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It took many years for downtown Royal Oak to evolve from a sleepy little commercial spot to a hip entertainment district with cool shops. At one point, it even had a Barnes & Noble Bookstore, which was a Main Street magnet that gave the commercial strip more character.
Well, the bookseller is now a Buffalo Wild Wings branch. And some of the funky, downtown Royal Oak retail has migrated south to Ferndale and Detroit.
Royal Oak finds itself in a position where it needs to promote itself as a retail destination. So its Downtown Development Association and retailers are launching a $70,000 holiday advertising campaign to promote downtown shopping in a suburb better-known for dining and drinking, Sherri Welch of Crain's Detroit Business reports.
The billboard, print and television campaign launches next week in an attempt to boost foot traffic and sales, which have been sluggish since Barnes & Noble left in 2014 and others followed, Crain's says.
"We're trying to do our best to balance that and make people aware there's a retail environment, too," Jay Dunstan, director and chairman of the downtown association tells Welch.
