A long-running store in downtown Fort Frances has a new owner and name, and will aim to keep selling the items customers have come to expect while expanding on new offerings for others.
Dene Anderson is the new owner of the store formerly known as Living Arts, which has become House of Den to reflect the change. Anderson, a mother of six, took over ownership of the store on July 22, 2024, and said that owning a shop of her own has been a long-held dream.
“I love to shop as a hobby, and whatever doesn’t work for me or my family, I’ve just been putting into bins and boxes,” she said.
“I just got a new apartment and so I’m bringing so much into the store that are mine. I’m not really good at online, I did create a Facebook page and used to try to sell things online, but I’m more of an ‘in-person’ kind of person. This opportunity came when I saw it on the market in mid-May, so I wrote a business plan 20 pages thick.”
After securing funding to get off the ground, Anderson became the new owner, purchasing the existing inventory that was already in the store. She noted that she has interests that align with much of the items that are sold in the store, so when she is out shopping for new items, she naturally gravitates towards things that will fit in with her vision of what the store will offer. At the same time, she said she’s also using her interactions with customers to expand on the types of items that will be found in-store in the future.
“I’m keeping it the same, with jewelry, clothes, purses, shows, men’s stuff like some swords and knives, car models, home decor, antiques” she said.
“But also paintings. I’m getting local painters in here as well, and some local others as well making cutting boards, skirts, beaded earrings and stuff. I’m adding more children’s items, more toys and kids clothes, more kid-friendly stuff, as well as more personal development books. I’m just adding to it.”
She said the items she has found in the past, even if they haven’t been something she or her kids necessarily need, seem to strike a chord with her that she felt would appeal to others as well.
“All my friends are like, ‘I love the stuff that you buy,’” she said.
“Everything that I buy, I never get twice, and it’s always rare stuff that I find. That’s the beauty of the store, you can’t really find this stuff anywhere else if you want it manufactured. It’s just fun to me. It’s like a hobby as a career.”
Anderson has never owned her own shop before, but said that the time she’s spent in her other jobs have helped prepare her for this new venture. While her previous jobs have mostly been in the food industry, including working for her family’s store in Sioux Narrows and the former Makabi Inn, her interactions with customers, ordering inventory and pricing items have helped her get a feel for what needs to be done in her new store.
The House of Den will be open Monday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., and Anderson said she plans on taking holidays off as well, in order to spend that time with her kids. She said she’s excited to be able to keep the spirit of the store alive while adding her own personal touch to what it will offer Fort Frances in the future.
“I’m really happy to keep the shop open,” she said.
“It would have been completely different and this town needs a shop like this. You can’t really buy this stuff anywhere else.”
