While those of us in New England were desperately trying to distance ourselves from one of the most unrelenting winters in recent history, many Minnesotans spent the past few months embracing their chilly climate and overall “Northiness” in an attempt to create some distance from their association with the Midwest.
Minnesota’s rebranding has become a hot topic throughout the region, where residents are tired of being lumped into the vague and somewhat vanilla view of the Midwest region. Perceptions of Midwestern friendliness and simplicity may sound nice enough, but that’s the problem. Minnesota is a state with rich Scandinavian roots, unique culture and diversity, and yes, cold weather.
Thomas Fisher, dean of the College of Design at the University of Minnesota, feels it’s time that the citizens of Minnesota stop being embarrassed of who they are and start embracing it. Regarding the state’s cold climate, he says, “It’s a huge strength of ours. In places where there’s adversity, it tends to fuel innovation because it just takes more to thrive,” he added. “There’s a ‘North’ culture here, and we should claim that.”
Although some Midwesterners are slightly insulted by this growing movement (though they may be too friendly to admit it), those in Minnesota and surrounding “North” states are jumping onboard. Last November a public discussion entitled “Midwest? The Past, Present and Future of Minnesota’s Identity”, was held in front of an overflowing auditorium at the Minnesota’s Walker Art Center.
The last straw for many was when a New York Times article cited grape salad as Minnesotans’ most popular Thanksgiving dish – which appeared to be a great surprise to the 5 million citizens of the state (to be fair, the Times got CT wrong as well). It was a glaring realization that the rest of America knows very little about Minnesota.
“The Midwest is this big nebulous part of the country and it’s kind of what’s left over after all the other regions of the country are defined,” said Eric Dayton, a local Minneapolis businessman whose been at the forefront of the “North” movement.
Dayton adds, “Those regions have much stronger identities if you think of the East Coast or maybe New England or the Pacific Northwest or certainly the South. The Midwest is kind of the catchall for what’s left.”
The idea of abandoning the “Midwest” came while Dayton was touring Scandinavia and was struck by “how strong and proud the northern identity of that region is.” Which got him to thinking, “Why doesn’t America have a North?”
Dayton really knew he was onto something when his clothing store, Askov Finlayson, quickly sold out of 2,000 special stocking hats he had made with the word “North” on the side.
Only time will tell whether or not this distinction from the Midwest will ever catch on, but for now Minnesota has stumbled upon a public relations diamond, which regional tourism and development would be foolish not to embrace. The key to any great marketing effort is to differentiate yourself, and it’s exciting to see an entire region of the country rallying behind that idea. Viva la North!