The Mitten State has officially announced plans to open a new retail space in a new mixed-use development in Grand Rapids’ west side, slated to open this fall on the corner of Bridge and Turner.
The Michigan-themed apparel company’s new storefront will be located on the ground floor of the
currently underway development by Rockford Construction, occupying 1,700 square feet of retail space below 36 new apartments and adjacent to the 40,000-square-foot
New Holland Brewing Co. brewpub, micro-distillery and full-service restaurant.
“My friend Mike Mraz, who is one of the partners over at Rockford Construction, had given us an opportunity (to be in) one of his buildings in downtown Grand Rapids during 2013 ArtPrize for a pop-up shop for about 30 days and it was super successful,” says Scott Zubrickas, Mitten State co-owner. “From then on he’s kept an eye out for us when opportunities pop up for more development and for expanding our brand.”
Founded in 2009 as an e-commerce only venture with warehouse operations based in Comstock Park,
The Mitten State opened its first physical location on Wealthy Street in fall 2014, with a portion of every sale donated to local charities.
Zubrickas says when the The Mitten State holds its grand opening event in the fall, the store plans to celebrate its new neighborhood with special edition shirts, the proceeds for which will go to charities in the area, and is exploring more collaborations with nonprofit groups like
WestSide Collaborative.
He says its new west side storefront not only offers an opportunity for more foot traffic in a highly-anticipated new development, but also that the growing neighborhood shares a lot of the same ideas and values with The Mitten State brand — which is to say, an appreciation for the past and a sense of pride for the present.
“Our overall theme to our apparel is that vintage style and the designs we use are usually throwbacks to the 60s and 70s, and the west side also has that sort of history to it. I’m almost 40, and I remember going to what we used to call the Bermuda Triangle down there, and those bars, like the Anchor Bar, still look the same they did 20 to 30 years ago,” Zubrickas says. “There’s so much cool history with Michigan, and people like to wear what they represent, so it works.”
By Anya Zentmeyer, Development News Editor
Images courtesy of The Mitten State
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