Sports, Embroidery Shop to Move into Grosse Pointe Woods

If there’s one thing residents of greater Detroit adore it’s sports, and this love affair no doubt accounts for the longevity of . The custom embroidery and screenprinting store is also a licensed retailer for the Detroit's four major professional sports teams.

Since 1992, its large, bright blue awning has marked the spot on Mack near Moross where Tigers, Lions, Pistons and Wings fans can get an array of merchandise to flaunt their pride and where school and community sports teams have procured uniforms and related accessories. That will change May 1.

Have no fear – The Pointe After is not calling it quits. It's closing its doors to reopen at another location down the street. In the pursuit of a fresh new look, owners Scott Freckelton and Mike Lacoursiere are moving from 19005 Mack in Detroit to 19451 Mack in Grosse Pointe Woods.

This is the second business to move from that block in Detroit to the same block in the Woods. Papa's Romano's made a similar move months ago.

“The Pointe After has been in the same location for years,” said Lacoursiere. “We wanted to renovate, to have a different look, so we looked for a new space. Our new place will be more open, more modern, with updated colors and better ways of merchandising the product.”

They are not making any changes to their services or inventory, Lacoursiere said. The new location even has potential to draw additional foot traffic to help build on the store's already loyal customer base, Lacoursiere said, noting the popular nearby venues such as and .

The new store will make abundant use of track lighting and wall mountings to highlight its merchandise, which includes a wide range of apparel, accessories, and matted and framed prints.

Russell Lacoursiere, the owner’s brother, is an architect living in Grosse Pointe Park and has designed the new space. Aspen Interiors, an interior design firm based in Shelby Township, finished the space, settling on a palette of grays, blues and blacks. The overall result, said Lacoursiere, is a far cry from the “white walls and AstroTurf carpet” of the current location.

Lacoursiere and Freckelton, neither of whom lives in Grosse Pointe, bought The Pointe After four years ago. Before that, they ran a custom embroidery business out of Freckelton’s home in Warren, where they had grown up and gone to school together.

The owners recognize how loyal customers in the area have been, including from and high schools, and many of the community-based sports teams. They do not anticipate any disruption in sales or service, Lacoursiere said.