By Lisa Carolin
Business Name: Merkel Furniture and Carpet One
Business address: 205 S Main St. Chelsea, MI 48118
Business email, telephone number: [email protected] // (734) 475-8621
Business hours: Mon – Weds: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Thurs: 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. Sat: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sun: Closed
Business website: www.merkelfurniture.com
Merkel Furniture has spent 99 years as a business located in downtown Chelsea.
Founders Ferd and Norb Merkel started a hardware business at Merkel Furniture’s present location in the southernmost building in 1924, and then in the 1950s, Ferd’s two sons, Jack and Bob Merkel, came into the business and slowly transformed it into three floors of fine furniture, flooring, area rugs, and mattresses.
“It’s the store you see today,” said owner George Merkel. “I think we have the friendliest staff in the furniture and flooring industry, and they are all quite knowledgeable and excited to help our customers with whatever home project they are working on. The numerous furniture displays are also beautifully laid out in their own right, and it’s a fun experience to go through the three floors of our historical building and just explore.”
That makes four generations who have run the business. George Merkel credits growing up with the store and seeing the successes of owning a family business for its longevity.
He says Merkel Furniture’s location in Chelsea and the strong sense of community has been a huge factor in supporting the business, and Merkel wants any potential customer to know the high quality of the materials, the expertise, and the customer service that are part of any purchase from his business.
“Visitors will always find beautiful furniture displays, friendly service and, free beverages when they visit our store,” said Merkel.
As far as upcoming changes to the business, George Merkel says they are planning quite a party for the store’s 100th birthday next year.
“Aside from the anniversary, our flooring department is going to get a complete makeover in the next year or two, and our mattress gallery is going to have a lot of exciting updates in the coming months,” he said. “This will include smart adjustable bases with bluetooth technology (speakers under the mattress base can link to your television and automatically adjust the height because of snoring) and newer models of mattresses.”
