BASS near MOA!

[HawgTide]

OK I can't stop smiling because it looks like there's going to be a New Bass Pro Shop near the MOA. Goodbye Cabelas!

[Deitz Dittrich]

Dang it HT you beat me to it!!!! However, I dont think this will hurt Cabelas. I will still give them plenty of my buisness. However, I think this will hurt Gander MTN.

I myself have never been to a BPS, but I am interested!

[Ralph Wiggum]

From what I've heard, Bass Pro is awesome!

[HawgTide]

I'm sure BPS varies by region and type of fish that are native to the area and time of year, but I was just at the one near Dallas and it has 4 to 5 times the area dedicated just for Bass fishing as the Roger's Cabelas has. I'm sure some of that will change when they get rid of that ice fishing junk ( ) and make room for the good stuff. This is the time of the year I like to shop in the stores and they don't have it all out!

[Bass_Bully]

I heard the news Start saving money now

[fisher98]

Start saving money!!!!

Heck I may quit my job, and try to get a job at Bass Pro!!!

fisher98

[bassin]

one thing I noticed about Bass pro compaired to cabelas is this. If its in the catalog, its at the store. Cabelas on the otherhand does not carry as much stuff in the store. Their selection of bass stuff seems the same or less as a Gander mountain.

[Bobby Bass]

I made the trip to Springfield several years ago. The store is huge and you can spend hours inside. I think it is a great idea, have been buying stuff from there forever, Heck my boat is a Bass Tracker. I can see some money heading down state.

[svttom01]

I had no idea they were even thinking of building one in Minnesota. I am so elated, I can't help but thinking of getting a job there.

[Daze Off]

Party! Party! Party! - We should throw a welcome to MN party for BPS - they beat Cabela's hands down on nearly everything. Exceptions are walleye stuff (who cares), ice fishing (who cares) and hunting clothes for northern climates(who cares). They win on selection, almost always on price, and they kill Cabela's in customer service. I have not had a single good experience with customer service at the new Cabela's in about 4 trips.

While Cabela's has an aisle of soft plastics, BPS has an aisle of every kind of soft plastics - at least in Springfield.

I'm a slight bit prejudiced I guess.....<g>

Daze Off

[turn_in_poachers]

I agree with Daze. Cabelas selection of baits sucks. I coudlnt find any Lucky Craft hardbaits. And the customer service bites. Sportsmans Warehouse even has a better selection of baits. LC, some Megabait. Ive been to the one in Orlando, and it was awesome. Just rows and rows of tackle. MOA would be a good location. Gives us men something to do when the wife drags us there. I personally cant stand the MOA, but Ill go if BPS comes! Oooh Ooooh! They can have a Camp Bass Pro Shops!

[Deitz Dittrich]

TIP-not sure which cabelas you have been to.. I am not saying this becuase I am a cabelas fan or anything.. But I have worked at both the Rogers store and the Owa store during promo events and both had lucky Craft baits.. quite a selection of them if I remember right.

[turn_in_poachers]

Maybe I wasnt looking hard enough then. What do I care, I dont use LC baits. Nice looking baits, but with northerns running around everywhere, you wouldnt want to see me after one cuts off 15.99. I remember losing a spinnerbait and buzzbait to northerns after the 1st cast, right out of the package.

[friendlyfisher]

Please, for dumbies like me where/what is MOA? I can only hope it is close to me. On the other hand, if it was close to me i could probly figure out what it stands for eh.

[Deitz Dittrich]

TIP- I dont either(use LC).. but I know they have them

MOA=Mall Of America

[friendlyfisher]

OK, I'm retarded. thanks for the obvious. Please ignore my last post.

BPS (BASS PRO SHOPS) rocks.

[bucketmouth64]

It is about time they recognize MN as a hotbed for outdoorsmen and women. I've been to the Missouri one too. You can literally spend an entire day there. Loved every minute of the experience. I kinda question the location though. Not that MOA is bad area, but the parking and traffic congestion is just gonna get worse. I think the Albertville area would be a good spot too. Store takes up a lot of real estate. I would have thought they would be looking for more of wide open area that is easily accessed. Not sure how much of an impact this would have to Gander. They've been positioning their new stores on major highways in the suburbs that lead out of the Twin Cities heading Northward. I think just the congestion of traffic would be enough for me not to visit Bps as often as I would like to.

[bassman222]

BPS defiantly has a better selection of lures, rods, and reels. IMO Cabelas has more for the hunter than BPS.

I was just at the BPS in Bossier City, LA 2 weeks ago, and on the way back hit Cabelas in Owattana, kinda gave me a taste of both in short period of time. The BPS in LA even has that cool deer hunting arcade game on a projector screen, that pulled more than a few greenbacks outta me

[MSRiverdog]

BPS MOA location bad , Cabelas Rogers location good , Glad some Ganders are close. Corperate decisions are a drag.

[Crank It Up Pro]

Sorry can't ignore last post, yes you are retarded(dee,dee,dee)J/K. I have been to the Springfield store and also the Orlando store and they both ROCK anyone who has not been to one must go can't even explain. what is said on all the posts about BPS is right but by 100%.By the way we are all retarded at times.

[dan2957]

Quote:

---

get rid of that ice fishing junk (

) and make room for the good stuff.

---

Ice fishing junk is right. I Can't wait for BPS to get here! Bring it on!

[dan2957]

Quote:

---

Party! Exceptions are walleye stuff (who cares), ice fishing (who cares) and hunting clothes for northern climates(who cares).

---

You said it, I have thought that ever since I arrived in this ice cube of a state. Bring on the warmer temps.

[ikeslayer]

although like already stated i think it will hurt gander however it will give us fellas something to do while the women are at one of 10 Victoria's secret stores. here is the article from Star Trib.

.ORTEGA GAINES, Star Tribune

MOA close to landing Bass Pro

The Mall of America is close to reeling in a really big fish.

Bass Pro Shops, a sporting goods retailer known for building mammoth stores that draw sports enthusiasts from hundreds of miles away, is in the final stages of negotiating a lease for as much as 300,000 square feet of space at the next phase of the megamall, according to people familiar with the negotiations.

The store would rival the nearby Ikea home furnishings store in size and be a cornerstone of the Mall of America's $1 billion expansion, known as Phase II, that is expected to include a 6,000-seat performing arts center, three hotels, as many as 300 condominiums, an ice rink and a museum.

Negotiations between the sporting goods retailer and the Mall of America began a year ago and have accelerated in the past few weeks.

The two sides have agreed to the basic terms of a deal but are still negotiating parking and street arrangements, according to Bloomington city officials familiar with the talks.

Bass Pro Shops would neither confirm nor deny that it had entered into lease negotiations with the mall.

"We are looking at the Twin Cities, but we have nothing to announce," said Larry Whiteley, a Bass Pro spokesman. A Mall of America spokesman declined to comment.

Like Cabela's and other so-called "destination retailers," Bass Pro doesn't build small stores. Its flagship in Springfield, Mo., is 330,000 square feet -- 2½ times larger than a typical Target -- and contains five aquariums, a waterfall, an archery range and a nesting area for pheasants. The store attracts 4 million visitors a year.

Bass Pro Shops got started 34 years ago when Johnny Morris started selling fishing lures at his father's liquor store in Springfield. It now sells boats, outdoor gear, sportswear and gifts. Revenue at the privately held company topped $1.6 billion in 2004, according to Sporting Goods Business. Morris, 59, still lives in Springfield and owns a majority of the company.

Of the 33 Bass Pro stores nationwide, 15 are in shopping malls. "The malls come to us like they used to come after Sears and J.C. Penney's," Whiteley said. "They know we attract tourists and crowds."

Retail observers said a Bass Pro store would make the Mall of America more appealing to male shoppers, some of whom are underwhelmed by the megamall's vast array of women's clothing shops and department stores.

"This should give men something to do while their wives shop," said Andrea Christenson, a vice president with Colliers, a real estate agency based in St. Louis. "Right now, when you walk through the mall, you rarely see men with bags in their hands."

A large lease deal would give the mall some momentum as it begins to lease space for Phase II and would help it recover from two recent setbacks. The mall had to remove the Camp Snoopy name and all references to "Peanuts" characters this month -- a signature feature since the mall's opening in 1992 -- after losing a licensing dispute. And most of the fourth floor, once a popular nightlife destination, remains dark after the exit of a key tenant.

Yet the mall's unusual attractions, including its huge indoor aquarium and flight simulation center, continue to make it a popular tourist spot. It ended last year with a vacancy rate of 3.3 percent, well below that of most other malls in the Twin Cities, according to the Minnesota Shopping Center Association.

The huge Ikea store, the first element of Phase II, has also proved to be a great success since its opening in 2004. The store, which includes a supervised play area for children, attracted 3.5 million visitors in its first year.

"If you're a retailer looking to enter this market, and you've only got one bullet to shoot, the Mall of America is as good a bullet as any," said Mike Sims, vice president of retail at United Properties.

Even so, Bass Pro Shops will be entering a market crowded with sporting goods retailers. In October, Cabela's opened a mammoth store in Rogers that contains many of the same features as Bass Pro stores.

John Johannson, senior vice president of retail brokerage for Welsh Companies, said that, while Bass Pro would be able to generate some sales from new customers, much of its business would come from existing retailers.

ike

[pike doctor]

I have to say that I am quiet happy that Bass Pro is comming, but at the same time I am a little enraged. It was my idea about three years ago for them to come here and I even wrote a letter to them saying that they should look into building at the MOA. I was mad last year when the management of the mall unveiled new plans for an equally big addition, but it didnt have a sporting goods store like this. If it does come, guys will have some place to go while the women are maxing out the credit cards. I worked at the sportsbar in the mall for a while and that was the only place guys had to go unless they followed their girls. Now that it has closed it is hooters or nothin for the guys. Hopefully a BP will save some of us from being dragged around for hours on end.

I think the mall has turned into a dump in the last year and hopefully this will start to reverse its downfall. Could be a heck of a nice place with an addition and something like this added.

As far as BP vs Cabelas I am hands down a BP guy. They have a better selection and you can get some nice stuff cheap (rods and reels) and I like the quality. I will still give some business to gander, but like its been said goodbye cabelas!!

[Down to Earth]

Finally a good reason to go to the mall. I've been to the BPS in Gurnee, IL and was quite impressed with the store. Very nice. What is the estimated date of arrival?

Andy