As the sport of mixed martial arts continues to explode in popularity, business opportunities continue to present themselves to those involved in the sport. Bellator lightweight champion and Philadelphia native Eddie Alvarez is looking to seize one of those opportunities by opening his own store on Moyer Street, not far from where he grew up.

TapouT, Clinch Gear, Xtreme Couture and several other popular brands are among the options in shirts, fight/training gear, and paraphernalia that's sold in the store. The building on the sharp-corner property puts the floor layout in the shape of a pie piece. A life size cutout of Chuck Liddell stands guard in one corner and a large high definition screen plays a continuous loop of some of the great fights in the career of Alvarez. For the grand opening, even his Bellator championship belt was on display. In true inner city fashion there is no wasted space and the design captures the personality of both Alvarez and the pride he carries for his beloved home town.

The first 100 fans who arrived were treated to a free Fight Factory shirt, Alvarez' long time favorite training facility. "We're really excited about the store," said the champ. "A lot of people worked really hard to put it together. The logo designer did a great job, he's a good friend of mine."

As of now, Alvarez doesn't know what's next for him as far as fighting goes but based on the turnout at the grand opening of his store, he'll have no trouble keeping busy while he waits to find who his next opponent will be.

*follow Eddie Alvarez on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EdAlvarezFight