Changes to the old Downtown Foodland on Lafayette

[LafayetteFoods]

FYI the old Downtown Foodland on Lafayette has been purchased. The market will be named Lafayette Foods. My name is Lance and I am proud to say I will be the full time manager for the new market [[Lafayette Foods). My team and I combined have over 50 years of experience. We currently have three markets in the city of Detroit and one in the suburbs. We are extremly excited to open up our fourth market in the city of Detroit. If anyone has any questions, comments, or suggestions please feel free to blog back or email me. Thank you!
Lance
lafayettefoods@gmail.com

[Jiveturkey]

Will the prices be reasonable compared to Harbortown and the prev Foodland?

[LafayetteFoods]

Yes the prices will be extremely reasonable, while providing the customer with GOOD!and FRESH! quality foods.

[English]

Hi Lance: Thanks so much for opening up the store! I am contemplating a move to a neighborhood near Lafayette Park within the next 4-5 months, and this is wonderful news.

I'm unfamiliar with the former store layout. What kinds of amenities will be offered [[deli, bakery, pharmacy, hot bar, sushi, etc.)?

Also, as someone with a litany of allergies, I'm wondering if you'll stock natural and organic products...

[Danny]

Very good Lance, keep up the good work. Detroiters want a excellent friendly neighborhood supermarket that could beat those suburban big box markets like Kroger's, Meijer's and EVIL Super-Wal-Mart. Please Shop your friendly neighbohood classic community supermarkets in Detroit's ghettohoods.

[bartock]

One of only two things I miss about working at my prior job in a "suburban" office building is that I could go a half mile and get broccoli salad, tuna salad, and other selections by the pound for lunch, along with "hot bar" options. Hope you include them, and market to commuters. It is also an easy stop for anyone needing groceries on the way home to the east side and burbs. Good luck.

[LafayetteFoods]

Thank you Danny we will try our best. To answer your question English, Lafayette Foods will have a deli, bakery, hot bar etc. As of now we do not have a pharmacy, we will be working on it. Also yes there will be a selection of organic products. We are open to new ideas and will be experimenting with many different products. Once again if anyone has any suggestions feel free to let me know thank you.

[LafayetteFoods]

Bartock we will also have a variety of salads buy the pound. Thank you

[Jiveturkey]

Lafeyette Foods, I just sent you an email.

[LafayetteFoods]

ok i will take a look

[p1acebo]

I was curious, where is this exactly? I live downtown and have been looking for a new place to shop for groceries. What street is this on?

[laphoque]

E Lafayette before Orleans in the strip-mall there. Same one as Cottage Inn.

[tompage]

When do you expect to open?

[LafayetteFoods]

Expected to open around April 2011

[LafayetteFoods]

Any suggestions are welcome thank you

[CLAUDE G]

This is good. I got a buddy who lives in Lafayette towers who has mentioned to me that it would be nice to have a place close by to get groceries.

Best of luck when you open

[marcwigle]

Any suggestions are welcome thank you

Maybe a website?

[English]

I second the need for a website. So many wonderful CBD businesses really don't have a huge web presence.

Also it might be nice to offer limited grocery delivery services to area residents. Harbortown Market and Kim's Produce are offering such services... in most major cities, busy professionals can order a selection of groceries right off the Internet, and many would be willing to pay a premium/delivery costs for such a service.

What will your hours be?

[stasu1213]

Any suggestions are welcome thank you

Could you relocate those restrooms? They should not be near the hot foods. Could you put them in the back. How would you keep the riff raff from loitering around the store. Would I be able to pay my utility bills there with my check. Will the store be fully stock at all times. Does the owner has a credit card so he won't have to get his supplies second hand like the former owner had to do.

[LafayetteFoods]

Thank you everyone for your responses. A Website will definitely be in the works, as soon as we get rolling. A Grocery delivery service has been brought to our attention but that will be a work in progress. As of now the store hours are looking like Monday-Saturday 8am-9pm and Sunday 9am-7pm..These hours have not been finalized.
As far as the restrooms go...We have already relocated them to the back room. We will do our best on keeping the loitering away. Proper authorities will be notified if the situation cannot be handled. As far as the utility bills go: We will be accepting payments from over 200 billers. There is only a select few that accept checks/money orders through the payment system. As far as the store being fully stocked-our credit is not an issue. The store will be fully stocked at all times. Please keep posting your comments/suggestions . Thank you.

[DetroitDad]

24 hours or at least late hours would be nice. You would be surprised how unreliable some of your competition has been, when it comes to keeping hours, and informing customers of holiday hour changes.

All the larger grocers, and many smaller produce marts and corner stores seem to close at 5pm-9pm around the Downtown area. These hours mean they don't exist for those working a 9am-5pm shift, or a 11am-7pm shift; two very common office shifts Downtown.

[CLAUDE G]

Limited home delivery might work, especially for people living in the apartments who don't have access to a car. You might even be able to get away with just doing curb side delivery

[stasu1213]

Limited home delivery might work, especially for people living in the apartments who don't have access to a car. You might even be able to get away with just doing curb side delivery

I wish you could try to open sooner but as long as you open that would be a plus. Maybe more store would open in that mall. Get the owner to shovel the staircase that leads from Lafayette Towers parking lot down to the strip mall. Lots of snow and ice there. Keep the store practical. Home deliveries is a good idea but lets start from the basics first. You will do good in that area alone if you keep everything up to par. Your store by floor space is almost as large as the new Kroger in Grosse Pointe. I say concetrate more on groceries, meats, cleaning, and dairy products first. I would rather have updated meat and dairy on the shelves and freezer than being concern about a hot foods section. Have a butcher on site to cut the fresh meat if needed. Give it that simple "Moms and Pops" feel without all of the fanfare and glitter. Don't try to sale t-shirts and other so-called ghetto items.

[stasu1213]

24 hours or at least late hours would be nice. You would be surprised how unreliable some of your competition has been, when it comes to keeping hours, and informing customers of holiday hour changes.

All the larger grocers, and many smaller produce marts and corner stores seem to close at 5pm-9pm around the Downtown area. These hours mean they don't exist for those working a 9am-5pm shift, or a 11am-7pm shift; two very common office shifts Downtown.

Clean up the Martin Luther King apartments first and then think about opening 24 hours.

[Ravine]

Some of you are really asking a lot out of this guy. Being open 24 hours/day, fully stocked at all times, hot bar, salad bar, organic foods, delivery, bill-paying station, and... competitive pricing!!

And yet, if he runs a "non-union shop," some of you will tear him a new one.