M22 Expands To Suttons Bay, Cedar Gets An Indie Bookshop; Other Leelanau Business News
Spring is blooming throughout Leelanau, and with it, the county is seeing its typical post-winter deluge of new business openings. From the latest expansion of an iconic northern Michigan brand to Leelanau’s newest bookstore, the Leelanau Ticker has the scoop.
M22 expands to Suttons Bay
If you’ve passed through Suttons Bay lately, you probably noticed that a familiar logo has appeared along the main downtown drag. M22, the popular apparel and lifestyle brand founded in 2004 by local brothers Matt and Keegan Myers, is set to open a Suttons Bay store this week, bringing the company’s number of brick-and-mortar locations to three. M22 also operates a flagship retail location in downtown Traverse City and a second store in Glen Arbor.
The new M22 store is located at 305 N Saint Joseph Street (pictured), in the building between Wren and Sporck Tile Art that was formerly occupied by Laughing Fish Gallery. Laughing Fish announced last October that it would be leaving Suttons Bay, with owners Shelly and Kristie Drews noting on Facebook that they were “actively searching for a new location for our gallery in Traverse City.” Another Facebook post earlier this month shared that the pair had found a spot for their new venture not in Traverse City, but in Ludington. That new store, called Pier Joy, is now up and running.
The familiar M22 logo recently appeared on the old Laughing Fish building, along with messages on the windows proclaiming “Time to get stoked” and “Something rad is coming.” M22 Chief Operations Officer Nick Madrick confirms to The Ticker that the Suttons Bay store “is officially opening this coming Thursday [April 24],” and that the M22 team is “excited about a great summer ahead and being part of the Suttons Bay community.”
Notably, the Suttons Bay location will be the second of M22’s three stores to be located on the company’s namesake road, after the Glen Arbor shop.
A new bookstore for Cedar
Also opening this week is The Folded Leaf, a brand-new independent bookstore in downtown Cedar. The business is located at 9044 S Kasson Street, right across the street from the Cedar Tavern. Owner Rachel Zemanek also intends to sell plants and artwork at the store, and to host live music and other events there on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
Subtitled “A Leelanau County Snuggery” – per Merriam-Webster, a “snuggery” is a British term that means “a snug cozy place” – The Folded Leaf will mark its grand opening this Saturday, April 26. The business will host a formal ribbon cutting for the shop at 10am, with doors opening right after. Hours for day one will run from 10am to 8pm.
“Not only are we celebrating our opening, but it's also Independent Bookstore Day,” The Folded Leaf noted on its Instagram page. “We couldn't dream of a better day to open our dream shop! We'll have celebratory and complementary snacks, beverages, and all sorts of fun, including live music by The Carter Creek String Band from 5 to 7pm.”
Beyond opening day, The Folded Leaf has announced event slates for its upcoming Wednesday and Saturday events. Wednesdays will be jazz nights, with entertainment from 6-8:30pm and performers including bands like Big Fun Unplugged (May 7 and 21) and the Jeff Haas Trio (May 14 and 28). Saturday sets will run from 5-7:30, with a performance slate that includes Detroit poets Peace Bell and Joel Fluent Greene on May 10, The Joe Wilson Trio on May 17, A.S. Lutes on May 24, and Skyelea on May 31. A flier for the May event series encourages locals to “stay tuned for food and beverage updates” for those events.
New antiques store opens in Northport
Another newcomer to the Leelanau retail scene is Pernette’s, a shop specializing in “antiques, curated new items, and rare finds.” The business officially opened this past Saturday, April 19 at 109 W Nagonaba Street in downtown Northport. The shop’s inventory includes everything from furniture to vintage rugs to assorted home goods.
“Northport, perched on the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula, played a vital role in Michigan’s early days as a hub for trade long before statehood in 1837,” reads a description on the Pernette’s website. “Traders, voyageurs, and indigenous communities converged here, drawn by the abundant resources of the Great Lakes and the land’s natural beauty… Pernette’s celebrates that history woven into the fabric of Northern Michigan’s past. A time when traders navigated local waters, exchanging goods, coins, tools, keepsakes, and stories during long journeys across waterways and rugged terrain… Our collection of unique finds has been thoughtfully curated to spark curiosity and inspire discovery.”
For the springtime, Pernette’s will be open to the public Thursdays through Sundays, with Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday browsing available “by appointment.”
In other Leelanau business news…
>The Leland Building, located at 407 S Main Street and known best as the home of Trish’s Dishes, recently hit the market for $1.99 million. The listing touts a “unique opportunity to own on the river,” including 0.33 acres of land, 50 feet of river frontage, 178 feet of frontage on S Main Street/M-22 in downtown Leland, and 6,875 square feet of mixed-use space. The building includes the Trish’s Dishes restaurant/café space “up-front,” as well as “office space in the middle, and a residential townhome on the river, which is currently being used as a short-term rental unit.” Trish’s Dishes owner Trish Kropp did not respond to The Ticker’s request for comment on the listing.
>Open Air Farms in Cedar has received $7,000 from the Crosshatch Community Microloan program. The money will allow the farm to “expand their wash/pack facility, helping them deliver high-quality, freshly harvested veggies and flowers to more farmers markets, retail stores, and CSA customers across the region.”
>Hallstedt Homestead Cherries in Northport will get a $100,000 grant from MDARD to convert one of its existing agricultural buildings to “a commercial processing facility for expanded cherry vinegar production and new product development.” The money is an investment in the fledgling Red Truck Orchards brand, a “new collective of farms producing an artisan cherry wine vinegar.” The Leelanau Ticker reported on the launch of that new venture last summer.
>Shady Lane Cellars is launching a new travel experience in partnership with Fly Travel Lansing. Executive Winemaker Kasey Wierzaba will lead a seven-day European river cruise next April, with spots available for local wine enthusiasts. The seven-day excursion, dubbed “Tulips & Wine on the Rhine,” will run from April 19-26, 2026, and will sail the Rhine, Main, Danube, and Moselle rivers with stops in Zurich, Strasbourg and Amsterdam. The trip will include private wine tastings with Wierzba on the cruise ship, as well as tours of several European vineyards. Shady Lane is hosting an open-to-the-public informational session about the cruise at noon this Sunday, April 27.