Business & Tech

Looking Back: A Busy Year for Birmingham Businesses

The city saw the addition of 28 new restaurants, stores and retail services during 2011.

While Michigan and the United States is still emerging from a recession, Birmingham is ending its year on an economic high note and is poised for a bright 2012.

Boosted by Oakland County's AAA bond rating and low debt, Birmingham saw the addition of 28 new restaurants, stores and retail service businesses in 2011.

According to John Heiney, director of the (PSD), the retail occupancy rate in downtown Birmingham is at 95.7 percent at the end of 2011, while the office occupancy rate is at 88.45 percent. There are both increases from last year's rates of 92.6 percent and 84 percent, respectively.

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"Overall, 2011 was an excellent year for retail leasing in Birmingham," Heiney said.

Heiney said several new national retailers, such as the Paper Source and J. McLaughlin, have already made an impact on Birmingham's retail scene, while the relocation of Sanders to North Old Woodward (from its former location on East Maple) has created a lot of buzz downtown.

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"(It) has created a lot of excitement among Birmingham shoppers who remember the original downtown store many years ago," he said.

As for closings, 16 shops, salons and restaurants closed in 2011, several of which were high-profile, including , which closed all its stores as part of bankruptcy proceedings in September.

Birmingham's newest shops, salons and other businesses include:

In addition, the following nine restaurants and bistros opened in Birmingham:

Already scheduled to open in 2012 are:

  • Hyde Park Prime Steakhouse
  • Elements Therapeutic Massage
  • Axis Music Academy
  • Happy Dino Playcare
  • What Crepe
  • Revive Street
  • Churchill's Bistro

Meanwhile, the following 16 businesses closed their doors in 2011:


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