A new tasting room is one step closer to their dream of a brick and mortar business.

Toma Detroit emerged as the winner of $50,000 in the 2018 Comerica Hatch Detroit Contest presented by Bedrock. The annual contest supports brick and mortar business growth in Detroit, Highland Park and Hamtramck. Toma Detroit was announced the winner at a ‘Shark Tank’ style Hatch Off event that took place tonight at the M@dison Building in Downtown Detroit.

Toma Detroit will serve fresh, locally sourced simple yet sophisticated cocktails and foods from Latin America. Their tasting room will focus on Tequila and Mezcal and will educate guests about regional distillation methods and styles of Agave.

“Toma Detroit will be a valuable addition to the city’s growing independent small business and craft cocktail environment and we are eager to support them as they work toward opening their doors and growing their business,” said Vittoria Katanski, executive director, Hatch Detroit. “Detroit’s entrepreneurial spirit was on full display in this year’s contest, and the competition was close. The Hatch Detroit organization continues to support its alums, and its winners through its alumni program to ensure they have a successful tenure in business.”

Toma Detroit will receive $50,000 from Comerica Bank and a package of more than $200,000 in pro bono support and counsel from Hatch Detroit and its partners. Support includes legal services from Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn, architectural design, IT and public relations services, in addition to technical assistance and mentoring from Hatch Detroit.

“Year after year we’re inspired by the creativity and enthusiasm of these entrepreneurs and impressed with their innovative business ideas and this year is no exception,” said Michael T. Ritchie, president of Comerica Bank-Michigan. “My colleagues and I at Comerica Bank congratulate Toma Detroit as they join other elite Hatch alumni. We look forward to seeing them open their doors and contribute to Detroit’s revitalized small business community.”

Ten semi-finalists in the Comerica Hatch Detroit Contest were announced to the public for voting in early August. After tens of thousands of votes were cast, the four finalists, Neighborhood Grocery, Paradise Natural Foods, Slyde and Toma Detroit were selected by the public. A second round of public voting took place and each finalist pitched their business idea live to a panel of judges and an audience of their peers during tonight’s Hatch Off event.

“The continued success of Hatch alumni proves over and over again that Detroit is a great place to start a business. We know we will see great things from Toma Detroit along with all of the other finalists,” said RJ Wolney, vice president of finance at Bedrock and Hatch Detroit board member. “At Bedrock we understand that entrepreneurship is imperative to growing and diversifying Detroit’s economy and strong local businesses are key to offering a unique retail environment.  We are grateful for the role Hatch continues to play in shining a light on the incredible business talent we are fortunate to have in Detroit.”

Toma Detroit joins previous Comerica Hatch Detroit Contest winners including Baobab Fare, Meta Physica Wellness Center, Live Cycle Delight, Sister Pie, Batch Brewing Company, La Feria and Hugh. Together with its finalists and semi-finalists, Hatch Detroit has helped to launch 34 businesses to date.

To learn more about Toma Detroit, visit HatchDetroit.com.