The old real estate mantra “Location, location, location” seems especially imperative in Ann Arbor, where businesses flock to pedestrian-heavy commercial strips like Main Street, South University, and State Street.

But those areas also command the area’s highest rents, so many businesses opt for the quieter and less glamorous environs of Ann Arbor’s strip malls – where some of them have become destinations in their own right.

The tough part is getting on people’s radar in the first place.

“You can get from one side of Ann Arbor to the other in about 15 minutes, but it is interesting how townies tend to stay in their area of town, or the areas they get accustomed to,” says Jenny Song. Song is an Ann Arbor native herself and owner of the Songbird Cafe, which has locations in the Plymouth Road Mall at 2707 Plymouth Rd., and at 2891 Jackson Ave.

“Even my friends will say that we’re far out if they’re on the west or south side of town,” she says. READ THE REST HERE