Under new management

Longtime Birmingham menswear store Claymore Shop has reopened in its same location – 908 S. Adams Road, but it’s under all new management, after longtime employee Kurtis Williams purchased the store along with partner David Mietty, who handles the back office end of the business. Williams, who lives in the Grosse Pointes, said he found “a home” at the Clamore Shop seven years ago, even growing into a buyer for the store, along with former owner J.J. Benkert and Al Skiba, store manager, about four years ago. In purchasing the store, Skiba, who has been part of the store’s fabric for 41 years, “agreed to stay on. That was a big part of the decision-making,” Williams said. They’ve reopened the store with all new spring merchandise, which will include most of the same product lines with the addition of new seasonal lines, their own line of Claymore Shop suits made in the U.S. and new British lines of suits and sports coats. The store was renovated top-to-bottom to bring it up to date after Benkert sold late husband Bob’s cache of antiques, after asking Williams if he wanted them. “We brought in other antiques, refinished fixtures in the store, put up wallpaper and recarpeted,” he said. “When the store was cleaned out, we were able to see the space with a fresh eye.” Traditional customers, and ones who are just discovering the store, will be pleased the new Claymore Shop is still “the same warm store with the same level of service known in the past,” Williams said. “Heritage is super important to me. We’re at year 56 now. Getting to year 100 is very important.”

Business Matters for the Birmingham - Bloomfield area are reported by Lisa Brody. Send items for consideration to LisaBrody@downtownpublications.com. Items should be received three weeks prior to publication.