January 9, 2025 • 24 mins
The Nordic Shop in Rochester, Minnesota, has thrived for 50 years. Join us for an engaging conversation with Walter and Louise Hanson, the duo behind the Nordic Shop’s success. Their journey began with a simple passion for Scandinavian design and blossomed into a community treasure. Discover how the retail landscape has evolved and how the Nordic Shop has stood the test of time.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Growing Destinations podcast is brought
to you by Experience Rochester.
Learn more about Minnesota'sthird largest city, which is
home to Mayo Clinic and featureswonderful recreational and
entertainment opportunities, byvisiting
experiencerochestermncom.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
We wanted to have a place that we thought would have
a kind of a Scandinavian baseof interest, because some of the
designs we were going to bringin were Scandinavian and we
thought that that base oflifestyle and appreciation for
the goods might be a goodstarting point.
Speaker 3 (00:37):
The store is an extension of Louise and Walter.
It's what Louise and Walterbelieve as their core values.
That whole Scandinavianlifestyle mantra has always been
deeply rooted in our lives.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
Welcome to the Growing Destinations podcast,
where we take a deep dive intodestination development and
focus on a wide range of topics,from tourism and entertainment
to economic development andentrepreneurism and much more.
I'm your host, Bill Von Bank.
50 years ago, Walter and LouiseHansen opened a Nordic shop in
(01:23):
Rochester, Minnesota, on whatthey thought would be a one-year
experiment.
Instead, that leap of faithturned into a lifelong journey
of bringing unique Scandinavianclothing and design to Rochester
.
Over the decades, their passionfor quality, design and
customer service has made theNordic Shop a cornerstone of the
community and even the largestindependent Dale of Norway
(01:47):
retailer in the world.
Get ready for an engagingconversation with Walter and
Louise Hansen as we celebratetheir incredible journey and the
lasting impact of the NordicShop.
Walter and Louise, welcome tothe Growing Destinations podcast
.
Thank you, it's great to haveyou here.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
I've been an admirer of your store.
Walter and Louise, welcome tothe.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
Growing Destinations podcast.
Well, thank you, it's great tohave you here.
I've been an admirer of yourstore, I've been a customer of
your store, so we've got 50years worth of stories to talk
about in this podcast.
But first can you take us backto the beginning of the Nordic
shop and why you chose Rochester?
Speaker 3 (02:22):
of the Nordic shop and why you chose Rochester.
It basically was that we eachhad a love for design, and
specifically Scandinavian design.
Louise spent a year of collegein Denmark studying design and
(02:43):
was fortunate enough to, duringthat time period, to actually
spend time in each of theworkshops that existed at that
time.
Places like Royal Copenhagen,george Jensen, a Michaelson
Jewelers, places like that,which would all go on to become
(03:03):
large names in the design world.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
And Louise.
Why did you choose Rochester?
Speaker 2 (03:09):
We wanted to have a place that we thought would have
a kind of a Scandinavian baseof interest, because some of the
designs we were going to bringin were Scandinavian and we
thought that that base oflifestyle and appreciation for
the goods might be a goodstarting point.
(03:31):
We also thought that havingsomething like Mayo Clinic and
some of the small industries intown nearby would bring
out-of-town guests that might beinterested in what we were
ready to sell and bring to thepublic.
Speaker 1 (03:50):
You chose Rochester, but it was for an experiment.
Tell me more about that.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
It was an experiment.
We thought that we should tryit and just see if it were
something that we were rightthat the people would respond to
our goods and services, ourknowledge of the products and we
wanted to hopefully grow it butwe were realists, as many
(04:20):
people were back in that day.
And we thought well, if it'snot working, one of us might
have to go and get otheremployment or we would just move
on to something else.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
What convinced you to stay Walter for 50 years?
Speaker 3 (04:38):
And I ask myself that question every day.
It soon became very apparentthat the concept that we had for
an early store, something thatwas not your average
Scandinavian shop, of which backin that era there was a
(04:58):
Scandinavian shop in every stripmall in the upper Midwest and
sometimes two, but they mostlycarried things which were more
of a tourist variety things thatsaid Ufta, things that said
Kiss the Cook, she's Norwegian,swedish, whatever, and things
like that, and we both had morethe design aspect in mind for
(05:24):
products.
Louise had finished schoolbefore I did, I was working on
my master's and so she opened upa small shop that sold sort of
Scandinavian things and a fewother different things and that
opened actually two years beforewe opened the Nordic shop, and
(05:47):
so we got a little bit of achance to try out things and we
actually were doing quite wellin a small market setting.
Was that before Rochester?
Yeah, that was actually in atown called St Charles, missouri
, and we were down in thehistoric Main Street area,
(06:10):
actually right in the middle ofit, right across from, at the
time, the restaurant on thestreet which was called the
Mother-in-Law House.
It gave us two years to kind ofget an idea about retail, and
Louise had this concept of moreof a design concept as opposed
(06:32):
to just objects, but curatedobjects from Scandinavia, and so
that's really how all of thatcame to be.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
And I think, because that was kind of a tourist area.
We were familiar with a touristarea but we also thought that
we needed a place to go wherethere was also a core customer a
customer from a region or acity that would come more
regularly than just theoccasional tourist.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
How has the Nordic shop evolved since its inception
50 years ago?
Speaker 3 (07:09):
Way back, when we started, we were much heavier
into kitchenwares and housewaresin general and gifts from
Scandinavia, and less intowearables, and both the market
changed and our vendors evolveddifferently.
(07:30):
So all of a sudden it seemedlike 10 years, 15 years ago,
maybe 20, we started noticingmore a move towards you know,
wearables, consumables, thingssuch as that, as opposed to hard
goods, and at that point,several of our vendors were
(08:00):
doing what everyone else wasback in the era going into
globalization and movingproduction from here to there to
wherever, and we wanted to haveproducts that were genuine and
authentic to Scandinavia.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
And Louise, I understand that, because of your
design background, some of yourwearables had your input
included.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
That is absolutely true.
We started submitting designsto, specifically, Dale of Norway
.
We had tried to submit designsto some of the Harkins people
had tried to submit designs tosome of the Harkins people but
they were not as interested aspeople like our sweater
(08:42):
manufacturers.
And we thought, well, that'sprobably because the sweater
people are moving forward andgrowing their companies and
wanting to bring new products,new designs to the marketplace.
So that told us that that's agood thing to follow and a good
(09:02):
thing to collaborate with.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
How have customer preferences in the retail
landscape changed over thedecades?
Speaker 2 (09:11):
They've changed a lot .
If you look back into the 70s,people were entertaining at home
and you know everything was newback then Fondue and different
types of wines and things likethat were becoming available and
people were wanting all ofthese home goods and over time,
(09:33):
things have evolved home goodsand, over time, things have
evolved Now people are wantingthings to maybe add to their
experiences less than they'reentertaining at home, so
something like soft goods willhelp them if they are taking a
cruise or going skiing or havinga party or just needing
(09:54):
something for every day, wherethat is good design and wearable
and I think the Scandinavianshave known that and the people
we buy from have products thatwill last and will serve these
customers well 50 years inretail is a remarkable milestone
(10:16):
, Walter.
Speaker 1 (10:17):
what do you believe are the key factors that have
contributed to your longevityand success?
Speaker 3 (10:22):
Well, you know, there's an old saying that if
you do what you enjoy, you'llnever work a day in your life,
and I think that's been truewith us.
The store is an extension oflouise and walter.
Um, it's what louise and walterbelieve as their core values.
(10:44):
Uh, that whole scandinavianlifestyle mantra has always been
, you know, deeply rooted in ourlives.
So we actually live the product, we live the life, the
lifestyle that our productsrepresent.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
One of those products we chatted about earlier are
Dale of Norway sweaters and, asI mentioned, you're the largest
independent retailer of thesesweaters, which are fantastic,
and I'm currently wearing one.
Yes, you are.
How did you achieve this status, and what makes this brand such
a great fit for your store?
Speaker 3 (11:26):
You know they're a heritage brand and we look at
our store as being a heritagebrand also.
They are a small company.
I know we in the upper Midwestlook at them and go, oh, dale of
Norway, oh yeah, they're a bigcompany.
Well, in global terms they'resmall.
(11:49):
In US terms they're very small.
We were kind of a natural fitfrom the beginning.
We were kind of a natural fitfrom the beginning and we
actually got them to make thefirst lightweight sweaters, and
that was way back in the early80s and we had them made just
(12:19):
for us because there was no waythey were going to do anything
that lightweight.
You know, everything they hadwas either a four-ply yarn or a
six-ply yarn or even aneight-ply hand-knit yarn.
So, you know, if it was 20below and you wanted to go on
out and ice skate on the pond,you were set.
But this little thing calledcentral heating kind of all of a
sudden you didn't have to worryabout how close you were
getting to the cook stove or howfar away you were getting.
(12:41):
The rooms all stayed the sametemperature.
So there was not a need forthat heavy weight.
Of was true.
And very next year that was alarge part of the new collection
(13:05):
and it was successful.
And ever since then they'velooked to us to help shape what
the collection's going to looklike, what's going to move
forward, what's not what peopleare asking for.
And you know it's been anatural kind of mutual growth,
(13:32):
if you will, for both of us.
Speaker 2 (13:33):
I think so.
I think it is a greatpartnership because the
Scandinavians have a real eyefor design and they've brought
new designs and even a littlebit of trend into their
collection.
But the American customers havedifferent needs and wants and
we are able to kind of find outthat when we talk to our
(13:57):
customers and from our sales andwe can work with them to tell
them what might work and whatminor changes they might want to
make in their line to continueto make it successful for both
of us.
Speaker 1 (14:12):
And you have some other great brands there too,
like Helly Hansen is anotherpopular brand Helly Hansen is
great Helly.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
Hansen.
We are one of their premierstores.
We carry the line 12 months outof the year.
I have a jacket.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
Yes, I have been a Viking ambassador for them,
which they choose severalambassadors across the United
States for them, and we are ableto try out products and give
them feedback, and that isreally helpful to them.
It's helpful to us, too,because we find things that will
(14:51):
work for our store and for ourcustomers.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
One of the biggest challenges recently to retail
was the COVID-19 pandemic.
How did the pandemic affectyour business and what changes
did you make to adapt?
Speaker 3 (15:05):
You know it was very apparent that we were probably
going to get shut down.
You know, you could see ithappening in Europe and all of
our friends in Scandinavia weresaying you know, are you closed
yet and where they're going?
No, I think they they're prettymuch sure that it's just a flu
bug and and it's not going tobother us and they're going.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
oh yeah, yeah right.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
And uh, you know, we were smart enough to realize
that that was probably not thecase, and so we knew that we had
already budgeted a fairly goodpart of our advertising dollars
into the Rochester market andthe expansion of the Rochester
(15:49):
market.
So with the idea that you weregoing to lose that, we decided
that we would move the all ofour resources almost over into
the website and where that hadbeen an adjunct to the store and
(16:09):
kind of just an extra arm and aresource, we were going to push
that as becoming a standalonepillar.
And actually during just oneyear we went from it being an
adjunct to the store to it beinga standalone pillar in our
(16:31):
corporate structure.
Keeping you successful.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (16:36):
Although we were closed in the retail store, we
kept all of our staff fullyworking during COVID, just on
fulfilling orders out of thewebsite.
So we were able to keep staff,keep morale up.
We did do the social distancingthing with wearing protection
(17:00):
and things like that.
We did everything correct, butwe still managed to stay open.
We ended the year.
Even with COVID.
We ended up above the yearbefore that.
So it's just how we got therechanged.
Speaker 2 (17:16):
And it was a bonus to have the website and to curate
the website for us because wefound out, once we were able to
reopen as a store, people wantedto limit their amount of time
they would spend in a store.
Even though we stood by therules and we were only able to
(17:38):
have a certain number of peoplein the store at the time, people
were able to pre-shop on thewebsite and even maybe email us
questions and such.
So when they did come in, theywere able to get the products
and their questions and takencare of, and it was a win-win
(17:58):
for the customer as well as forus.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
Let's fast forward to today and let's talk a little
bit more about the state ofretail, particularly for
independent stores like theNordic Shop.
Speaker 3 (18:09):
I think that you can see it in the malls and in the
stores that have closed Places,that are more generic in nature
are are losing ground, whereasthe newer and the more specific
(18:34):
stores kind of like the nordicshop and we have a very small
niche that we we work towardsand with.
So we're finding that and thenumbers speak to it, that this
is the trend is to find the moreauthentic retail, something
(18:56):
that's sustainable and hasquality to it, and our
Scandinavian products havealways been that.
The concept of less is more andyou know the thought of
recycling, and that was always amain part of Scandinavian
(19:18):
design Plus the quality yeah.
So we see that new customer andthey're younger and they want to
learn about the brand.
They want to learn what itstands for, they want to learn
how it functions, what it does,etc.
And how that aligns with whatthey believe.
(19:39):
And we're fortunate in thatwe've been able to grow our
business with that new segment.
Speaker 1 (19:50):
Louise.
Are there any memorable momentsor customer stories that stand
out from 50 years in business?
Speaker 2 (19:57):
We have many memorable moments, so many that
we were talking about this justthe other day that it's hard to
remember any specific one,because there's just groups of
things that have happened overtime that make it really make it
very fun to be in this businessPeople that have come in and
(20:22):
commented on the designs or theappreciation for what we do, and
it's been very very fun just tohear about that and to renew
those stories.
Speaker 1 (20:37):
You both were newlyweds when you opened the
shop.
Speaker 3 (20:39):
We were Actually, we opened the store and set up the
Nordic shop before we weremarried.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
Yeah, I think we did yeah.
Speaker 3 (20:53):
Yeah, february 21st versus.
Speaker 2 (20:55):
August 4th.
Speaker 3 (20:57):
In my book.
That's a little bit before.
Speaker 1 (21:01):
Well, you've done great.
And what's next for the Nordicshop?
Have you thought about that?
Speaker 2 (21:06):
We have Every year we look at the year and the next
18 to 24 months and what is next?
And in 2026, there will be theOlympics in Cortina, italy.
There will be a Cortina sweaterand we have already started
(21:27):
planning the marketing and thestory behind that particular
sweater.
Speaker 3 (21:35):
Everybody, especially with us hitting the 50 mark,
kind of goes okay, so what'snext?
And it's like well, there's notgoing to be anything
monumentous.
Speaker 1 (21:48):
Ground breaking right .
You've already done that for 50years.
Speaker 3 (21:54):
We are working out on 2026 for marketing, just like
two years before this.
We started planning for thisJanuary, february.
Dl Norway, as we've talkedbefore, has always been a strong
supporter of the Norwegian skiteam and the Norwegian sporting
(22:18):
effort and, as a result, they'vealways done the ski team
sweater and, as a result,they've always done the ski team
sweater.
So in non-Olympic years, theyalways name it after the final
event of the World Cup.
Well, for this year 2025, thefinal event of the World Cup is
in Trondheim, norway.
Now, the last time that therewas anything of this caliber was
(22:42):
1994 with the LillehammerOlympics.
So this is kind of a big dealin Norway and for.
Norwegian Americans andScandinavian Americans.
So we had a hand in the designof the Trondheim sweater and we
are going to be the launch placefor the sweater in the north
(23:08):
americas fantasticcongratulations yeah, thank you
great.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
well, what a great way to end this conversation on
such big news, the great workthat you both have done for the
community.
With 50 years of the Nordicshop, congratulations, and I
just want to say thank you forbeing our guests on the Growing
Destinations podcast.
Speaker 2 (23:31):
Thank you very much.
Speaker 1 (23:32):
Thank you very much.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
It's fun.
Speaker 1 (23:35):
Thank you for tuning in to the Growing Destinations
podcast and don't forget tosubscribe.
This podcast is brought to youby Experience Rochester.
Find out more about Rochester,Minnesota, and its growing arts
and culture scene, itsinternational culinary flavors
and award-winning craft beer byvisiting
experiencerochestermncom.
The Growing Destinations podcast is brought
to you by Experience Rochester.
Learn more about Minnesota'sthird largest city, which is
home to Mayo Clinic and featureswonderful recreational and
entertainment opportunities, byvisiting
experiencerochestermncom.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
We wanted to have a place that we thought would have
a kind of a Scandinavian baseof interest, because some of the
designs we were going to bringin were Scandinavian and we
thought that that base oflifestyle and appreciation for
the goods might be a goodstarting point.
Speaker 3 (00:37):
The store is an extension of Louise and Walter.
It's what Louise and Walterbelieve as their core values.
That whole Scandinavianlifestyle mantra has always been
deeply rooted in our lives.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
Welcome to the Growing Destinations podcast,
where we take a deep dive intodestination development and
focus on a wide range of topics,from tourism and entertainment
to economic development andentrepreneurism and much more.
I'm your host, Bill Von Bank.
50 years ago, Walter and LouiseHansen opened a Nordic shop in
(01:23):
Rochester, Minnesota, on whatthey thought would be a one-year
experiment.
Instead, that leap of faithturned into a lifelong journey
of bringing unique Scandinavianclothing and design to Rochester
.
Over the decades, their passionfor quality, design and
customer service has made theNordic Shop a cornerstone of the
community and even the largestindependent Dale of Norway
(01:47):
retailer in the world.
Get ready for an engagingconversation with Walter and
Louise Hansen as we celebratetheir incredible journey and the
lasting impact of the NordicShop.
Walter and Louise, welcome tothe Growing Destinations podcast
.
Thank you, it's great to haveyou here.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
I've been an admirer of your store.
Walter and Louise, welcome tothe.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
Growing Destinations podcast.
Well, thank you, it's great tohave you here.
I've been an admirer of yourstore, I've been a customer of
your store, so we've got 50years worth of stories to talk
about in this podcast.
But first can you take us backto the beginning of the Nordic
shop and why you chose Rochester?
Speaker 3 (02:22):
of the Nordic shop and why you chose Rochester.
It basically was that we eachhad a love for design, and
specifically Scandinavian design.
Louise spent a year of collegein Denmark studying design and
(02:43):
was fortunate enough to, duringthat time period, to actually
spend time in each of theworkshops that existed at that
time.
Places like Royal Copenhagen,george Jensen, a Michaelson
Jewelers, places like that,which would all go on to become
(03:03):
large names in the design world.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
And Louise.
Why did you choose Rochester?
Speaker 2 (03:09):
We wanted to have a place that we thought would have
a kind of a Scandinavian baseof interest, because some of the
designs we were going to bringin were Scandinavian and we
thought that that base oflifestyle and appreciation for
the goods might be a goodstarting point.
(03:31):
We also thought that havingsomething like Mayo Clinic and
some of the small industries intown nearby would bring
out-of-town guests that might beinterested in what we were
ready to sell and bring to thepublic.
Speaker 1 (03:50):
You chose Rochester, but it was for an experiment.
Tell me more about that.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
It was an experiment.
We thought that we should tryit and just see if it were
something that we were rightthat the people would respond to
our goods and services, ourknowledge of the products and we
wanted to hopefully grow it butwe were realists, as many
(04:20):
people were back in that day.
And we thought well, if it'snot working, one of us might
have to go and get otheremployment or we would just move
on to something else.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
What convinced you to stay Walter for 50 years?
Speaker 3 (04:38):
And I ask myself that question every day.
It soon became very apparentthat the concept that we had for
an early store, something thatwas not your average
Scandinavian shop, of which backin that era there was a
(04:58):
Scandinavian shop in every stripmall in the upper Midwest and
sometimes two, but they mostlycarried things which were more
of a tourist variety things thatsaid Ufta, things that said
Kiss the Cook, she's Norwegian,swedish, whatever, and things
like that, and we both had morethe design aspect in mind for
(05:24):
products.
Louise had finished schoolbefore I did, I was working on
my master's and so she opened upa small shop that sold sort of
Scandinavian things and a fewother different things and that
opened actually two years beforewe opened the Nordic shop, and
(05:47):
so we got a little bit of achance to try out things and we
actually were doing quite wellin a small market setting.
Was that before Rochester?
Yeah, that was actually in atown called St Charles, missouri
, and we were down in thehistoric Main Street area,
(06:10):
actually right in the middle ofit, right across from, at the
time, the restaurant on thestreet which was called the
Mother-in-Law House.
It gave us two years to kind ofget an idea about retail, and
Louise had this concept of moreof a design concept as opposed
(06:32):
to just objects, but curatedobjects from Scandinavia, and so
that's really how all of thatcame to be.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
And I think, because that was kind of a tourist area.
We were familiar with a touristarea but we also thought that
we needed a place to go wherethere was also a core customer a
customer from a region or acity that would come more
regularly than just theoccasional tourist.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
How has the Nordic shop evolved since its inception
50 years ago?
Speaker 3 (07:09):
Way back, when we started, we were much heavier
into kitchenwares and housewaresin general and gifts from
Scandinavia, and less intowearables, and both the market
changed and our vendors evolveddifferently.
(07:30):
So all of a sudden it seemedlike 10 years, 15 years ago,
maybe 20, we started noticingmore a move towards you know,
wearables, consumables, thingssuch as that, as opposed to hard
goods, and at that point,several of our vendors were
(08:00):
doing what everyone else wasback in the era going into
globalization and movingproduction from here to there to
wherever, and we wanted to haveproducts that were genuine and
authentic to Scandinavia.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
And Louise, I understand that, because of your
design background, some of yourwearables had your input
included.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
That is absolutely true.
We started submitting designsto, specifically, Dale of Norway
.
We had tried to submit designsto some of the Harkins people
had tried to submit designs tosome of the Harkins people but
they were not as interested aspeople like our sweater
(08:42):
manufacturers.
And we thought, well, that'sprobably because the sweater
people are moving forward andgrowing their companies and
wanting to bring new products,new designs to the marketplace.
So that told us that that's agood thing to follow and a good
(09:02):
thing to collaborate with.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
How have customer preferences in the retail
landscape changed over thedecades?
Speaker 2 (09:11):
They've changed a lot .
If you look back into the 70s,people were entertaining at home
and you know everything was newback then Fondue and different
types of wines and things likethat were becoming available and
people were wanting all ofthese home goods and over time,
(09:33):
things have evolved home goodsand, over time, things have
evolved Now people are wantingthings to maybe add to their
experiences less than they'reentertaining at home, so
something like soft goods willhelp them if they are taking a
cruise or going skiing or havinga party or just needing
(09:54):
something for every day, wherethat is good design and wearable
and I think the Scandinavianshave known that and the people
we buy from have products thatwill last and will serve these
customers well 50 years inretail is a remarkable milestone
(10:16):
, Walter.
Speaker 1 (10:17):
what do you believe are the key factors that have
contributed to your longevityand success?
Speaker 3 (10:22):
Well, you know, there's an old saying that if
you do what you enjoy, you'llnever work a day in your life,
and I think that's been truewith us.
The store is an extension oflouise and walter.
Um, it's what louise and walterbelieve as their core values.
(10:44):
Uh, that whole scandinavianlifestyle mantra has always been
, you know, deeply rooted in ourlives.
So we actually live the product, we live the life, the
lifestyle that our productsrepresent.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
One of those products we chatted about earlier are
Dale of Norway sweaters and, asI mentioned, you're the largest
independent retailer of thesesweaters, which are fantastic,
and I'm currently wearing one.
Yes, you are.
How did you achieve this status, and what makes this brand such
a great fit for your store?
Speaker 3 (11:26):
You know they're a heritage brand and we look at
our store as being a heritagebrand also.
They are a small company.
I know we in the upper Midwestlook at them and go, oh, dale of
Norway, oh yeah, they're a bigcompany.
Well, in global terms they'resmall.
(11:49):
In US terms they're very small.
We were kind of a natural fitfrom the beginning.
We were kind of a natural fitfrom the beginning and we
actually got them to make thefirst lightweight sweaters, and
that was way back in the early80s and we had them made just
(12:19):
for us because there was no waythey were going to do anything
that lightweight.
You know, everything they hadwas either a four-ply yarn or a
six-ply yarn or even aneight-ply hand-knit yarn.
So, you know, if it was 20below and you wanted to go on
out and ice skate on the pond,you were set.
But this little thing calledcentral heating kind of all of a
sudden you didn't have to worryabout how close you were
getting to the cook stove or howfar away you were getting.
(12:41):
The rooms all stayed the sametemperature.
So there was not a need forthat heavy weight.
Of was true.
And very next year that was alarge part of the new collection
(13:05):
and it was successful.
And ever since then they'velooked to us to help shape what
the collection's going to looklike, what's going to move
forward, what's not what peopleare asking for.
And you know it's been anatural kind of mutual growth,
(13:32):
if you will, for both of us.
Speaker 2 (13:33):
I think so.
I think it is a greatpartnership because the
Scandinavians have a real eyefor design and they've brought
new designs and even a littlebit of trend into their
collection.
But the American customers havedifferent needs and wants and
we are able to kind of find outthat when we talk to our
(13:57):
customers and from our sales andwe can work with them to tell
them what might work and whatminor changes they might want to
make in their line to continueto make it successful for both
of us.
Speaker 1 (14:12):
And you have some other great brands there too,
like Helly Hansen is anotherpopular brand Helly Hansen is
great Helly.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
Hansen.
We are one of their premierstores.
We carry the line 12 months outof the year.
I have a jacket.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
Yes, I have been a Viking ambassador for them,
which they choose severalambassadors across the United
States for them, and we are ableto try out products and give
them feedback, and that isreally helpful to them.
It's helpful to us, too,because we find things that will
(14:51):
work for our store and for ourcustomers.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
One of the biggest challenges recently to retail
was the COVID-19 pandemic.
How did the pandemic affectyour business and what changes
did you make to adapt?
Speaker 3 (15:05):
You know it was very apparent that we were probably
going to get shut down.
You know, you could see ithappening in Europe and all of
our friends in Scandinavia weresaying you know, are you closed
yet and where they're going?
No, I think they they're prettymuch sure that it's just a flu
bug and and it's not going tobother us and they're going.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
oh yeah, yeah right.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
And uh, you know, we were smart enough to realize
that that was probably not thecase, and so we knew that we had
already budgeted a fairly goodpart of our advertising dollars
into the Rochester market andthe expansion of the Rochester
(15:49):
market.
So with the idea that you weregoing to lose that, we decided
that we would move the all ofour resources almost over into
the website and where that hadbeen an adjunct to the store and
(16:09):
kind of just an extra arm and aresource, we were going to push
that as becoming a standalonepillar.
And actually during just oneyear we went from it being an
adjunct to the store to it beinga standalone pillar in our
(16:31):
corporate structure.
Keeping you successful.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (16:36):
Although we were closed in the retail store, we
kept all of our staff fullyworking during COVID, just on
fulfilling orders out of thewebsite.
So we were able to keep staff,keep morale up.
We did do the social distancingthing with wearing protection
(17:00):
and things like that.
We did everything correct, butwe still managed to stay open.
We ended the year.
Even with COVID.
We ended up above the yearbefore that.
So it's just how we got therechanged.
Speaker 2 (17:16):
And it was a bonus to have the website and to curate
the website for us because wefound out, once we were able to
reopen as a store, people wantedto limit their amount of time
they would spend in a store.
Even though we stood by therules and we were only able to
(17:38):
have a certain number of peoplein the store at the time, people
were able to pre-shop on thewebsite and even maybe email us
questions and such.
So when they did come in, theywere able to get the products
and their questions and takencare of, and it was a win-win
(17:58):
for the customer as well as forus.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
Let's fast forward to today and let's talk a little
bit more about the state ofretail, particularly for
independent stores like theNordic Shop.
Speaker 3 (18:09):
I think that you can see it in the malls and in the
stores that have closed Places,that are more generic in nature
are are losing ground, whereasthe newer and the more specific
(18:34):
stores kind of like the nordicshop and we have a very small
niche that we we work towardsand with.
So we're finding that and thenumbers speak to it, that this
is the trend is to find the moreauthentic retail, something
(18:56):
that's sustainable and hasquality to it, and our
Scandinavian products havealways been that.
The concept of less is more andyou know the thought of
recycling, and that was always amain part of Scandinavian
(19:18):
design Plus the quality yeah.
So we see that new customer andthey're younger and they want to
learn about the brand.
They want to learn what itstands for, they want to learn
how it functions, what it does,etc.
And how that aligns with whatthey believe.
(19:39):
And we're fortunate in thatwe've been able to grow our
business with that new segment.
Speaker 1 (19:50):
Louise.
Are there any memorable momentsor customer stories that stand
out from 50 years in business?
Speaker 2 (19:57):
We have many memorable moments, so many that
we were talking about this justthe other day that it's hard to
remember any specific one,because there's just groups of
things that have happened overtime that make it really make it
very fun to be in this businessPeople that have come in and
(20:22):
commented on the designs or theappreciation for what we do, and
it's been very very fun just tohear about that and to renew
those stories.
Speaker 1 (20:37):
You both were newlyweds when you opened the
shop.
Speaker 3 (20:39):
We were Actually, we opened the store and set up the
Nordic shop before we weremarried.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
Yeah, I think we did yeah.
Speaker 3 (20:53):
Yeah, february 21st versus.
Speaker 2 (20:55):
August 4th.
Speaker 3 (20:57):
In my book.
That's a little bit before.
Speaker 1 (21:01):
Well, you've done great.
And what's next for the Nordicshop?
Have you thought about that?
Speaker 2 (21:06):
We have Every year we look at the year and the next
18 to 24 months and what is next?
And in 2026, there will be theOlympics in Cortina, italy.
There will be a Cortina sweaterand we have already started
(21:27):
planning the marketing and thestory behind that particular
sweater.
Speaker 3 (21:35):
Everybody, especially with us hitting the 50 mark,
kind of goes okay, so what'snext?
And it's like well, there's notgoing to be anything
monumentous.
Speaker 1 (21:48):
Ground breaking right .
You've already done that for 50years.
Speaker 3 (21:54):
We are working out on 2026 for marketing, just like
two years before this.
We started planning for thisJanuary, february.
Dl Norway, as we've talkedbefore, has always been a strong
supporter of the Norwegian skiteam and the Norwegian sporting
(22:18):
effort and, as a result, they'vealways done the ski team
sweater and, as a result,they've always done the ski team
sweater.
So in non-Olympic years, theyalways name it after the final
event of the World Cup.
Well, for this year 2025, thefinal event of the World Cup is
in Trondheim, norway.
Now, the last time that therewas anything of this caliber was
(22:42):
1994 with the LillehammerOlympics.
So this is kind of a big dealin Norway and for.
Norwegian Americans andScandinavian Americans.
So we had a hand in the designof the Trondheim sweater and we
are going to be the launch placefor the sweater in the north
(23:08):
americas fantasticcongratulations yeah, thank you
great.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
well, what a great way to end this conversation on
such big news, the great workthat you both have done for the
community.
With 50 years of the Nordicshop, congratulations, and I
just want to say thank you forbeing our guests on the Growing
Destinations podcast.
Speaker 2 (23:31):
Thank you very much.
Speaker 1 (23:32):
Thank you very much.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
It's fun.
Speaker 1 (23:35):
Thank you for tuning in to the Growing Destinations
podcast and don't forget tosubscribe.
This podcast is brought to youby Experience Rochester.
Find out more about Rochester,Minnesota, and its growing arts
and culture scene, itsinternational culinary flavors
and award-winning craft beer byvisiting
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