Herberger's closed because Sioux Falls was 'over-retailed': Looking back
When the Empire Mall opened in September 1975, there were two anchor stores: Younkers at the west end, and Herberger’s near the middle of the structure. JCPenney was under construction on the east side, expected to open in the spring. Up to that point, Herberger’s had not been a presence in Sioux Falls, but there were other locations in Watertown, Aberdeen and Mitchell.
Herberger’s department store started in Saint Cloud, Minnesota, opening its first store on Aug. 14, 1927. It was called Herberger-Hart Co., named for George Robert “Bob” Herbert and his partner, Charles W. Hart. The store specialized in clothing, but also carried household items and dry goods such as yarn, thread, cloth and the like. Business took off, especially in their Downstairs Store, where the best bargains could be found. Here was the place to find close-out items, marked low to make way for new items. Herberger-Hart Co. quickly became a popular place to shop in Saint Cloud.
In 1932, Herberger and Hart parted ways in business, but remained friends outside of that arena. Charles opened his own store in Wadena, Minnesota, and Bob began calling the Herberger-Hart Co. store Herberger’s. The old and new names would be used interchangeably until 1934, when the old name was permanently phased out.
On Dec. 31, 1941, fire broke out in the store at about 6:15 p.m. Bob and six staff members were about to go home when they noticed the smoke. They were able to grab their accounting ledgers on the way out. After hours of difficult, cold work by firefighters, the fire was contained, but the building was lost.
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Within a couple of days, Herberger’s found a temporary space to move into. In three months, half of the store was able to be opened, and two months after that, the remainder was ready. This took some doing, as the US had just entered World War II, and resources were immediately scarce. There were, however, provisions for businesses that had experienced this kind of setback.
Herberger’s second location opened in 1943 in Watertown. That same year, Bob decided that any stock in the company would be sold only to Herberger’s employees. He wanted to share the benefits with those who helped to make the store a success. By 1972, Bob had sold all of his stock to the employees, making them the sole owners of Herberger’s.
In 1945, Herberger’s third location was opened in Rice Lake, Wisconsin. This was the year the business adopted the rose logo that would represent the stores for years to come.
By the time Herberger’s opened in the Empire Mall, there were 12 other locations in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North and South Dakota. Aberdeen’s location opened in 1969, and Mitchell’s in 1974. In the next three years, eight more locations would open.
Herberger’s continued to carry the same kind of wares as when the first store opened, updated for styles and tastes, of course. The Empire location, managed by Wayne Swoboda, occupied 50,000 square feet. It was smaller than Younkers’ 106,000 feet and JCPenney’s 140,000, but still a respectable space in the area’s hottest new mall.
Men’s, women’s and children’s clothing were all well-represented with top name brands, and the women’s department was an area of special focus. Swoboda called the infants and children’s departments terrific “grandma bait.”A section called Music City stocked records, tapes, stereos, and other electronic equipment, including Sony televisions. Though the new Empire location didn’t have a bargain basement, the Budget Shop at Herberger’s filled that need.
In 1977, Herberger’s celebrated its 50th anniversary. By then, there were 16 locations in the Midwest. Two locations had been added in Montana, and one in Wyoming was expected in 1978. Rapid City’s Rushmore Mall welcomed Herberger’s in September, 1978. This store would remain until 2018, but Sioux Falls’ location was not as successful.
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On Sept. 3, 1980, it was announced that Herberger’s in the Empire would close in early 1981. By that point, management duties had been taken over by Bill Leingang, as Swoboda had taken over management of the Rice Lake, Wisconsin store. Leingang expressed some frustration over the retail market in Sioux Falls.
“Very simply, Sioux Falls is over-retailed to the point that it’s hurting retailers,” he said. “The big growth really has never quit since ’75. It’s been one thing after another and enough’s enough.”
When the Empire Mall opened, Herberger’s had only Younkers as competition, and JCPenney the following year. In 1978, the Empire Mall was expanded to include Dayton’s.
Herberger’s nation-wide became part of the Bon-Ton store chain by 2005, after various mergers and sales, which had started in 1997. Bon-Ton, which was also the parent company of Younkers, announced the closing of all 267 of its various stores on April 17, 2018. As of this writing, the Herberger’s website says that it is coming back soon, suggesting an upcoming web presence. This has been going on since BrandX bought the Herberger’s brand in 2021.
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Herberger's closed because Sioux Falls was 'over-retailed': Looking back
