(04/19/19) - Downtown Bay City is finding itself in the middle of an economic boom.
There are several new housing developments and businesses in the area, with more on the way. Now, there's a place to go downtown for basic necessities for those working or living in downtown Bay City.
Baysics celebrated their grand opening the right way: heavenly home-baked goods, delicious punch, and raffles from downtown businesses.
The grand opening is sweet, but the name is even sweeter.
"Obviously, Bay for Bay City, and with our logo, we have the little swivel underneath, which represents the water by the bay," Margie Brown said. Brown is the store manager.
Not only does the name of this independent "dollar-plus" store honor the city, but you'll know exactly what's inside.
"We have hardware. We have greeting cards and gifts bags, and we have balloon bouquets, and everything else in between that you can think of," Brown said.
Almost 90 percent of the items are a dollar. Located on busy Washington Avenue, the goal is to get some of that foot traffic through Baysics' doors.
"We have a lot of folks that live in the condominiums down here. We also have high rise and other demographics around here to support their living habit, but also there's no place downtown where you can stop in and grab headache medication or grab a greeting card," Brown said.
Even though some walked out with more than they had planned, people still feel good as they exit.
"I think we miss some of the little stores like this downtown. Sadly, some of them have gone away. This is exactly what we need to bring more life down here," a customer said.
Baysics management is attentive to its customers, and they plan on keeping it that way for the future.
"We are listening to our customers. If there is something we don't have, we will try to get that product in. This is our customers' store. We want to make it viable for everybody," Brown said.
For the future, Baysics plans to accept bridge cards.
Their store hours are Monday-Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.