Vergas Press Co. storefront complements online business in downtown Vergas

By Robert Williams

Editor

Maddison Lewis began her customizable apparel and accessories business online, found success over the past four years and jumped at the opportunity to move into a downtown Vergas location.  ¶  Her store, Vergas Press Co., just completed its first Looney Days week to even more success.  

¶  “It was good; there were a lot of people,” Lewis said. “Being my first year it was a learning experience. I just prepared the best I could and we sold out of a lot of stuff which is a great thing.”  ¶  An interesting aspect of Vergas Press Co. is that Lewis has nothing in her inventory priced over $50. That is impressive for a company that sells clothing and shoes.  

¶  “Everyone loves how affordable it is,” she said. “I try to keep the prices minimal. I don’t like to spend a lot of money on clothes so why would I want everyone else to. If it can be beneficial to other people—that’s my biggest thing.”  ¶  Another reason for moving into Vergas was the store allowed space for her growing inventory.

“I thought it would be nice not to have everything in my house anymore,” said Lewis.

Maddison and her husband Josh do much of their work out of their rural Vergas-Perham residence. Josh owns J&D Concrete LLC.

Maddison was instantly impressed in Vergas from the welcome to the continued support of the Vergas Community Club.

“They have a huge part in all the events,” she said.

Personal support via her community club membership has also made a difference. Lewis cited Community Club President Natalie Fischer and Treasurer Sherri Hanson for their visits and encouragement.

“They are always checking in and seeing if everything is going well,” Lewis said.

Technically, Maddison has three businesses running at a young age. She is beginning her fourth year of running Jacket Nutrition in Perham this coming September. Maddison began using Herbalife products at age 17 and moved into working at a nutrition club. She then managed two stores in Fargo, before starting Jacket Nutrition in Perham.

Between the one online and two physical businesses she employs eight people and has cross-trained her staff to be able to operate either Perham or Vergas storefront.

Vergas Press Co. actually began as a side-business to Jacket Nutrition.

“I just kind of did it for fun,”  she said. “I like the crafty aspect of it, as well, the designing is enjoyable.”

Her decision to open her business was to offer products to more people and she opened Vergas Press Co. in a time of year when she may have seen the least amount of people in the village. Her opening day was Feb. 2, 2026.

“We had a big grand opening and it was busy that day and mainly just online through the winter,” she said. “Obviously, there were some busy days around holidays. It wasn’t a struggle opening in the winter, but it wasn’t ideal.”

Lewis admits it may take time for her physical store to catch up to the success she has found online. The demographics and reachability are in two completely different spheres.

The one aspect the physical store has over online is instant gratification for shoppers, especially those looking for custom items

“We offer 100 different designs in-store that are constantly rotating and then everything is customizable,” she said. “You can pick your own shirt, sweatshirt, pick your own things and then it takes about a minute-and-a-half to get anything made.”

Lewis’ inventory includes a wide variety of clothing and shoes to sunglasses, hats, drinkware and other accessories.

Maddison describes her main focus at Vergas Press Co. is the direct-to-film printing and customization.

“We can do logos for everyone,” she said.

Some of her products can be seen across town at Vergas 66 and a few other local organizations. 

Lewis also offers product pickup at both her Perham and Vergas locations and her nutrition store has increased foot traffic in Vergas from friends and contacts in Perham.

Customers have noted that they appreciate the addition of Vergas Press Co. in allowing them to spend more time shopping in Vergas or not having to go to another town on their shopping trip because of downtown’s growing variety.

“Competition is good,” Lewis said. 

Word-of-mouth advertising has created business locally and Lewis is considering using the slower, winter months to start pushing her business forward commercially.

Vergas Press Co. is located at 146 East Main Street, next door to Billy’s Corner Bar and Grill. Contact Maddison at (218) 850-7703 and visit her online portals: vergaspressco.myshopify.com and Vergas Press Co. on Facebook.

Current Vergas store hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday and closed on Mondays. Check Facebook for future potential changes.