Western style captured at new Medora store
After realizing what Medora had been missing for several years, Frayne Berg and Ron McMartin decided to open Medora Boot and Western Wear.
After realizing what Medora had been missing for several years, Frayne Berg and Ron McMartin decided to open Medora Boot and Western Wear.
“Three years ago I was there with a girlfriend and she wanted boots and I wanted to buy her boots and we couldn’t find a pair in Medora,” Berg said. “I talked this over with a friend, and then I forget about it, except it never left my mind.”
Earlier this year Berg, who lives near McVille, went back and found there still wasn’t a store dedicated to western wear. He and McMartin, who lives in Grand Forks, jumped on the opportunity to bring that style to the city.
“I like Medora,” Berg said. “I like the western feeling. I like everything about that part of the country.”
Candie Loftsgard, who lives on a ranch north of Beach, is manager of the store and opened in July.
“I was approached by the owners to start it and manage it and I accepted,” Loftsgard said. “I enjoy the western lifestyle and wanted to share it with this area.”
She was excited to help bring a western apparel store to Medora, since there was not one like it.
The response has been very good, she said.
Loftsgard hired Sheila Marie, a Medora area native, to help out around the store.
“Before this store was put in, people would ask me and other people ‘where can we buy a pair of boots, or a hat or a western shirt?’ and there was basically no place to send them,” Marie said. “It’s what Medora used to be and it should be brought in — the western atmosphere, the western style, the heritage.”
The store centers on traditional western wear, such as boots, shirts, jeans and accessories.
However, Loftsgard has also incorporated flashier items, such as sparkly leopard print boots, into the selection.
“A gal can come in here and get decked out and dressed up in the hottest boots and look elegant,” Marie said. “She can go out dining that way, or you can get back to the basic cowboy, ranch hand, rancher type clothing, too. It’s for women and men and children.”
Customers can also special order items from Medora Boot and Western Wear.
“Let’s say you have a wide foot, or big feet, or something like that,” Berg said. “We can have them shipped in just a day or two directly to where people live.”
Customers won’t have to pay an arm and a leg to look good, he added.
“We’re a quality store for a fair price,” Berg said.
Loftsgard plans to expand the merchandise of the store, she said.
“We’ll do some rope baskets and some things you don’t find everywhere else,” she said. Seasonal items will also be added to their stock. “This is just the beginning,” Marie said. “There are all kinds of neat things coming.” The store is open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. It will also be open parttime in the fall and winter, though hours haven’t been determined.
“We’re here to please customers — customers come first,” Marie said.
The shop is located in unit 1 of the Old Dakota Territories Mall at 330 Pacific Ave. “We welcome everybody to stop in here and see what we have to offer,” Marie said. To contact Loftsgard or Marie, call 701-623-1005.
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