WASHTENAW COUNTY, MI — It was a sad year for Ann Arbor business owners, with numerous shops and restaurants closing in 2025.
Short-lived and longtime businesses have ceased operations amid the city’s ongoing development changes.
Here is a list of some shops and restaurants that closed in and around Ann Arbor this year.
Downtown Home & Garden
This 119-year-old establishment in downtown Ann Arbor had its final day of business on Christmas Eve this year.
Residents said goodbye to Downtown Home & Garden, 210 S. Ashley St., which first opened in 1906. The home and garden store’s owner Kelly Vore attributed the decision to close to continued and insurmountable financial burdens amid a chilly spring, a pull-back in local spending and raises in rent.
Downtown Home & Garden to close this year amid financial instability, owner says
Kilwins
The ice cream and dessert shop Kilwins’ last day in operation is Dec. 31, ending a 42-year run at 107 E. Liberty St.
“The downtown economy is just not good right now,” Store owner Chera Tramontin previously said in a message. She cited the cost of rent as another reason for the closure. A private equity firm purchased Kilwins in 2023, and the move was “not what we were into,” Tramontin also said.
Kilwins has nearly 200 locations nationwide, but Don and Katy Kilwin founded it in 1947 in Petoskey. The second owners, Wayne and Lorene Rose, began franchising Kilwins in 1981. The Ann Arbor location opened in 1983.
Kilwins in downtown Ann Arbor will close at end of 2025 after 42 years
Blue Leprechaun
Blue Leprechaun, 1220 S. University Ave., closed its doors after 17 years of operation on Saturday, Dec. 13, Niko Porikos, whose father Perry is the longtime owner of both the former bar and the Brown Jug, confirmed.
He said the business was sold this month, and disclosing the new owners and who is taking over the lease is up to the landlord’s discretion.
Farewell! University of Michigan student bar closes after 17 years
Ten Thousand Villages
A longtime Ann Arbor store specializing in handcrafted, artisanal decor and gift items closed its doors after nearly 21 years.
Ten Thousand Villages’ Ann Arbor store, 303 S. Main St., ceased operations on March 30. Then-store manager Emily Carroll previously said the store was closing largely because it had become less financially viable to maintain the Ann Arbor location.
The location dubbed itself as the first fair-trade, nonprofit handicraft retail store to come to the city, connecting Ann Arbor shoppers with more than 20,000 artisans in more than 20 countries for the past 20 years.
Ten Thousand Villages announces closure, farewell sale for Ann Arbor store
16 Hands
This former shop in Kerrytown sold handcrafted gifts like original artisan-made items for people’s homes, offices and gardens as well as jewelry and fashion accessories.
16 Hands, 407 N. 5th Ave., had its last day of operations on April 19. Owner Jill Damon previously said the store was doing well, but the 73-year-old was ready to retire and get back to creating her own artwork, which includes oil pastels and jewelry making.
16 Hands had a long history within Ann Arbor and began as an artist collective of eight artists (and their 16 hands) in 1975.
16 Hands ending 50 years of selling handcrafted items in Ann Arbor’s Kerrytown
Liberty Street Robot Supply and Repair
This funky little storefront with robot-themed gadgets, toys and other merchandise left Ann Arbor for nearby Ypsilanti.
826michigan’s Liberty Street Robot Supply and Repair moved out of 115 E. Liberty St. in July and found a new home at Eastern Michigan University.
The university supplied space for the nonprofit’s new headquarters in the College of Education, 310 Porter Building in Ypsilanti, as nonprofit officials looked forward to being closer to many of their students.
‘Robot Supply’ storefront to close in Ann Arbor as literacy nonprofit heads to Ypsilanti
Taste Kitchen and Red Lotus
Two neighboring Asian-inspired restaurants ceased operations in the summer.
Taste Kitchen, 521 E. Liberty St., which opened in 2014, ended operations in July, while Red Lotus, 529 E. Liberty St., closed at the start of August.
Vietnamese joints Saigon Social House and Block & Brew Cafe have since replaced the two eateries, new owner Sonca Luu confirmed.
Related: 2 new Vietnamese eateries replace closed Asian restaurants in Ann Arbor, and one will accept crypto
Red Hawk Bar and Grill
A longtime bar and grill on Ann Arbor’s State Street closed May 3 after 33 years in business.
Red Hawk Bar and Grill, 316 S. State St., closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and rising food costs making it “increasingly difficult” for the business to continue to operate the way it hoped, according to a social media post announcing its closure.
Popular Ann Arbor restaurant set to close after 33 years
Brian Forde | MLIVE.COM Brian FordeBrian Forde
Joann Fabrics and Crafts
A national craft retailer’s locations on both sides of Pittsfield Township, 2897 Oak Valley Drive outside Ann Arbor and 3737 Carpenter Road outside Ypsilanti, were among 33 Michigan stores that closed this year.
Joann Fabrics and Crafts announced in February all 800 of its stores were closing nationally as part of a bankruptcy case.
These 2 Joann locations are closing near Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti
Related: National craft retailer announces closure of all remaining stores
Turkish Village Cafe
Turkish Village Cafe, 120 E. Liberty St., ceased operations on Sept. 22, just one month after opening.
General manager Dawood Ali previously said the restaurant closed because Ann Arbor residents were reluctant to try the spot’s Turkish cuisine. He also shared the lack of breakfast options at the spot deterred patrons.
Forthcoming brunch spot Solana previously had plans to take over the East Liberty Street space but will no longer occupy the space.
Ann Arbor Turkish restaurant closes after 1 month to become brunch spot
Related: Planned Solana brunch restaurant cancels Ann Arbor opening
Campus Student Bike Shop
Campus Student Bike Shop, 336 Maynard St., closed after a 20-year stint.
The illness and death of Bill Loy, the former store owner, on Sept. 2 prompted its forthcoming closure, then-sales manager Amy Young said.
Longtime Ann Arbor bike shop for students to close after owner’s death
Your Media Exchange
Your Media Exchange, 319 S. Main St., operated its last day on May 25.
The store closed after dealing with a “significant sales drop” in July 2024 after an “extremely busy and prosperous” first couple of years, according to the closure announcement.
The Toledo-based company opened its Ann Arbor storefront in June 2022 to sell physical media like music, movies, books, video games, vinyl records, VHS tapes and cassette tapes.
Media store that sold tapes, records closing in downtown Ann Arbor
Cinnaholic
Cinnaholic, 121 E. Liberty St. in Ann Arbor served its final customers on Christmas Eve.
Owner Doug Moeller declined to share the reason for the closure of the bakery. The vegan brand, which appeared on Shark Tank in 2014, originally started in California and now has franchises across the country.
Shark Tank-featured vegan bakery in Ann Arbor to close
Starbucks
Starbucks permanently closed its shop at 1214 South University Ave. on Oct. 31. The Galleria Mall building at 1214 South University Ave., where the closing Starbucks was located, is set to be demolished for an 18-story apartment high-rise.
Starbucks on South University Avenue in Ann Arbor to close, apartment high-rise to replace it
Ahmo’s Gyros & Deli
Ahmo’s Gyros & Deli, 341 E. Huron St., closed its East Huron Street restaurant in the spring to move closer to the University of Michigan campus.
Ahmo’s Deli closes downtown location, moving next to University of Michigan campus
Pinball Pete’s
Pinball Pete’s will remain open but in a completely new location.
The arcade, with a new hot pink and black look, moved out of 1214 S. University Ave. in the Galleria Mall and is taking over the first floor and basement at 500 E. Liberty St.
Co-owner Ted Arnold previously said he hopes to have the popular arcade open at the new spot sometime in January.
A first look inside as Pinball Pete’s moves into new downtown Ann Arbor spot
Want more Ann Arbor-area news? Bookmark the local Ann Arbor news page.
