Downtown Detroit's retail future could center on "destination boutiques," Sherri Welch reports in Crain's Detroit Business.
John Varvatos was born in Detroit, grew up in Allen Park and went to Allen Park High. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris)
Last week, Bedrock Real Estate Services LLC announced that upscale menswear designer John Varvatos is returning to his native area with a store on Woodward Avenue, arguably the most desirable retail block in the downtown area.
John Varvatos Apparel Corp. will join local gastro pub Wright & Co in the former Wright Kay Jewelers building and call as its neighbor outdoor apparel retailer Moosejaw — which opened a permanent location just down the avenue in March 2013.
Though the demographics in the downtown area aren't yet what many retailers expect in terms of density when scouting locations, high-end retailers are less dependent on population numbers than other retailers. The very high-end retailers draw traffic of their own, local real estate brokers say.
Varvatos' decision to open a store downtown will help create a "wow" factor on Woodward. And that "wow" factor may bring destination shoppers and pique the interest of other high-end retailers, brokers and developers predict, Welch writes.
