Bivouac celebrates 50 years and counting
In a city known for its world-class institutions, the Ann Arbor retailer is a destination that has served generations of customers. By SHANDRA MARTINEZ
Photos STEVE JESSMORE
In a Michigan city known for its world-class educational institutions, Ann Arbor retailer Ed Davidson is a bit of a retail institution that has served generations of customers. He started a half-century ago when he began selling U.S. Army surplus from his second-floor apartment off State Street. He had noticed that, in 1971, Vietnam War protesters and students wanted to look like military grunts. But there was nowhere to buy Army fatigues in Ann Arbor. “Most people have heard stories about merchants who lived above the store; I lived in the store,” said Davidson. “I converted my apartment into an Army surplus store and had a sign on the street. There was a little kitchenette and I had a mattress in the closet. I worked out of there till I had enough money to rent a storefront.” Within a year, Davidson was able to move his store, Bivouac, into the Maynard House and, a few years later, to a corner spot in Nickels Arcade, the first of what are now four adjoining storefronts. As Bivouac celebrates its 50th anniversary Oct. 4-9, with an annual sale, the store will donate 10% of sales on Oct. 9 to the Huron River Watershed Council. The council has been providing education, technical assistance and science programs to the Huron River Watershed community since 1965. Davidson says the secret of the clothing store’s longevity: an evolving product line that kept up with the times and connecting with customers, one conversation at a time. Interior signage leads to a second floor display area.
Sales associate Ben Beckman straightens Arc’teryx gear.
Over the decades, he transitioned from selling Army surplus tents and field jackets to outdoor gear from brands such as Patagonia, North Face, Canada Goose and Arc’teryx. “What the students are wearing, that’s what we carried, and the whole industry certainly followed suit. Now, we have a women’s boutique,” said Davidson. CONNECTING THROUGH ‘CHITCHAT’ The blue jean craze drove sales through many incarnations. “We sold used blue jeans for $5. It was very successful. Then we transition to new, but soon manufacturers started making jeans that looked worn and faded. Now, we sell some that are ripped for 20 times the price,” Davidson said. The store’s name is a military term meaning campsite when used as a noun, and to rest or assemble in such an area as a verb. “You wouldn’t believe the spelling we would get in the mail, or on checks. It was hysterical. It is such an odd name. It’s an American word of French origin; that’s why the vowels,” Davidson said. One of his secrets for connecting with customers is old-fashioned chitchat. He thinks it’s key to making the shopping experience fun. “I love talking to people,” said Davidson, sharing how he recently waited on a family only to learn the dad was a customer when he was a student at the University of Michigan. He and his wife had come in search of a coat for their son, now a student.
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MICHIGAN RETAILER OCT / NOV 2021
