DETROIT (WXYZ) — Shops on Six is one of the latest efforts by the Live6 Alliance to build up the Livernois and McNichols corridor.
Taqee Vernon, director of market development for Live6 Alliance, grew up going to high school on Detroit's west side and remembers when the space near the intersection of West McNichols and San Juan Drive wasn't much.
"I have no recollection of this ever being anything. This has never been a place I could stop and go anywhere, this was not a place my parents would stop," Vernon said.
The Live6 Alliance is a community planning and development organization transforming the space at 7434 W. McNichols into a collaborative marketplace known as Shops on Six.
"I think it's our duty just as a community development organization, or as the people who are willing, to say I'm going to give you something to take pride in," Vernon said.
Expected to open in late summer, Shops on Six will offer everything from grab-and-go food to personal health items and accessories like phone chargers.
"We wanted to create a place that felt safe, that felt new. And just give an alternative to the liquor store culture, convenience store culture in Detroit that we grew up with," Vernon said.
Most shelves will be dedicated to local entrepreneurs and their items, giving them a new opportunity to grow their businesses.
"We want this to kind of be an entrepreneurial incubator where people are getting accounting services, marketing services," Vernon said.
Danielle Brown, owner of LipSting Cosmetics, is one of five vendors currently signed on with the project.
"I am honored, actually," Brown said.
Brown, who is from the area, will bring her LipSting brand to Shops on Six. She started the brand as a licensed cosmetologist before expanding into products.
"Started as just a licensed cosmetologist, created a side of the business that only offers services, and from there knowing not everyone will sit in my chair, but I still want to create something that empowers women. So this where LipSting is created," Brown said.
The brand has been around 10 years, and Shops on Six will mark its first brick-and-mortar location. Brown called it a big opportunity to expand.
"Prior to, just online sales, a lot of vendors' events, and of course, word of mouth. We've been doing a lot of ground work for years and so being in a store is just an amazing opportunity for us," Brown said.
Other brands coming to Shops on Six include Sweet Aroma Candles, The Candidly Speaking, Moy Hair Essentials, Duey Dealer, and Eat Beauty.
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