A Peek Inside the Old Vermeulen Furniture Shop, Jackson

Even though Vermeulen’s Furniture has been in the old Felpausch grocery location on West Michigan Avenue for over ten years, most of us who have been around a while still think of that old Masonic Hall on Cortland as ‘Vermeulen’s’.

It was the shop right next door that was the actual shop at 135 W. Cortland which they moved to in 1941. The Masonic Temple next door proved to be too much of a temptation, so the Vermeulen’s bought it in 1987. For a quarter of a million dollars, the hall was bought and remodeling began. Vermeulen’s Furniture now had seven-floors and showroom space of 50,000 square feet, making Vermeulen's one of the largest furniture shops in mid-Michigan.

BEGINNINGS
In the 1920s, Franklin C. Vermeulen arrived in Jackson from Kalamazoo, intent on creating a warehouse store that sold just furniture. The first location was 222 W. Pearl Street; and the Grand Opening of Vermeulen's Warehouse Furniture Store was an event. Ladies who attended were given free flowers...cigars were handed out to the men...and even though it’s not noted, I’m sure they didn’t forget treats for the kids.

When Did Vermeulen's Have Its Grand Opening?

The Grand Opening took place on October 18, 1929, eleven days before the Great Depression hit. With that going against it, the family and business beat the odds and survived. Link Vermeulen was quoted in an Mlive article, “By 1939, things started getting a little better.....We had some very good years in the 1940s and we've been growing ever since." In 1941 they moved from Pearl to W. Cortland and bought the Masonic Hall in 1987.

In 2014 Vermeulen’s left downtown and moved out to 2105 W. Michigan Avenue, to the old Jewel-Osco / Felpausch grocery just past the Westwood Mall. More space, more parking.

.....and they are still going strong after almost 100 years.
Scroll down a way and see how the old Vermeulen’s on Cortland looked after it was vacated...

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