Catering to convenience

With a close ear to the ground about what the community wanted in a convenience store, Kim Dutton has opened a new business in the old Local Joe’s gas station in Bigfork.

Flathead Video Hollywood-to-Go is proving to be a movie lover’s dream, with an unparalleled selection of DVDs and video games, plus a gourmet hot dog and dessert nook and all the amenities of a convenience store.

“We talked about it as a family and asked ourselves, ‘What do people want?’” Dutton said. “We listened to our customers, and we’re trying to make it as convenient as possible.”

She worked at Flathead Video for several years when it was located next to Subway in Bigfork, and when the video business came up for sale three years ago, Dutton bought it. Movie Gallery had purchased all of the other Flathead Video outlets in the area except the Bigfork store.

“I’m also a licensed real estate agent and I kept watching this building,” she said about the former Local Joe’s on Montana 35 across from Sliters. “I had outgrown the video space where I was.”

The old gas station had been closed for about six months when Dutton decided to buy it and find her niche in the convenience-store world. Her staff of nine includes many of the former Flathead Video crew plus several new employees.

And Dutton’s family is an integral part of the operation. Her husband, Glenn, who manages Sliters, helped with the reconstruction of the gas-station building and lends “moral support,” she said. Her mother, Kay Mosher, does much of the bookkeeping and is a store clerk as well. Her stepfather, Bill Mosher, cleaned and painted the place.

 Dutton’s son, Stuart, researched the elements of various regional gourmet hot dogs, such as the Chicago-style dog that features an unusual neon relish. Stuart and Dutton’s son-in-law, Dan, are video-game advisers, and Dutton’s daughter, Kayla, monitors the store’s Facebook page and is putting together a take-and-bake pizza service for the business that will be added “before the snow flies.”

Even their granddaughter, 4-year-old Kaytlyn, is part of the team. She’s a taste tester and greeted customers when the business opened Labor Day weekend.

In an era when Netflix and Redbox are dominating the DVD and video-game rental market, Dutton realizes she’s bucking the trend by keeping a “bricks-and-mortar” video store open. But there are several advantages to carrying her own movie inventory, she said.

“We can carry new-release titles 28 days before Redbox and Netflix offer them, because of agreements we have with the studios,” she said.

For an extra dollar, Flathead Video will boost the time a customer can have a new release to five days.

The store has a full selection of games, including Wii, PlayStation 2 and 3, Xbox 360 and some Xbox.

“We have a pretty good selection of classics, and for the non-new releases, if we get requests we can bring them in,” she added.

The inventory includes several TV series and a wide selection of Blu-ray discs.

“Blue-ray is the next big thing,” Dutton said. “It’s capable of 3-D, high definition, and the graphics are so much better. They’re also a lot more interactive and a lot less destructive.”

If customers have damaged DVDs, CDs or video games, Flathead Video Hollywood-to-Go provides a resurfacing service that restores discs for about $5 apiece.

A separate section of DVDs for families also has Blu-ray selections for children, all rated PG or lower.

“It’s segregated because that’s what parents and families asked for,” she said.

The store’s restaurant nook is where the gourmet hot dogs are put together using locally produced Redneck brand sausages from Kalispell and homemade buns from Bad Dog Bakery in Kalispell.

Customers have a choice of white, wheat, rye or brioche buns. In addition to hot dogs, the menu features barbecue pulled pork and shredded beef sandwiches and breakfast burritos. Dutton runs a $5 daily lunch special.

A dessert line of “monkey dogs,” custom-made puff pastry and banana combinations with a variety of toppings are an unusual twist to the menu. Soft-serve yogurt and sorbet round out the dessert offerings.

A drive-through window by the restaurant section of the store serves as a DVD drop-off as well.

“If you call ahead we’ll have your movies and dinner to go,” Dutton said.

Much of the store has all the inventory one would expect from a convenience store: a coffee bar, beer and wine, chips, juices, energy drinks and pre-packaged take-and-go sandwiches.

Flathead Video Hollywood-to-Go will celebrate its grand opening on National Video Day, Oct. 15, by drawing for a variety of prizes that day, including a year’s worth of catalog DVD rentals, a bicycle, T-shirts, coolers and other items.

Store hours are 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday.

For more information, check out the store’s Facebook page and website at flatheadvideo.formovies.com.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.