Second Line of Business — Or First?
“Star Tribune to Sell Land for Apartment Project.”
—Star Tribune (Aug. 28, 2012)
What do Twin Cities companies The Star Tribune, Gabberts, and Hoigaards all have in common?
Certainly not their primary lines of business: newspaper publishing, furniture, and sports equipment and apparel, respectively.
Rather, each company has struck gold in a second, unrelated line of business: selling off and/or developing the real estate under their original establishments.
Prime parcels purchased eons ago for relative pennies (no more “p’s” — promise). 🙂
In the case of Gabberts especially, it’s likely that the company’s profits from The Galleria in Edina dwarf those from its retail sales.
P.S.: In somewhat the same vein, I’m aware of a local synagogue whose summer camp on Lake Minnetonka is now probably worth millions — assuming they’d ever consider selling the land to developers (and local ordinances allowed it to be developed).
