate was only finished off in 1977. It could be a harrowing journey with a semi trailer behind you.

The trip to West Acres though was a different experience than what Canadians had experienced in North Dakota though and many curious travellers went to shop. What they found was local Fargo department store Delendrecies, Minnesota-based retailer Dayton's and national retailer Sears. It was the smaller stores and their variety that attracted Winnipeggers as well such Hickory Farms and Musicland. By 1979, in an expansion, West Acres added J.C. Penny. 

Many changes in retail over the decades meant Delendrecies eventually becoming Herbergers in 1998. Dayton's became Marshall Fields in 2001 and Macy's in 2006. In recent years Herberger's and Sears have closed leaving malls all over the U.S. scrambling. It was only in 2000-01 that West Acres put in a food court. In one of the empty spaces left from department store closing, the mall has created The District which features restaurants inside and outside the mall. Crave, a sushi restaurant from Minnesota was the first tenant.

Best Best eventually moved into the mall in 2017 in 50,000 square feet of Sear which shuttered in 2017 after 45 years in the mall. Best Best had been next door since 1994 in a 45,000 square foot location. West Acres has shown considerable resiliency when compared to Columbia Mall in Grand Forks. However, when Herberger's closed, the question of what to do with the space was a big one. A few retailers looked at the space and nothing resulted. That is until a mid-west department store that somehow does well when national retailers are dropping.

Von Maur is a fourth generation family run department store founded in 1872 out in Davenport, Iowa. It has slowly grown to 39 stores across the U.S. The 39th store of 90,000 square feet will be in Fargo, North Dakota. It is Von Maur's first store in the state. Perhaps as a family store that doesn't have to fight takeovers of their shares, they have been able to make decisions on their business that has allowed them to survive and expand over the years. 

So what is Von Maur? It is a department store catering to upscale fashion for men and women. They carry a number of fashion lines and have not tried to do so many general merchandise things like Sears or other department stores have. In other words, they have stayed focused on what they are good at. Perhaps the one department store comparable in Canada is Simon's. That is another example of slow, steady and focused while staying privately owned.

Von Maur's also runs a newer, larger mall store group called Dry Goods USA which has over 80 stores across the U.S. including West Acres. All in all Von Maur's and West Acres are a good match. The mall owners there never gave up on finding tenants. And Von Maur has looked for placed where their unique offerings might work. Unlike Columbia Mall which is largely empty, West Acres is set to remain relevant into the future.

The only thing that might hurt the retail success of West Acres is the tariffs. If higher prices lead to a recession and prices spiking from products that have tariffs, there could be problems. How much does Von Maur have from China on the shelf? How many farmer face tariffs selling into China. As far as Canadian tourists go, the numbers are dropping each month. Fargo is no longer part of a lot of people's travel plans. Canada might be in recession already and people will pull back on spending. And no, Canada will not beg to become the 51st state nor welcome an invasion. It just means we will seek other markets until things change in the U.S.

Some businesses won't notice the drop but they will notice the price changes. The tariffs are still fresh and they will be hard to ignore. At the moment, until the pain reaches into every aspect of the economy, most people will ignore it. The question will be what will be the response?

Fargo is a fine city and West Acres a fine mall. They seem to be doing everything they can to continue prosperity and hospitality. Attracting Von Maur is an indication they are doing everything right. At some point, I hope Canadians will be able to enjoy it in the future.

Poilievre vs Carney and Threat of Western Separation

What a difference a few months and an external factor like Donald Trump can have on electoral fortunes. Pierre Poilievre seemed to be sailing into one of the most massive majorities in Canadian history for the Conservatives. Justin Trudeau was determined to go into the next election until the opposition said they were going to pull the plug at the earliest opportunity. This led to a flurry of Liberals saying they were not going to run again next election. With cabinet holes to fill, he looked to move the Finance minister Chrystia Freeland to some other position to bring in, allegedly, Mark Carney into Finance. 

Freeland's resignation was the moment that Trudeau found there was just not enough support in the caucus to carry on. And Mark Carney, who opted not to jump into a cabinet with a lameduck PM. He just had to wait till a leadership convention was called. A prorogued Parliament and a leadership convention was a re-set from how 2025 began. As interim PM till the leadership was decided, Justin Trudeau probably had the two best best months an outgoing leader could have. Carney became the PM and had streamlined cabinet sworn in. However, support for Liberals had been steadily rising every time Trump imposed or threatened tariffs. By the time Carney became PM the Liberals had pulled numbers not seen in years.

Oddly enough, even though the Conservatives said they were going to bring the government down, they haven't seemed unprepared this far. They have not been able to adjust to the constant changing campaign that Trump's proclamations bring. Carney has not been perfect thus far. Some of his MPs have gotten in trouble. Some he has removed including his own seat and some he stubbornly keeps in place. One recent MP stepped down after he defended him. It is early in campaign and not uncommon for leaders to have a few candidates who don't work out. It remains to be seen whether these incidents hurt Carney. Or Poilievre. Generally, most people don't pay attention to these incidents.

Preston Manning suggests that anything less that a Poilievre majority win is a vote for Alberta separation. This is the same type of blackmail that Quebec has used over the years. Sad that it comes from Manning who has generally been considered to be not be as extreme. It could be that speaking to the volatile male base of the party makes him presume such an outcome. The enormous gender gap in what polls are saying could make for some surprises. Some men are just not opposed to Liberals. They are angrily opposed. However, if that is the case then it can be said women are even more resolutely opposed to Conservatives. 

This is something to keep in mind when voting on separation takes place. What do women think about this? Truly. A landlocked Conservative province separating? Most polls suggest that only a small minority want a 51st state in Alberta. That same percentage is in Quebec in terms of 51st state. The most recent polling on separation from Canada in Alberta stands at about 20. Still a minority view. Manning's 

If Poilievre is having a hard time figuring an angle with Carney, it is the same problem with all the opposition leaders including Blanchet from the BQ. The more Trump fills the airwaves, the more a unity movement grows. For the moment it is in support of Carney since he is the prime minister. And as such, Carney's response generally has the backing of all the premiers. It is enviable position to be in during the election. Usually the caretaker role is less pronounced. However, it can be said that the authority to respond to an emergency overrides this. Looking like a prime minister is what many Canadians are looking for. 

The premier of Alberta flirts with separation but also calls it nonsense. She knows the polls show it to be a possible loser for her. Danielle Smith already has enough problems in the province as she breaks the crockery. And yet Poilievre does little to distance himself. The person he does need help from his Doug Ford from Ontario and yet never seems to ask. Ford has found it easier to deal with Trudeau and Carney.

At this point in the election, it is clear that neither the premier of Alberta or Poilievre are interested in talking about separation of Alberta or Quebec. Even flirting with it is likely to do harm in Ontario. And that is where he need seats. According to polls, the heavily Conservative Alberta has a loathing for any Trudeau Liberals going back 60 years. However, when they've elected two Conservative majorities, they have felt pretty miserable about that too. 

The polls could be the most off we have ever seen in Canadian history given the crowds turning up for Poilievre. However, Winnipeggers know that just because we loved and turned up in numbers for Phantom of the Paradise, it didn't mean it was a blockbuster. 

It is possible that Carney's French might hold him back or that he stumbles badly in upcoming debates but the desire for stability is something the electorate craves. Poilievre has said he will disturb that but he has said everything is broken. That message is tone deaf when the public fears the country will be carved up by external enemies. Many take a dim view that Conservatives may in fact desire that outcome. For this reason, the polls have been reflecting a new dynamic not seen in Canada ever.

Three weeks are left in the campaign and the only thing we can say is that it is volatile out there.