Hatch Detroit: Vote for Detroit’s Next Business

By: Metro Detroit Chevy Dealers | August 21, 2017
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Thanks to local startup incubators, many entrepreneurs in Detroit and its surrounding cities have been able to see their projects grow from just an idea to a full-fledged business. While there is a lot to gain from the do-it-myself attitude that can be seen throughout the city’s entrepreneurial spirit, it does create a lot of competition for these startups to flourish.

One incubator sees that competition and wants the denizens of Detroit to have a voice in it. Hatch Detroit, to borrow a term from its website, is a “crowd entrepreneurship” program that asks the public to vote on which stores, bars, restaurants and more should receive the coveted monetary funding awarded to one startup each year. The entrepreneurs in question are competing for $50,000 from Comerica Bank. Talk about jump-starting your career.

Last week, the four finalists for Hatch Detroit 2017 were announced. Below we’ve included summaries of each so you can vote for whomever you think should be setting up shop in Detroit next!

Baobab Fare

Headed up by husband and wife Nadia Nijimbere and Hamissi Mamba, Baobab Fare will be an East African restaurant, market and juice bar. Here, you will be able to dine in on authentic African dishes or peruse the market for your own produce, meat, herbs, spices and other groceries.

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Detroit Blows

The brainchild of Detroit natives Katy Cockrel and Nia Batts, Detroit Blows was created to fill a void in downtown Detroit for the popular hairstyling boutique concept known as blow-dry bars. These boutiques aren’t your average salons. You won’t find people getting haircuts or their hair colored at one. Instead, they are simply places to get your hair washed and blow-dried, but they can be found nationwide and it’s for good reason.

The Lip Bar

This lipstick boutique was born out of Detroiters Melissa Butler and Rosco Spears want for new and different lipstick colors that don’t utilize foreign chemicals or animal testing in production. The Lip Bar will produce and sell dozens of vegan, gluten-free, all-natural lipstick colors, such as Purple Rain, Whiskey Sour and Baby Bellini to name a few.

Bar Botanica

The coffee-by-day-and-cocktails-by-night cafe and bar will be located in the Jefferson-Chalmers neighborhood. Bar Botanica pulls inspiration from plants, herbs, candles and other products typically used in Afro-Caribbean spiritual practices and found in botanicas.

Who will you be voting for? Have you been dying for a good blow-dry bar downtown? How about a great restaurant/market that carries authentic African food? Whichever business you decide to vote for, know that you are having a say in your community. Through Hatch Detroit’s decision to allow the public to vote, the future of Detroit’s retail and food scene is in the hands of its citizens. Cast your vote now! 

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