Over the weekend, you might have been hunting. You could have been debating the credibility of NFL officiating. Meanwhile, Sitka was busy opening their second store in Minnesota. Earlier in the month, a smaller retail space opened in the heavily-visited Mall of America. This past weekend, Sitka opened a northwest metro location at 12499 Elm Creek Blvd N, Suite A1, in Maple Grove. This is in a popular retail center near where I-94 and 494 meet by the Hemlock Lane North exit.
For years, Sitka has spent countless hours in research and development. Putting gear through the paces with product testers and developers. The goal is to implement systems for different hunting scenarios where success – and survival – is vital.
See more pictures from the store:
Why New Retail Stores?
The two new stores join existing retail locations in Bozeman, Dallas and Atlanta. Sitka expanded into their own retail locations to give hunters one-on-one access to their experts. This was according to their head of marketing, Matt Bluher.
“We’ll have just about everything we make in those locations and offer expert customer service,” Bluher said. “We want to give hunters an immersive experience. We can do that really well if we’re doing it ourselves.”
You will still be able to buy gear at various sporting goods retailers. However, Sitka plans to offer a more complete experience in their stores.
“That’s not discounting our fabulous partners in the area like Scheels,” Bluher added. “You can find a majority of the things we make in a Scheels location, but they don’t have everything.”
“It’s more than than just growing in a commercial sense though,” Bluher said on a recent Sporting Journal Radio Podcast. (His interview is below and he starts at the 19:39 mark). “It’s growing our connection to the hunters.”
In a world where online orders dominate, there’s still something about trying on apparel before you buy. Particularly when you’re investing in gear meant to last like the Delta Zip Waders ($999).
“Just think about the waterfowl community in Minnesota,” Bluher continued. “We feel like we make the best wader on the market, but it’s not cheap. With limited availability in the market, we want to make sure that you can try those waders on.”
“We have a full selection of our Delta Waders,” store manager Cory Brady said. “We’ve got them in every different pattern and solid colors.” With all sizes in stock, you can make sure you get fitted right.
Minnesota Exclusive Apparel
The grand opening of the store featured giveaways, special appearances and more. People were camped out ahead of time, anxiously waiting the doors to open.
Brady took me through their products starting with Minnesota-themed apparel. There were purple hoodies for Viking fans and navy blue shirts for Twins fans. There was an assortment of other shirts and hats with the Minnesota Sitka logo. One of the favorites for Minnesota waterfowlers has been the Blue-Winged Teal t-shirt.
“We’re really about localizing our assortment,” Brady said. “We’ve got some great retail exclusives showing our Minnesota pride. We’re spoiled here as the only state with two Sitka stores.”
What’s Different About The Two Stores?
The Mall of America store offers increased visibility to a lot of foot traffic. However, the smaller size limits the available inventory. The larger Maple Grove location doesn’t have that problem. If you’re looking for women’s apparel, head to the northwest suburb store. There you’ll have a section to shop in with the ability to try on different items.
The Mall location can be a great place for guys during a family trip to Nickelodeon Universe.
“It’s a safe haven for dads,” Bluher said. “They can check out waders and talk hunting.”
Opening one retail location for a company like Sitka involves enough work. I’d imagine that opening two at the same time had people working overtime.
“We worked really hard to get both of these stores open ahead of the rifle opener. Ideally we would have been open before the waterfowl and pheasant season. But we did the best we could,” Bluher added. “Opening two doors in less than a month is super exciting for us.”
Gear Built For Minnesota Hunters
They also focused on having gear that is specific to Minnesota hunting situations. Waterfowl gear is primarily in the marsh pattern since that’s what most people here are hunting.
Sitka also recognize the popularity of deer hunting in the state. They offer their best suit, the Fanatic, for sitting in the woods on a cold morning. It’s perfect for late season.
“This is the quietest hunting material in the whole world,” Brady said. “This is our bow hunter tree stand special, the Fanatic jacket.”
The Elevated II camo pattern is good for tree stands. For people in the dark corner of a blind, finding something warm and comfortable has been a challenge. It is also difficult to find something black and quiet. Recently Sitka released their Blackout pattern which checks all those boxes.
The other pattern that came out recently is Cover. This involved a large amount of research into how deer see. They worked to develop a pattern for leafy vegetation, which an early season bow hunter in Minnesota can find useful.
Waterfowl and whitetails will always dominate the Sitka customers of this region. But, as a pheasant hunter, I’ve been on the lookout for more comfortable blaze orange upland gear. If you walk for roosters during the deer season, you must wear more orange than what’s normally required. I purchased the Jetstream jacket during my stop at the new store which fits the bill.
What Did I Buy?
I already have a black Jetstream ($349) that I wear a lot in the fall as an every day jacket. It fits well without feeling bulky. The Windstopper technology does what it’s name implies, keeping you warm on those brisk fall days. Zippers can be opened for ventilation if you’ve worked up a sweat. They will also keep you dry in light precipitation. According to the Sitka website, it’s the best selling jacket of all time and I’m not surprised.
I picked up a blaze orange Jetstream beanie. I also got a black Core lightweight hoodie for early season bowhunting in a blind. Additionally, I bought some Minnesota gear, including the Blue-Winged teal shirt ($32). I couldn’t pass up one of the new hats either ($30).
It’s easy to spend money there. The gear isn’t cheap, but it’s built to last and designed for specific pursuits in specific regions. If you hunt Minnesota, you will find apparel for you. You should also find the type of gear for those road trip draw tags. If not, you can try different gear on to find the right size. Then order from the website.
“One thing we’ve found is that hunters travel. Every now and then you are going to get that once in a lifetime tag,” Bluher said. “In Maple Grove specifically, we’re going to have the full assortment available.”
How To Get There
The Mall of America store is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays. It’s located at 190 North Garden. It’s in the northwest corner of the mall, near Nordstrom. The Maple Grove Store is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. It’s located in the Shoppes at Arbor Lakes. Get directions here.
Read Roy Heilman’s article about his Grand Opening experience.
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