Eagan Running Room Plans May 9 Opening

For Eagan native Brandon Fox, running is a way to take his mind off the world.

An enthusiastic competitor with one marathon and other, shorter races under his belt, Fox is poised to share his love for the sport as the manager of the soon-to-be-opened Running Room in Eagan.

The Running Room, one part athletic store and one part training center, is set to debut on May 9 in the Eagan Promenade retail center. The 1,319-square-foot store will sell shoes, apparel, socks accessories, nutritional items and electronics—all of which is geared toward casual and competitive runners.

Based in Edmonton, Canada, the Running Room has 10 retail stores in the U.S. and more than 100 locations in Canada, according to Midwest Regional Manager Peg Arnold. The Eagan store will be the eighth location in Minnesota. Other sites include Apple Valley, Burnsville and St. Paul.

The company chose to locate in Eagan in part because of the strong running presence in the community and the city's extensive parks and trails network, Arnold said.

“There’s a lot of runners in Eagan,” Arnold said. "It's a good fit for what we do, and the demographic is the kind that we like."

Arnold and Fox's plans for the store are ambitious. Rather than simply serving as a retail outlet, the pair hopes the store will become a hub for the local running community. Once opened, the store will offer a variety of classes for runners, who will pay a fee to participate. Some will cater to those who are just getting started, while others will help dedicated runners prep and train for marathon races. The store will also serve as a base of operations for a free running club, which will meet on Sundays and Wednesdays, Fox said.

The classes, Arnold hopes, will help help people live a healthier lifestyle and learn more about proper running techniques.

“The change in the runners [in the classes] is incredible," Arnold said. "You see these people who were terrified the first week, but all of sudden their self esteem has gone up and they start to identify themselves as runners."

Fox, 24, got his start running as a home-schooled student in Eagan and worked in the Running Room's Apple Valley and Uptown locations before becoming the manager of the Eagan location.

"I think a lot of people walk into a running store intimidated, and they’re scared to ask questions, and the first thing we try to do is disarm that," Fox said.

The store plans to celebrate its May 9 opening with a ribbon-cutting, a 5k race and a one-mile walking event. Entry into the event will be $10, with all the proceeds going to the Eagan and Lakeville Resource Centers, Arnold said. Check back at Eagan Patch for more information about the event.

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