Herberger's

For the educational institution, see Herberger College of the Arts.

G. R. Herberger Inc.

Trade name	Herberger's
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Retail
Founded	1927; 98 years ago (1927) (original); 2018; 7 years ago (2018) (revival)
Founder	G. R. Herberger
Defunct	2018; 7 years ago (2018) (original) 2021; 4 years ago (2021) (revival)
Headquarters	St. Cloud, Minnesota, United States
Products	Clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, housewares
Owner	Saks, Inc. (1997–2006) The Bon-Ton (2006–2018) CSC Generation (2018-2021) BrandX (2021–present)
Parent	BrandX (2021–present)
Website	herbergers.com

G. R. Herberger Inc. is a digitally native retailer. It was established in 1927 in the Midwestern United States as a department store.

History

Herberger's previous logo used until January 2004 before adopting the common hexagonal circle logo of Saks/Northern's sister brands.

Herberger's began in Osakis, Minnesota, when G.R. "Bob" Herberger opened his first store in 1927. Herberger's was incorporated for the purpose of acquiring additional stores and expanding into other communities in 1943. By 1972, it grew to 11 stores in four states, with its headquarters in downtown St. Cloud, Minnesota. G. R. Herberger's, Inc., by then an employee-owned company, merged with Proffitt's Inc. in 1997 in stock deal valued at approximately $160 million (~$282 million in 2023).

As Proffitt's Inc. evolved into Saks Incorporated with the company's acquisition of Saks Fifth Avenue, Herberger's eventually became part of the corporation's Northern Department Store Group, an assortment of store locations initially acquired by Proffitt's Inc. as Carson Pirie Scott & Company. On October 31, 2005, Saks announced that it was selling Herberger's and its other Northern Department Store Group stores (Carson Pirie Scott, Bergner's, Boston Store, and Younkers) to Bon-Ton Stores in a $1.1 billion deal; the transaction was completed on March 6, 2006.^[1]

An open Herberger's in Rapid City, South Dakota and its going out of business sale a few months later.

Bon-Ton announced on April 17, 2018, that they would be closing doors and began liquidating all 267 stores after two liquidators, Great American Group and Tiger Capital Group, won an auction for the company. The bid was estimated to be worth $775.5 million. This included all remaining Herberger's locations after 91 years of operation. According to national retail reporter Mitch Nolen, stores were closed within 10 to 12 weeks.^[2][3]

The Fargo Forum reported in 2018 that the Herberger's website had returned online with the text "Herberger's is coming back", coinciding with the last location closing on August 31, 2018. The article did not disclose the financing or ownership of the brand or if the retirement liabilities of former employees remains lost after the transfer of assets.^[4]

A Herberger's location in Roseville, Minnesota with the old logo.

Herberger's was relaunched when CSC Generations purchased Bon Ton, Inc. and their associated brands and customer lists. On October 1, 2018, it was revealed that multiple Herberger's locations would potentially open or reopen around Minnesota, with the first store likely being in Rochester.^[5]

Sometime in 2021, CSC Generations sold Herberger's to BrandX, and indicated that Herberger's would open soon;^{[citation needed]} however, as of 2024 this has yet to materialize. ^[6]

References

1. "Investor Relations". Archived from the original on 2007-03-11. Retrieved 2006-03-08.
2. "Bon-Ton Stores to close (report)". syracuse.com. Retrieved 2018-04-17.
3. "Liquidators to wind down US department store chain Bon-Ton". CNBC. Retrieved 2018-04-18.
4. "Back in business? Herberger's announces comeback days after closing all stores nationwide". inforum.com. Archived from the original on 2018-08-31. Retrieved 2018-08-31.
5. "Buyer of Herberger's and other Bon-Ton brands lays out revival plan". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2018-10-01.
6. "Herbergers Website".

External links

• Official website (Archive)
• The Bon-Ton Stores, Inc. investor relations home page