The Detroit Shoppe @ The Somerset Collection

[BrushStart]

BrushStart, aren't you being a little presumptuous is assuming that folks who would frequent that store don't give a rats ass about Detroit?

I bet that many of these same folks who would frequent this store come to Detroit for an evening event... such as a sports function or one of the entertainment palaces. More often than not a Pure Detroit or other such stores are closed by then... and sometimes it's just a matter of convenience.

Your reading way too much into this being a place that people who hate Detroit would frequent. Hell if they really did hate Detroit... then they would likely not even go to that store during a Somerset Mall visit.

My angle on it has more to do with the people than this new store in Somerset. I really have no problem with Detroit merchandise being sold, it's great PR, and the proceeds are going to charity. I just don't get the mass public obsession with Detroit. I mean, I'm pretty obsessed with Detroit, but I live in Detroit and I'm actively engaged with the community here. A lot of people have this same obsession, but don't really care to be connected to Detroit in any real way. Think about it, where else is it the case that millions of people with no genuine connection to a city seem so proud to align themselves with it? It just seems crazy. That's what I don't understand! What is this "Detroit brand" that everyone craves? Is it the grittiness or the rugged endurance? The struggle of our industrial heritage? Or, maybe a combination of all those things that people want to associate with? Whatever it may be, I don't understand the obsession. How is it that there is even demand for a store in a mall like Somerset that sells just Detroit-related merchandise? To me, if you are that interested in establishing a connection to Detroit, then actually establish a connection to Detroit by moving here. Become a Detroiter, then you don't need a bunch of gimmicks to fill your Detroit-craving void.