Detroit standards, he adds.
Ceresnie says that all things consid-
ered — the terrorist attacks, a sour
economy and mild winter — he was
pleased with how 2001 ended, and he
remains confident about this year, not
only for his business, but for downtown
Birmingham.
Around the corner, Mark Keller,
owner of women's clothing store, says
it's only natural that every few years
there's a cycle of change when retail
spaces turn over.
But the key to Birmingham's ongoing
success, he says, will be with specialty
retailing and multi-branded stores sell-
ing merchandise from up-and-coming
designers. "The big guys are as common
as a white T-shirt,' he says, adding that
the recruitment of better stores to fill a
"quality void" will help strengthen

downtown Birmingham's shopping mix.
It wasn't all that long ago when
homegrown retailers were well-
entrenched in suburban shopping
plazas, area malls and downtown
streetscapes. Businesses that catered to
the carriage trade were born alongside
those with a taste level slightly more
down market.
Some time around the late 1970s,
though, the local color that character-
ized retailing in metro Detroit began to
fade, thanks in part to heightened com-
petition from national players and com-
placency in the face of changing tastes
and times.
Yet, many continue to stay the course,
and thrive, despite the odds. "Some
locals are success stories," says retail ana-
lyst Fred Marx.
Certain retail sectors, like fine jewelry,

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these services, and we refuse to nickel and
dime our business customers for things
like deposit slips or "teller transactions."

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t

Business & Commercial Estimated Annual Feest

Birmingham Upswing

"Downtown Birmingham is still the
only place like it in [the area] with such
a concentration of upscale outdoor
shopping in one place," says Mike
Ceresnie of Ceresnie and Offen Furs.
"It's a thriving district," and not just by

he says, are better fits for independents.
"Books and hardware are more com-
modity related," he explains. "The cus-
tomer doesn't need that attachment
[that would come from investing in fine
jewelry] because the brand is more
important."
Marx recommends independents find
a niche and "stay out in front, be a risk-
taker and develop a strategy. Make the
investment and then keep reinvesting.
[Success] doesn't happen by itself"
The Shirt Box's Elkus makes an
important distinction between the locals
and their national brethren. "I find
we're like dinosaurs, a sort of dying
breed," he says. "I'd hate to see us like
the drugstore chains and get gobbled
up. It's an important time for us_ to sup-
port the independents." fl

PARAMOUNT

BANK

You've never seen a bank like this!

Per Check

Per Deposit Slip
Check Ordering Fee

Courier Service

Total

Branches

Birmingham Farmington Hills
248.723.4800 248.538.7600

$0.00
$0.00

Monthly Fee

0
2

a

$0.00
$0.00

S240.00
$156.00
$225.00
$200.00

$0.00

$0.00

$021 .0

BANK ONE

For Loretta Globerson, co-owner of
Baby & Me in West Bloomfield, service
is key in her business. She says provid-
ing the highest level of customer atten-
don, not to mention a policy of dis-
counting prices, has been a matter of
course for the. 24-year-old shop.
She's not bothered by the Baby Gaps,
Old Navies or Kohls of the world. "We
do our own thing, develop it and do
what we do best," she says. "They build
their reputations on one look. We give
[customers] any look they want, and a
lot of service."
But shoppers are getting more
diverse. A quick scan of the parking lots
at such thrifty outlets as Costco, TJ
Maxx or Value City can attest to that
fact.
There's definitely loyalty, but people
will shop anyplace to get what they
need, says Gary Astrein, co-owner of
Astrein's Jewelers in Birmingham.
Astrein isn't complaining. He's quite a
booster for the commercial hub with
downtown Birmingham, Royal Oak
and Troy's Somerset Collection as its
anchors, complementing, rather than
competing, with one another. "It's a
great triangle," he says, and getting
stronger.
Astrein has been in downtown
Birmingham for nearly three decades,
and despite some recent high-profile
departures, he remains upbeat about the
viability of the shopping district. He
cites a growing number of entertain-
ment and dining venues, and several
local and national retail concepts slated
to open this year.
"Retail is getting back to a good
state," he says, as consumers become
more comfortable spending money" It
also doesn't hurt that his is a business
that benefits from the area's healthy
appetite for luxury goods.
Other Birmingham shopkeepers share
similar views, particularly those that
have been in town long enough to see
the shopping hub press on, despite its
obituary being written every now and
again, particularly when Somerset
Collection expanded in 1992 and again
in 1996.

$ I92.00
$144.00
$180..00
S 77.25

;

•

1- These fees may vary based on your business's individual needs and usage.
*Service not available

FDIC

4/12

2002

15