A second Whole Foods for Detroit?

[iheartthed]

Apparently the CEO thinks that might happen...

http://detroit.curbed.com/archives/2...cond-store.php

[Dbest]

Put it on the Detroit side of the shed..

[Danny]

Good for them. Detroiters need real food, not pathetic synthetics.

[Zacha341]

I hear you on that, but HF is VERY high. You really need to be making a very strong income to shop there full-time. And I find their juice option to limited. I'd prefer to see a Trader Joes, which while not fully organic is a more affordable bridge to off the full process, fructose stuff.

Good for them. Detroiters need real food, not pathetic synthetics.

[erikd]

I hear you on that, but HF is VERY high. You really need to be making a very strong income to shop there full-time. And I find their juice option to limited. I'd prefer to see a Trader Joes, which while not fully organic is a more affordable bridge to off the full process, fructose stuff.

I may be wrong on this, but my experience is that Whole Foods is not really designed for full-time shopping, nor do most of their regular customers buy all of there groceries there. Whole Foods is more of a specialty store where people go to get certain items that are hard to find at regular grocery stores.

You don't have to make a ton of money to shop at Whole Foods, as long as you aren't buying everything there. I think most people are buying things like non-GMO bread, free-range chicken, organic produce items, specialty prepared foods, and things like that at WF, and also going to Meijer/Kroger/Wal-Mart for other basic grocery and household items. It's like buying a nice coat or shoes at an expensive specialty clothing store, and buying socks and underwear at Target.

[Spartan]

I may be wrong on this, but my experience is that Whole Foods is not really designed for full-time shopping, nor do most of their regular customers buy all of there groceries there. Whole Foods is more of a specialty store where people go to get certain items that are hard to find at regular grocery stores.

You don't have to make a ton of money to shop at Whole Foods, as long as you aren't buying everything there. I think most people are buying things like non-GMO bread, free-range chicken, organic produce items, specialty prepared foods, and things like that at WF, and also going to Meijer/Kroger/Wal-Mart for other basic grocery and household items. It's like buying a nice coat or shoes at an expensive specialty clothing store, and buying socks and underwear at Target.

I think there is use for both. If I lived in Midtown, I would likely go there for most of my shopping. Everything except meat, probably, since that is about 5x the cost of normal meat.

[Zacha341]

I like the way you put that. I'd never go to WF for a bottle of catchup but yes, I do like some of their other items as I can afford them. Some of their lotion and hair care products are now my favorite.

You don't have to make a ton of money to shop at Whole Foods, as long as you aren't buying everything there. I think most people are buying things like non-GMO bread, free-range chicken, organic produce items, specialty prepared foods, and things like that at WF, and also going to Meijer/Kroger/Wal-Mart for other basic grocery and household items. It's like buying a nice coat or shoes at an expensive specialty clothing store, and buying socks and underwear at Target.

[animatedmartian]

I can't imagine where'd they put it. Only maybe near either of the new Meijers but I'm not so sure.

[iheartthed]

I can't imagine where'd they put it. Only maybe near either of the new Meijers but I'm not so sure.

My guess would be somewhere downtown.

[animatedmartian]

My guess would be somewhere downtown.

Hmm. I didn't think WF was a type of store that would cluster that close to other WF stores. But I guess Jefferson would be a good possibility.

[iheartthed]

Hmm. I didn't think WF was a type of store that would cluster that close to other WF stores. But I guess Jefferson would be a good possibility.

Whole Foods likes to place stores in and near high density business districts. They have one in lower Manhattan near the World Trade Center, and one at Columbus Circle in the basement of the Time Warner Center.

If Papa Joes is still planning to open up shop downtown I would imagine that Whole Foods would also want to get in down there before PJ builds a loyal base. I could see WF on the ground level or basement of some building near Campus Martius... Maybe 1001 Woodward?

[stasu1213]

My guess would be somewhere downtown.

ybe near Lafayette Park in the spot where the YWCA or the apartment building once were. I would had said Jefferson Village but that strip mall is just another junk mall with its arms open to more junk stores to come set up shop

[Huggybear]

ybe near Lafayette Park in the spot where the YWCA or the apartment building once were.

Can't go there. There are recorded deed restrictions. No retail - only nonprofit, educational, residential or white-collar office.

HB

[aoife]

The article mentioned Jefferson Avenue. There is certainly enough land to pick from if they are thinking East Jefferson.

[stasu1213]

The article mentioned Jefferson Avenue. There is certainly enough land to pick from if they are thinking East Jefferson.

Avenue of Fashion area would be another good spot for the area has the income to support it

[dmike76]

How about the Avenue of Fashion/University District area?

[stinkytofu]

Another cool tidbit from this morning...

Crain's Detroit Biz @crainsdetroit · 56m

MT @DayvMuller: At #dethomecoming McCormack Baron Salazar's Richard Baron is considering relocating St. Louis, Mo-based firm to #Detroit

• ReplyReplied to 0 times
• Retweet

[dmike76]

Downtown just seems too close to the Midtown store. I think that they'd want to pick an underserved area. Jefferson does seem feasible....You've got some apartments on the river being rehabbed and there's always the Villages and Lafayette Park, and Joseph Berry Sub. That may be the best place for them.

[Wesley Mouch]

I love Detroit, but I don't see the market for them yet. The current store is very small, by WF standards. Probably 1/2 the size of anything I've seen elsewhere. So it was clearly a toe in the water.

Compared to most WF's, its catering area is very small. So I'll guess that they'll do another store downtown, and maybe refocus the new or existing store to increase their catering volume. Maybe the shopping moves to, say, Corktown -- and the midtown store becomes nothing but a catering center to serve downtown -- with a mini-market.

Another thought... WF is at the point where they are molting from a specialty store to a mainstream business. They're looking at pricing more aggressively, trying to shed the 'whole paycheck' image. Detroit could be a great place to experiment with their ability to be a more full-line grocer to the less affluent. How about a southwest Detroit store, with good access to both the Mexican and Arab markets nearby.

Expect the unexpected from WFs.

[SpartanDawg]

I think it will most definitely be east jefferson and near gross pointe...

With the midtown store being RIGHT on an M1 rail stop, there would be no point putting another one downtown, people downtown can very easily get to the midtown store

[FormerDetroiter]

I think it will most definitely be east jefferson and near gross pointe...

I doubt if Grosse Pointer's are going to cross Alter Rd. and start shopping in Jeff-Chalmers. Especially when they already have Trader Joe's on Kercheval in the Village.

[313WX]

IF [[big if) a new Whole Foods goes anywhere else beside downtown/Lafayette Park, the logical location IMO would be the Palmer Park/Sherwood Forest neighborhood...

[stasu1213]

IF [[big if) a new Whole Foods goes anywhere else beside downtown/Lafayette Park, the logical location IMO would be the Palmer Park/Sherwood Forest neighborhood...

enue of Fashon would be as nice area as well

[401don]

Let's just hope they don't trumpet their success and turn around and ask for huge subsidies again.

[stinkytofu]

Let's just hope they don't trumpet their success and turn around and ask for huge subsidies again.

Interesting point. Not sure how I'd feel about subsidies...will be curious to see how this works out.