What is a business that would be RIPE for starting in Detroit?

**Carolyn.F** · January-11-15, 02:36 PM

Doggie day care.

**ABetterDetroit** · January-15-15, 04:22 PM

How about a bike shop? There is no shortage of cyclist as of late.

**G-DDT** · January-15-15, 07:43 PM

Let's turn back the clock-waaaaaay back. Michigan used to be filled with old, crusty storage mills, before the auto industry boomed. We can boost Michigan's economy by turning it into "America's upper closet shelf". We'll build huge facilities that will house non-lethal/non-toxic/non-radioactive materials, recycling materials [[yes, a lot to do with recycling materials), vehicles, storage records [[like Iron Mountain), etc. One thing we are not lacking in Detroit is space and a lot of presumably empty warehouses/factories. Just a thought I was tooling around with.....

Willi · January-15-15, 07:51 PM

A catch with warehousing anything.
Leaky ceilings and the cost to repair them.
Second is fire suppression , sprinklers, etc.
Those 2 items poke holes in many large scale projects involving any secure storage area.

**G-DDT** · January-15-15, 07:56 PM

Yes, arson, would, indeed, be a problem in Detroit.

Willi · January-15-15, 08:16 PM

Just ordinary liability of cardboard stacked up.
I've seen 100's of auto supplier shops, Big 3 stash spots in renovated industrial sites, etc.
It can be done, but pricing is crucial per sq/ft dry

**ABetterDetroit** · January-15-15, 08:45 PM

Originally Posted by Willi

A catch with warehousing anything.
Leaky ceilings and the cost to repair them.
Second is fire suppression , sprinklers, etc.
Those 2 items poke holes in many large scale projects involving any secure storage area.

You really don't know much about construction willi. You could put a whole lot of new roof and new fire suppression in for the cost of just the concrete floor and foundation in new construction.

G-DDTs idea is very viable in my opinion. The dream cruise is nothing but living real proof of the amount of summer only cars in car crazy metro Detroit. If one is inclined I would believe that it is completely possible to renovate a empty commercial building into a high quality climate controlled storage facility with top notch secure space for rent for part time toy cars.

Willi · January-15-15, 09:02 PM

If you got deep pockets, go for it.
Seen many projects die , get rejected, once renovation costs to bring-it-up-to-standards.
All depends "what" you want to store, its value , and cost of the lease, purchase price, etc.

Tractor trailer wells, dock plates, fork lifts, floor quality, all this stuff factors into the viability.
Got to get it in, move it, store it, etc etc

**loveDetroit** · January-17-15, 08:08 PM

Originally Posted by Willi

A catch with warehousing anything.
Leaky ceilings and the cost to repair them.
Second is fire suppression , sprinklers, etc.
Those 2 items poke holes in many large scale projects involving any secure storage area.

Why do you feel the need to bring in a big fat rain cloud on somebody else's idea?

**loveDetroit** · January-17-15, 08:16 PM

Water park

**G-DDT** · January-17-15, 09:02 PM

Originally Posted by loveDetroit

Water park

Yeah, a bigger one at Belle Isle. We can have a spout shaped like Charlie Leduff with a St. Patrick's pin on.

**ABetterDetroit** · January-17-15, 10:12 PM

Originally Posted by G-DDT

Yeah, a bigger one at Belle Isle. We can have a spout shaped like Charlie Leduff with a St. Patrick's pin on.

Kids love water parks, putting on on Belle Isle is not a bad idea either. The Leduff part is not so good.

**Dan Wesson** · January-18-15, 06:20 AM

Originally Posted by loveDetroit

Why do you feel the need to bring in a big fat rain cloud on somebody else's idea?

Ha Ha...

Exactly!

Well done.

**stasu1213** · January-18-15, 05:57 PM

A Dunhams or Dicks sporting goods store. Ann Taylor's Loft

**Danny** · January-18-15, 07:20 PM

Here's somthing ripe for Gilberttown Detroit:

1. Macy's Downtown Dept Store.

2. A great glass cube Apple Store.

3. Gordon Ramsey's Hell Kitchen Restuarant [[ with a live filming of his reality programming).

**G-DDT** · January-18-15, 08:42 PM

Please suffer my bouts of mischief, ABetterDetroit. Luckily, they only show up infrequently.

Danny-I may not like the Chef Gordon Ramsey idea, but something that puts Detroit chefs [[and there have got to be a lot of good ones out there-I've hung out with a few in my time.) and Detroit cooking out in the open and showcases them would be awesome. I have found Detroit is one of the few cities where you can get good, hearty, cheap food in large amounts.

**stasu1213** · January-19-15, 07:35 AM

I think Macy's should have a smaller two level store downtown that only sell clothing, jewelry and and maybe household accessories due to the store closings in multiple areas in the country. It should ope not in an existing building downtown and not have a building built especially for it. The entire first floor of the First National Building would be a good spot for a smaller Macy's

**ABetterDetroit** · January-19-15, 04:03 PM

Originally Posted by G-DDT

Please suffer my bouts of mischief, ABetterDetroit. Luckily, they only show up infrequently.

Danny-I may not like the Chef Gordon Ramsey idea, but something that puts Detroit chefs [[and there have got to be a lot of good ones out there-I've hung out with a few in my time.) and Detroit cooking out in the open and showcases them would be awesome. I have found Detroit is one of the few cities where you can get good, hearty, cheap food in large amounts.

Absolutely No problem, everyone has a days they shoot from the hip so to speak. I owe GPwrangler a outright apology myself. I agree with your assessment that the D is underated in the food department in comparison to other cities. Lots of places have great restaurants with high prices no trick to that, but we have some damn good choices for great food at reasonable prices and that can be way harder to find in many cities.

**G-DDT** · January-20-15, 02:59 PM

Originally Posted by ABetterDetroit

Lots of places have great restaurants with high prices no trick to that, but we have some damn good choices for great food at reasonable prices and that can be way harder to find in many cities.

Don't get me started about Boston. Ugh.

**scooter** · January-20-15, 03:34 PM

Originally Posted by Carolyn.F

Doggie day care.

all ready one here, forget name, it might be near midtown, but I see brochures
all the time

**ABetterDetroit** · January-27-15, 12:35 AM

River tours on a open party boat that hold 30-60 people. Duration of tour about a hour and a half. Charge $15-$20 a head. I have taken at least a dozen of these in other cities and they are quite popular. Summer time crowds on the river walk are large enough to support one.

**SWMAP** · January-27-15, 08:01 AM

I hope that Detroit Farm & Garden is meeting it's owners expectations. That was an out-of-box idea for a business in SW Detroit. I'm not a commercial user- I buy small amounts of that kind of stuff, but it is great to have a place like that in the neighborhood.
i think a "mercantile" on Michigan Ave. would be a great compliment. Nice things not from China: iron cookware, Iris Handverk household brushes, that goat-milk laundry soap from Brightmoor, breadboards and bowls, work aprons and smocks, hand-tools, personal care.
Brooklyn Mercantile is one such store in NYC.