Motor City Match and Green Grocer Program help Detroiter open Whittier Bodega, bringing fresh food within walking distance on Detroit’s east side

• Whittier Bodega marks the fourth Green Grocer Program ribbon cutting since the program’s 2024 relaunch and Motor City Match’s 213th neighborhood ribbon cutting

• The opening moves the Green Grocer Program closer to its goal of six openings by the end of 2026, leaving two stores to go

• Owner Alontae Pittman, a father of five who lives about a mile from the store, opened the grocery, deli and resource center in a building that sat empty for about a decade, giving neighbors walkable access to fresh food

• A $50,000 Motor City Match grant and a $25,000 Green Grocer grant paid for design, architectural work, equipment and inventory

• Opening marks the fourth Green Grocer Program ribbon cutting since the program relaunched in 2024, putting the city halfway toward Mayor Mary Sheffield’s commitment to open six Green Grocer-backed stores this year

• Neighbors can buy fresh produce, household staples and deli sandwiches made in-house, and get help with taxes, LLC filings and grant applications at a resource center inside the store

October 29, 2026 (DETROIT) – Mayor Mary Sheffield, the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation (DEGC) and City leaders joined Alontae Pittman today to celebrate the grand opening of Whittier Bodega, a grocery store and deli at 11009 Whittier Ave. in Detroit’s Outer Drive-Hayes neighborhood. The opening marks the fourth Green Grocer Program ribbon cutting since the program relaunched in 2024 and Motor City Match’s 213th neighborhood ribbon cutting.

Fresh food a short walk from home

Pittman lives about a mile from the store, near East Warren Avenue and Outer Drive, and grew up on the east side near Six Mile Road and Van Dyke Avenue. He opened Whittier Bodega so families on his block, including his own, wouldn’t have to settle for liquor store and gas station food or get in a car for fresh groceries.

“It wasn’t just something I saw. It was something I go through myself,” Pittman said. “I wanted somewhere my kids can go get fresh food that’s in walking distance, that’s safe and that’s actually fresh. Not expired food, not some packaged something that’s been sitting on a shelf for three or four months.”

More than a grocery store

Whittier Bodega moves Green Grocer closer to its goal of six openings by the end of 2026. The store stocks produce from local farmers when Michigan’s seasons allow, including apples, oranges, pears, grapes and berries, and rotates in mangoes, melons and soursop as the seasons change. Shelves also hold frozen vegetables and meats, cereal, grits, oatmeal, canned goods, cleaning supplies and hygiene products, and Pittman stocks local brands whenever he can.

The deli offers more than 20 sandwich combinations, led by corned beef smoked in-house, along with pizzas, hot dogs and soups made from scratch.

Customers help decide what comes next. A sign-up ledger at the front of the store asks shoppers to list two items they’d like to see, and more than 1,000 people have added their names. Pittman takes the list on every inventory run and emails customers when their items arrive.

“We’re not just here to take money,” Pittman said. “We’re here to listen and keep an open line of communication with the neighborhood.”

“Alontae saw what his neighborhood needed and made it happen,” said Sheffield. “He invested in his community, and now kids on Whittier can walk to a store with fresh fruit and a hot meal. We’re four stores into my commitment of six Green Grocer stores this year, and we’re not stopping until every Detroiter can get fresh food close to home.”

The store also doubles as a resource center. Pittman’s fiancée, who has prepared taxes for 15 years, runs a tax office at the front of the store, and neighbors can get notary and printing services, use free Wi-Fi and get help forming LLCs.

“That’s how our programs are built to work. We meet entrepreneurs wherever they are, whether that’s an idea, an empty building or a third application, and we stay with them until the doors open,” said Sean Gray, DEGC senior vice president of Small Business Services, which administers Motor City Match and the Green Grocer Program. “Now families on Whittier can walk to fresh food and a hot meal.”

Two programs in his corner

Pittman ran a landscaping company and a tobacco shop before deciding he wanted a business that served his neighbors and that his family could grow up in. He found Motor City Match while searching online for funding and applied several times before winning.

He worked through every Motor City Match track, from business planning to development and design, before receiving a $50,000 cash grant. His business plan grew from one page to 16 along the way.

Motor City Match then connected Pittman to the Green Grocer Program, which awarded him a $25,000 grant, along with the Michigan Good Food Fund and ProsperUs. Pittman secured $175,000 in grants and loans across the four programs. The Motor City Match and Green Grocer grants covered design, architectural work and equipment, including stoves, ovens, coolers, shelving and signage, and turned an empty storefront into a working grocery and deli.

“It was like a domino effect,” Pittman said. “They all came to the table and made sure we got this done the right way.”

Pittman, who had never run a grocery business, said the guidance from Motor City Match and Green Grocer mattered as much as the financial support.

“They didn’t just throw me in the fire,” he said. “They put me with a financial advisor. They put me with people who’ve been running grocery stores for 30 or 40 years to show me where the lighting goes, where the shelving goes, how to place produce. They schooled me on what I needed to know instead of handing me a grant and saying figure it out.”

Whittier Bodega employs one full-time and one part-time worker, with family members rotating in to help. Pittman plans to add EBT, lottery and check cashing services and wants to see the model repeated in neighborhoods across Detroit.

The store is open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday.

“Every neighborhood deserves a Whittier Bodega type of store, where people can get fresh food, resources and a safe place for kids and older people, all in walking distance,” Pittman said. “If it’s not me, I want the idea to spread across the city so we have more fresh produce than liquor stores, gas stations and tobacco shops.”

About Detroit Economic Growth Corporation (DEGC):

Detroit Economic Growth Corporation is a non-profit organization that serves as Detroit’s lead implementing agency for business retention, attraction and economic development. DEGC is led by a board comprised of business, civic and community leaders. Its staff provides services for key public authorities that facilitate incentives and other forms of financing for projects that bring new jobs and investment to the City. DEGC also manages important initiatives to support small businesses and grow neighborhood commercial corridors. DEGC is dedicated to inclusive development and access to economic opportunity.

About Motor City Match

Motor City Match is a small business incubator program powered by a partnership between the City of Detroit, Detroit Economic Growth Corporation (DEGC) and Economic Development Corporation of the City of Detroit (EDC). The program awards cash grants and provides planning, design and development support to entrepreneurs looking to open or expand a brick-and-mortar business in Detroit. Applications are accepted quarterly. More information is available at www.MotorCityMatch.com.