After spending its infancy as an online business, moving into toddlerhood as a brick and mortar store in Ferndale and then another store, Modern Natural Baby is moving again, this time to a larger space and with bigger plans.
Emily Murray, who started
Modern Natural Baby with her husband, John Murray, in August 2009, says the move from Modern Natural Baby's store at 224 W. 9 Mile Road -- it once was on Woodward Avenue -- will let the new store at 200 W. 9 Mile offer more products and bigger ones such as strollers and car seats and high chairs. There wasn't enough room to display such items in the prior location.
At about double the size, the new Modern Natural Baby will not only sell more products but also seek out and sell those that keep with its organic, earth-friendly, socially-responsible business model.
"It'll be nice because we have a ton of gift registries, but before they had to register at other places for the strollers and car seats and larger items. Now they can register for everything here," Murray says.
The new 5,300 sq. ft. store is replacing Dollar Castle and will be the anchor of the 12,000-plus sq. ft. space that will soon be occupied by three tenants. The owner is renovating the building inside and out.
"The owner is putting a ton of money into it," Murray says. "Three businesses will be there instead of one. It's going to be one of the nicest buildings in Ferndale. This is really good for the city."
She expects to move into the new spot a few doors down from the current shop in August and be open later that month or in early September.
Though customers come from across metro Detroit and even from Canada, Murray attributes the success that started with an online business run from a home basement to a retail store to busting at the seams to Ferndale's way with attracting families and fostering progressive attitudes.
"Ferndale is definitely a place where there's a lot of nightlife…We've come from a time where families did kind of leave Ferndale…they're coming back…a lot of my customers are Ferndale customers. It's a great place for us because there are so many families, and it's a green area, it's such a hip area. It's perfect for our business."
Writer: Kim North Shine
Source: Emily Murray, co-owner, Modern Natural Baby
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