The Detroit Shoppe

The Detroit Shoppe at Somerset Mall is an awesome store. The store offers a historical look at all things Detroit, except unlike a museum, you can purchase the items for your very own! I am not much of a shopper, but I spent hours in this store, looking around, exploring our city that had been compiled in to this single space.  

At first glance the store appears cluttered with “old” memorabilia…. it is…. but once you get in and start exploring, you’ll find the clutter is actually an endless amount of really cool, sometimes forgotten things of our past. The best things in this store are like treasures, the more you dig, the more interesting stuff you will find. During the time of the depression, people kept everything, and most stores and homes were cluttered with nonsense, so I guess in a way I understood where they were going with the cluttered look, and realized that was part of the reason I felt like I was taken back through time when I walked in.

As I first walked in I was immediately drawn to the sports section. They had old stadium seats, score boards, and photographs that were amazing. It felt like being at Tiger Stadium in the 1950’s. The store is in sections by certain interests, so next I came to the “Michigan” section. This section consisted of all items born and raised in Michigan. Old Faygo and Vernors glass soda bottles cover the shelves, Better Made products, taffy, and vintage t shirts give Michigan lovers a lot of choices for a treat or even a nice gift idea. It was awesome to see how many different things were actually created in our city. 

Of course, the section that drew me in for hours was the entertainment section. The first thing that entranced me was the pictures. There’s something about old pictures that take you back in time and make you feel like you’re actually there. The section of pictures seemed endless. Although some were expensive since they are vintage photos, I thought it was awesome that each picture in the store was for sale. The pictures were mostly those of performing artists, theaters and actual photos of the city of Detroit in the 40s, 50s, and 60s. It was amazing to see what the city actually looked like that then, what residents wore, and how much has changed since those days. There were even pictures of people on horse drawn carriages before there were cars in Detroit. It took me back in time.

The store also offers a section devoted to music, most of which being Motown music which is directly correlated with Detroit. They have compilation albums featuring the songs of the decades, including all the biggest hits. They also have compilation albums of the most amazing music of Motown. The music section is huge and offers visitors a sample look at the time of Motown, almost like its own mini museum. It’s very cool and you should check it out.