By Chris Hagan
Review Staff Writer
After 20 years of being family owned and operated, the Oak Barrel Party Shoppe on Lapeer Road is now under a new family of ownership.
Deuce and Linda Barnard were approached by a West Bloomfield couple in Nov. 2014 interested in purchasing their store. This was nothing new for Deuce and Linda as this was a common occurrence throughout their two decades of ownership. But as their kids have grown and moved, they were ready for a change.
The Barnards were looking for a change and some professional excitement so they decided to sell to Atheer and Suhair Ibrahim. Their decision to sell a business they spent so many years developing and strengthening was nothing short of difficult and bittersweet.
“Some of our regular customers have been coming into the store since they were newborns,? Deuce said. ‘Watching the kids grow up and now those kids have families. It’s amazing to see.?
As pop culture changed and the community grew, their ability to create an environment that was safe for kids was always constant. Oak Barrel is connected to the Perry Acres and Round Tree subdivisions which always had an influx of school children.
‘Parents would trust the kids to be able to ride their bikes up here; knowing it was a good safe community,? Linda said. ‘The kids would lay on the floor and count out their money; that was a nice feeling. They knew they could trust us.?
It was that sort of reputation that drew Atheer to Oak Barrel and the Orion area. He respected and admired the tight-knit bonds Deuce and Linda created and he is committed to keeping them.
The Oak Barrel also was known for employing LOHS students and Atheer doesn’t have any plans of changing those ways.
‘Usually when you buy a business, all you see is the contract and numbers,? Atheer said. ‘But when we bought from Deuce and Linda, we wanted to do the correct thing by them and the people.?
Suhair will be handling much of the food and she has already added several items to the list.
Both she and Atheer stressed the pizza, which put the Oak Barrel on the Orion map, would be staying. They’ll also be introducing pizza delivery in the near future; an aspect the party store didn’t have prior.
Owning the Oak Barrel brought with it aspects of business that Linda and Deuce will treasure. Although they will not miss waking up at 3:30 a.m. to do food prep and office paperwork, they will miss the community involvement.
Linda couldn’t answer more of the questions as her eyes filled up with tears and her voiced choked up. She laughingly looked at Deuce and told him to answer.
‘I’m going to miss all the people,? he said. ‘We had everyone coming in here from shop workers, to kids, to teachers, GM workers, and businessmen. It was a community atmosphere; plain and simple.?
As Atheer and Suhair set their alarm clocks, Deuce and Linda will be looking for plane tickets to visit their daughter and their two granddaughters. Both are excited to begin a new chapter in their life and wish the new owners well.
‘Just listening to them [Atheer and Suhair] they have some amazing ideas,? Deuce said. ‘It sounds like they’re going to make some great changes and I’m excited to see what they’re going to look like.?