The City of Detroit is an underserved retail market. Retail leakage is conservatively estimated to be in excess of $1.7 billion annually. This translates in to demand for roughly an additional 8 million square feet of retail space in the city across all retail sectors. DEGC has undertaken several demographic and psychographic studies to better understand the opportunities for retail development in Detroit neighborhoods and downtown.
In particular, Detroit's grocery sector shows opportunities for growth, with $277 million to $344 million annually in grocery spending leakage. To begin to address this need, the DEGC has launched the Green Grocer Project. The initial phase of this program will provide technical assistance to qualified existing grocers to help improve their daily operations; however, assistance is also available to new grocery operators looking to enter the market.
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Green Grocer Project will help create competitive, sustainable grocery offerings in Detroit while improving fresh food offerings for residents.