Gazelle honored again

The Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce has named Gazelle Sports its 2008 Small Business of the Year. The sporting goods retailer, which has stores in Grand Rapids, Holland and downtown Kalamazoo, was honored at a luncheon in Grand Rapids on May 20.

Co-owned by MRA board member Bruce Johnson and Chris Crowell-Lampen, the business is a major sponsor of Girls on the Run International, a nonprofit organization that encourages preteen girls to develop self-respect and healthy lifestyles through running. Gazelle received a Michigan Retailer of the Year award in 2005.

Building on the success of its child handprint charm, Haig’s of Rochester Fine Jewelry created a line of child handprint accessories for dad, including money clips, key chains, business card holders, pins, pet tags and more. Ten percent of the sale of each handprint accessory will go to Crittenton Hospital’s Pediatric Rehabilitation Fund. Previous charm sales successfully raised over $400 to date for Crittenton Hospital’s Women & Children Services.

Timothy Shannon has joined the sales team of Ideation, Inc. in Ann Arbor, a leading producer of marketing solutions for independent gift retailers. Shannon has more than 30 years of experience in retailing and marketing for the independent retailer. He managed and then owned Wilkinson Luggage on Main Street in Ann Arbor.

Liberty Coin Service, a rare coins and precious metals dealer, has opened a new location and increased its staff by 50 percent. Located in Lansing’s Frandor Shopping Center, the business opened a second location in the same center in early June to accommodate the long lines and wait-times for customers coming in to sell their jewelry and precious metals due to record-high prices for gold and platinum.

The new location will focus on serving customers with items to sell, while the original location continues to serve rare coin collectors, foreign currency exchange, wholesale trading and its mail-order operations. As part of the grand opening celebration, Liberty gave away 10 Mexican 2-peso gold coins in a drawing.

First-quarter sales of well over $10 million not only set a quarterly sales record but surpassed the company’s annual sales volume for 26 of the past 28 years.

Chicago-based Urban Retail Properties LLC, is planning a “significant” expansion of Oakland Mall in Troy. Details regarding a timeline or dollar amount will be announced within two months, according to Chairman and CEO Ross Glickman.

The expansion will be accompanied by renovations of the existing mall and upgrades at two strip centers across the street also owned by Urban Retail Properties. Glickman said the mall had languished for years with few improvements or upgrades.

A planned redevelopment of the former Daniel’s Office Supply building in downtown Muskegon would provide the city with an indoor urban marketplace to be known as the Russell Block Market, emulating larger urban marketplaces such as Pike Place in Seattle.

Small spaces will be leased out to food or specialty retailers, with customers drawn to the variety from baked goods to custom jewelry. The Russell Block Market is designed for up to 50 tenants on two levels in spaces as small as 100 square feet.

The project is the brainchild of Gary Post, the retired president of Muskegon Construction Co. Developers will use the next six months to refine the concept along with marketing and leasing of space, with opening slated for the spring 2009.

The Chicago Market: Living and Giving, a gift show at Chicago’s Merchandise Mart July 17-21, offers a dedicated Buyer Relations staff, who will work directly with the Market’s attendees to ensure the experience is productive and enjoyable. For more information about the Buyers Relations program, contact Sara Hall by email at shall@mmart.com or phone at 312.527.6448.

Meijer now offers free pre-natal vitamins in all 181 Meijer pharmacies. The program, which began June 1, joins the retailer’s free antibiotic program that began in October 2006.

“As a family-focused company, offering free pre-natal vitamins is just another way we can help the many families that make up our core customer base,” said Nat Love, Vice President Drug Store for Meijer.