Oxford Beverage is Here to Stay, Owners Say

Following days of receiving apologies and disappointment from customers, Grosse Pointe residents and others, the owners of Oxford Beverage want to set the record straight.

Oxford Beverage is here to stay and is not closing, Jo Bourgeois said Tuesday. The based business is a conveniece and liquor store.

Two for sale signs recently hung on both the front and side of the building have caused the Bourgeois family to receive considerable feedback about the store closing, she said, but it's not.

The sign is for the building and the parking lot--not for the business, Jo Bourgeois said. The Oxford Beverage owners were told the signs would be placed on the building but they were not prepared for the prominence of its location or the confusion that has come with it for passersby, she said.

Not only have they received feedback from customers entering the store but Jo Bourgeois had parents of her son's friends comment about it while dropping him off at a birthday party in Utica, she said.

The Bourgeois family--Dave, Jo, Paul and Sherry--have owned the business since 2006 but its been in existence since 1947 and has been housed in its current location for decades, only being moved once in the 1950s from a location down the street, Jo said.

While the family respects that the building owners want to make it known that the building is for sale, they are also concerned about its negative impact upon their business, Jo said.

Oxford Beverage has nearly four years left on the current lease and is guaranteed the first right of refusal should the building owners receive an offer, meaning they will have the chance to match the offer, Jo said. The family is considering buying the building as they would rather not move the business, she said.

However, should Oxford Beverage get a new landlord as a result and a new lease cannot be worked out, it will likely move, Dave Bourgeois said in an email to Patch.

For now, Oxford Beverage will continue normal operations at 20107 Mack Ave. The store hours are 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturay; and Noon to 8 p.m. Sundays.