Gateway To Open Store In Spokane

The empty retail space at 7808 N. Division is transforming from selling computer software to selling computer hardware in a farm country atmosphere.

Gateway, a leading manufacturer of personal computers formerly known as Gateway 2000, plans to open a “Gateway Country” retail store at the space formerly occupied by Egghead Software.

The store, the first of its kind in Washington, will feature fully-equipped demonstration models of Gateway’s desktop systems.

The North Sioux City, S.D.-based company has built its brand name around the Holstein dairy cow motif. The store also will have a miniature silo and murals of barns to offer a “high-tech, low-tech” atmosphere, said company spokesman Greg Lund.

Most Gateway sales come over the phone or Internet, Lund said, but the retail stores are targeting people who want to get a feel for the machine before buying.

The store will employ 12 to 15 customer service representatives.

Gateway has opened 59 retail stores since 1996, including 16 since March.

“We look at areas where we’ve had success selling our technology, and we think Spokane is one of them,” Lund said.