Bellyache Candy Shoppe
By: Tom Hendrickson, 8/14/2008
Candy and Detroit rock n' roll - two great tastes that taste great together! Royal Oak's Bellyache Candy Company is taking the web by storm, pushing Goo Goo Clusters, Pop Rocks and Charleston Chews along with CDs, vinyl LPs and 7-inch singles from bands like The Amino Acids, The Hentchman, and Gore Gore Girls. Can you say, "Yummy"?
Take The Detour
By: Tom Hendrickson, 7/30/2008
Indie music, cult films, live show videos, killer parties.
Detour Magazine channels its suburban rage into inspired pop culture writing, plastering the web with Metro Detroit goodness.
The Hilberry Gallery
By: Tom Hendrickson, 7/17/2008
There was a time when Ferndale and artsy would have been a contradiction in terms. Not anymore. Don't believe it? Visit the internationally recognized Hilberry Gallery, probably the most respected and forward-thinking private gallery in Michigan.
Puffer Reds
By: Tom Hendrickson, 7/10/2008
More than just another downtown hip hop store, for 29 years Ypsilanti's Puffer Reds has been a nationally recognized tastemaker. Customers come from as far away as Ohio to shop there, Nike provides them with a custom shoe display and Adidas celebrated the Forum's 25th-Anniversary by creating a sneaker designed by the owner's 18 year-old son. The store has got street cred to spare.
Moo Moo's
By: Tom Hendrickson, 6/19/2008
Put the microwave pizza pocket down. Step away from corndog. Ferndale-based Moo Moo's Vegetarian Cuisine makes the things that make you go, "Yum." With the vegetarian food market expected to reach $2.5 billion this year, owner Michele Rastelli hopes her locally produced entrees-to-go make a little green of their own.
RTT, USA
By: Tom Hendrickson, 6/5/2008
The virtual world is their oyster. Royal Oak's RTT, USA has turned its virtual prototyping technology into a must-use strategy for companies developing new products. It can then use that same technology to virtually market the product to an endless Internet audience. Cool.
Ann Arbor's Foodie Nation
By: Tom Hendrickson, 5/22/2008
La Rochefoucauld once said, "To eat is a necessity, to eat intelligently is an art." Leave it to a university town to embrace the genius of food. From Zingerman's to Eve, Durham's smoked fish to Morgan & York's artisanal cheeses, the farmer's market to Main Street's restaurant row, just thinking about Ann Arbor and is enough to make your mouth water.
Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center
By: Tom Hendrickson, 5/8/2008
For 50 years the Birmingham/Bloomfield Art Center has been connecting community through art. Whether it's painting, ceramics, jewelry making or weaving, this unique and ambitious institution has put the focus on greater appreciation and practice of the arts. Watch the video, get inspired and go out there and make something!