M.W. "Bob" Kiesau

KIESAU, RAYMOND, EELKEMA

Posted By: Jon Raymond (email)
Date: 3/21/2003 at 14:36:11

M.W. "Bob" Kiesau, founder of the Home of Economy stores, died Thursday in Valley Memorial Home Medical Park. He was 73.
Services will be at 3 p.m. Sunday in Mendenhall Presbyterian Church, East Grand Forks. Visitation will be from 7 to 8 p.m. Saturday in Stennes Funeral Home, with an 8 p.m. prayer service there.
"I respected him as an honest, intelligent and forthright person," former Grand Forks Mayor Hugo Magnuson said of the collegue he had known more than 30 years. "He certainly proved wise in the business ventures he went into."
M.W. Kiesau was born May 30, 1910, in Norfolk, Neb., and grew up on a ranch near Baker, Mont. He began his business carer as a door-to-dfoor salesman in Billings, Mont., and later worked for Woolworth Co. and Montgomery-Ward until he began his business in 1939.
He married Jean F Raymond July 16, 1934, in Great Falls, Mont. They came to the city in 1939 and lived at 1203 Eighth Ave. N.W., East Grand Forks.
He was names "Boss of the Year" by the Chamber of Commerce in 1963, and in 1969 he received the state and national American Legion award in recognition of the employment of older people. He was president of the East Grand Forks School Board.
He began business in Thief River Falls, Minn., with a consigned stock of tires, batteries and accessories, and grew into a larger tire and related equipment store in Grand Forks and then into two small distributing companies and several more stores.
Home of Economy stores are open in the North Dakota cities of Grafton, Devils Lake, Minot and Williston, as well as Grand Forks.
East Grand Forks Mayor Louis Murray called him a master merchandiser and a brilliant businessman.
In 1950 Mr. Kiesau took a gamble that could have ended his distributing business. Many large manufacturers of auto and truck parts, as well as farm equipment, gave substantial discounts to "fleet" owners - those who operated five or more fuel-powered units. Mr. Kiesau was the first to consider the average farmer a "fleet" owner.
Because of the marketing success, other small distributors combined to form an association to increase buying power and exchange sales ideas. That association became Mid-States Distributing Co.
Survivors are his wife; daughter, Virginia (Mrs. Robert) Eelkema, Grand Forks; 11 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

[The Grand Forks Herald, Grand Forks, North Dakota, March 30, 1984]

Note: M.W. Kiesau was the son of Herman Kiesau and the nephew of Dr. Fred Kiesau, Postville; Gustav and Henry Kiesau of Waukon; & Mrs. Anna C. Bieber, Waukon