ECONOMICS & enterprise
ECONOMICS & enterprise PHOTO BY DAVID REED At Suzanne’s, all the world’s a stage BY NATASHA DADO ‘ The studio is like a second home to me. I do this for one reason, I love it. We’re all like a big family,” said the owner of Suzanne’s Main Street Dance Centre. “I have had some students for 13 years. I watched these kids grow up.” Jonna’s passion for dance developed when she was 4 and followed her all the way to Detroit’s Marygrove College, where she received a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree. Before opening Suzanne’s in 1995, she taught dance for The Jewish Community Center, Macomb’s Ann Parsley School of Dance and Farmington’s Barbara Hatch School of Dance. Discipline, poise and confidence are taught by instructors in limited class sizes. The school offers 15 different types of dance in four basic programs: recreational for beginners, competitive, Cecchetti ballet and company. Jonna has seen her share of successes. Students have gone on to build their own dance studios and earned spots on university dance teams. In 2007, Suzanne’s Main Street students claimed the Miss Michigan and Miss Jr. Michigan Dance USA titles. In May, another student took the Miss Michigan Dance USA crown home for the second year in a row. Jonna practices what she preaches. “You can find me dancing in my kitchen or while I’m shopping. I could be driving in my car,” she said. “The beat comes to me at any random moment. It’s just in me.” Above: Suzanne Jonna puts students through their paces as they rehearse for a show. Detroit grocers join forces for quality BY JOYCE WISWELL One bad apple doesn’t spoil the whole bunch – and that’s the point Detroit Independent Grocers are trying to make with their new Guaranteed Fresh program. Participating stores sign a pledge to provide a clean and safe shopping environment that adheres to the finest sanitation standards; supply a variety of high quality, fresh and healthy foods; support and give back to the community; offer fair and competitive pricing; and continue their commitment to Detroit. The program is designed to counteract the negative image Detroit’s independent grocers often receive from the local press. Detroit Independent Grocers, a program of the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce, has signed on 24 Chaldeanowned supermarkets so far. John Loussia, the owner of Value Wholesale, hopes to see many more of the city’s 75-100 independents get on board. “I’ve been doing business in Detroit for 30 to 35 years and I’ve gotten sick and tired of all the negative press independent stores have received over the years,” Loussia said. “Most of the owners and operators are very good business people who run a very successful business. It’s unfair that a few bad stores are used to give the rest a bad image.” Jimmy Marrogy is proud of Pick & Save, his grocery store at Seven Mile and Van Dyke in Detroit. He’s signed on for Guaranteed Fresh, whose policies he already follows. “We want to raise awareness of what we do as a community in the city,” he said. “A lot of supermarkets can compete with any chain store – in fact, we do better because we know what our customers want and push to get deals on those items they demand.” Marrogy has added posters to his store that Right: Detroit grocers in the program proudly post this sign. detail the program. “The customers who patronize us already know we do this, but we want to raise awareness with those who don’t. We miss a lot of business that goes to the suburbs, and that hurts everyone — including the city, which loses out on the tax base.” Loussia hopes more than shoppers notice the program. “In time customers will notice the difference but it’s more important for city leaders and the press in Detroit to notice,” he said. “We’d like to see [independent grocers] get some credit for a change — at the very least for sticking with Detroit.” Learn more about the program by calling the Chaldean Chamber at (248) 538-3700. 52 CHALDEAN NEWS AUGUST 2008
AUGUST 2008 CHALDEAN NEWS 53
