News that a village or town does not contain a single chain grocery store would perhaps be of little surprise; but a city without a single multi-store grocer - surely not?
Quite unbelievably, Detroit - one of the largest cities in the US - does not contain a single cross-city grocery store, instead relying on a plethora of independently-run alternatives.
A recent article in CNN money, entitled 'A city without chain grocery stores' highlighted the fact in an article that focused on both the importance of the independents, but also the numerous challenges they face.
Consider the fact that the city plays home to approximately one million residents and an appreciation of the job-at-hand for the locally-run stores becomes apparent - the entire city's food requirements are met by local grocers.
While that might sound like a guaranteed money-in-the-bank formula, it is far from it. Detroit's grocers have to grapple to gain the green.
Olga Stella, vice president for business development for the Detroit Economic Growth Corp, said that the predominant difficulty for the stores was the need for "a lot of" working capital.
The highly perishable nature of the goods and the fact that the produce has very little collateral adds further difficulty, she said.
Amid this bustling local-store haven is a particular shop that's created quite a buzz - The Honey Bee Market.
Established in 1956, the home-grown grocery store (which caters for the area's significant Latino community), is a tribute to the city's dependence on and appreciation of its grocers.
The city is currently working on tax abatements for the store, which expanded from 4,000 to 15,000 sq ft three years ago and has as a result incurred higher taxes.
As corny as it may sound, it's a case of 'look after that which looks after you' - without the stores, Detroit's neighborhoods would suffer.
Kenneth Koehler, co-owner of Honey Bee Market, said that the shop's success could be put down to two things: adequately providing for the local community and engaging in local events.
He said: "We know the neighbors, we know the people. We look out for them and they look out for us."
Once again, it's a little on the corny side, but if it works for them and it works for the clientele, then it sure will work for the city.
Detroit may not have any big-name super-stores, but it seems to be doing alright.
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