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Video Update moves out and Movies ETC moves in
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 Media Credit: Michael Martin/Managing Editor Steve Pickard makes sure the railing he is installing is level at Movies ETC, which is located on the corner of Sixth Avenue and Division Street, where Video Update used to be. Pickard co-owns the store with his brother Tom.
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The Video Update on Sixth Avenue and Division Street seemed to disappear without warning Feb. 3.
The only explanation: a big sign with boxy black letters promising the arrival of Movies ETC.
According to Stephanie Sisk, who began working at Video Update in 1995 and is the new Movies ETC business manager, there was a long chain of events preceding the seemingly abrupt closing of the Video Update on Sixth Avenue.
"Video Update declared bankruptcy in September and then was bought by Movie Gallery which is based in Atlanta," Sisk said. "Most people didn't even realize Movie Gallery bought the chain because the name didn't change."
Shortly after Movie Gallery rescued Video Update, the building lease on Sixth Avenue expired. Building owners Steve and Tom Pickard decided Video Update's uncertain future and past financial difficulties were good reasons not to renew the lease.
"Now I'm happy, but at first, we were a little nervous when the lease didn't get renewed," said Chris Sorenson, SCSU senior meteorology major and two-year Video Update part-timer.
According to Sisk, after Video Update closed, the employees at the Sixth Avenue location did not have a lot of options.
"If they wanted to stay with the company, there wouldn't have been any openings at other Video Updates for them as far as Sauk Rapids, so they would be out of jobs," Sisk said.
Around December, the Pickards decided to start their own video store called Movies ETC (Entertainment Technology Center), staffed with the former Video Update employees.
"We realized that a video store seems to work well in this area so we wanted to stick with that idea," Steve Pickard said.
Employees like Sorenson were pleased and relieved.
"It was a big hassle with Video Update filing for bankruptcy, then getting bought out by another big corporation who wanted to make all of these new demands," Sorenson said. "We are happy the owners of the building own the store now because if we have a problem, we can go right to them and they will listen, not like some guys in a corporate office hundreds of miles away who don't care."
The Pickards' ambitions for Movies ETC are to expand and eventually have repair services and merchandise such as saleable videos and CDs by local Minnesota bands, but right now, he just wants to get the door open.
"Although they (the Pickards) are using the same space, this is a whole new store which requires new inventory," Sisk said. "It's like starting from the ground up so it's a hard process and right now we just want to get it ready to re-open as a video rental store."
Patrons of Video Update will find most of the store's old policies and fees carried over to Movies ETC, but customer accounts did not.
"All of the accounts were completely erased, so if you have overdue video rental fees, they were wiped out of the system," Sisk said.
Don't start cheering yet, one new difference between Video Update and Movies ETC will be a stricter return policy.
"The membership will be free, like at Video Update, but in order to get a membership you will have to supply a credit card," Sisk said. "If your videos are more than two weeks late, we will charge your credit card account."
Video Update promotions like two-for-99-cents Tuesdays will appear at Movies ETC along with a video collection comparable to or exceeding Video Update's selection and a much more expansive DVD selection.
"We want to keep up with changing trends," Steve Pickard said.
According to Sorenson, a common problem at Video Update was the lack of in-demand movies in stock.
"Lots of times people would come in and want a movie and we wouldn't have it. I would have to direct them to Hollywood Video or Blockbuster," Sorenson said. "Now though, if there is something we need, or don't have, we can talk immediately to the store owners and get it so it's here for the customer without having to go through corporate."
This is one reason Sorenson said Movies ETC might do better than Video Update.
"We won't have to send our customers somewhere else," Sorenson said.
The tentative opening of Movies ETC is March 10. An actual store grand opening is anticipated sometime later.
"A month or so after we open we would like to have a grand opening celebration and give away some prizes, like maybe a DVD player, but we haven't ironed out the details yet," Sisk said.
While there is still much work to be done, Steve Pickard is looking forward to opening.
"There are some major changes in the layout and I will be excited to see what people think," he said. "I think we will be received as a kind of hometown store where you know when you talk to someone, you know you are talking to someone who can make a difference."
Kristen J. Kubisiak can be reached at: [email protected]
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