Prince Concepts

STUDIO PRINCE

Prince Concepts is a real estate development studio, laboratory and office led by Philip Kafka, based in Core City, Detroit. 

  • The studio works to express personal experience, philosophy and belief through built work.

  • The laboratory tinkers - seeking truth and developing precision.

  • The office organizes - creating value for the company, our tenants and customers.

We acquire, develop, own and manage land and building projects.

We restrain where we work and focus on knitting together small to medium sized development projects, over time, to create larger, cohesive projects within and across focused neighborhoods.

On the other hand...

We diversify what we build and create spaces to live, socialize, work and congregate.

Consistent, dedicated, and focused work, within a specific neighborhood, brings us and our surroundings real value.

Core City. Photo: Chris Miele

We create celebrated restaurants.

MAGNET --> BARDA, Dining Room. Photo: Rafael Gamo

KATOI --> TAKOI, Dining Room. Photo: Chris Miele

We imagine and build award winning residential and mixed-use projects.

PS1200. Photo: Tim Hursley

True North. Photo: Rafael Gamo

Caterpillar. Photo: Rafael Gamo

We revive and transform previously abandoned buildings.

5K, Before and After

Grand River Block 2015 (day we purchased) vs. 2023 (block 100% developed)

We run our own little fun cafe.

Cafe Prince, Morning Light. Photo: Samantha Bankle

We plant copious amounts of trees to create and beautify public spaces and to secure an inspired future.

5K Courtyard. Photo: Chris Miele

Caterpillar landscape. Photo: Chris Miele

The Study landscape. Photo: Chris Miele

The consistent thread throughout our work: an emphasis on the quality of space, indoor and outdoor, public and private.

Space is our product; we are always exploring, trying to figure out how to offer more of it, at a higher quality, for an accessible price.

For us, it isn’t a matter of how much we build, but is more about how inspired where and what we create actually becomes.

Caterpillar. Photo: Rafael Gamo

True North. Photo: Rafael Gamo

PS1200 Public Space. Photo: Tim Hursley

PS1200 Apartment. Photo: Sydney Brown