More now than ever in their lifetimes, Scott and Dawn Schroeder recognize that having “Something of Value,” and creating a lasting trust with the wide array of customers they have accumulated over the past five decades are the keys to surviving the rollercoaster ride of business ownership.
The Schroeders this week are celebrating 50 years in the furniture business in Michigan’s Great Southwest from their sprawling showroom at 1335 Hilltop Road in the Southtown neighborhood of St. Joseph. While the celebration includes a substantive open house and sale, the dynamic couple is humble in their reflection back through the years and the steady progress their enterprise has achieved.
Having reached their 50th anniversary milestone is no small feat. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that a very small percentage of businesses ever arrive at that level. In fact, only about 20-percent manage to make it to 20 years. The Schroeders know that significant numbers fail within the first few years, but armed with the vision crafted by Scott’s dad, they worked daily to fulfill his mission, “To bring customers brand name furnishings at affordable prices, the best quality, and provide great service before and after the sale.”
Thomas V. Schroeder — Scott’s dad — was the visionary behind what started out in 1975 as “Something of Value” in a barn behind a house near where the Stevensville Meijer now holds court. Nicknamed “The Value Finder” for his uncanny ability to find exactly what each unique customer’s dream held, Tom built a reputation early on and never looked back. Scott says, “Dad loved people and the challenge of ‘search and find,’ and began largely in the consignment realm.” He adds, “The store sold all sorts of goods, mainly used items, but if you asked for something, he would manage to find it, and make your day!”
In 1978 Tom purchased an old state highway garage at the corner of Hilltop Road and S. State Street in St. Joseph with assistance from the St. Joseph Improvement Association, and converted it into his showroom and warehouse. While his focus evolved from consignment goods to home furnishings, the Schroeder family commitment to hard work, dedication to customers, and finding the best value in the market allowed the new enterprise to not only survive, but to thrive.
Scott and Tom worked side-by-side growing the business, giving over more of the warehouse to expanded showroom space, but when Tom passed in 1991, Scott was thrown into the fire and likens it to be thrown into a pool with no ability to swim, but quickly learning what needs to be done to stay alive.
In the less than four years they had in business together, Scott was a remarkable sponge, learning and then passing knowledge on to what is now a team of 14 highly professional and hard-working employees who have helped carry the business through recessions, a pandemic, and the ups and downs of the retail industry. Through it all, Scott, Dawn, and longtime employees have built a reputation second to none.
When you realize that such huge names in the furniture business in our region as Leath, Troost Brothers, Art Van, Lewis, Turner, Erhard, Nancy’s Furniture and Great Lakes Home Furnishings have all vanished from the retail score card, while Schroeder has slowly expanded to more than double their original space and provided thousands of decorating options to the local market, their story is even more remarkable. As a result, Scott is very self-assured, suggesting, “We can get through anything. We got through the 2008 recession, so we can get through anything. That year I saw 250 furniture stores go out of business and some were big chains, too.” He concludes, “You change with the times, you try to keep your ear to what customers are saying and while you can’t be everything to everybody, we try.”
How have they done it? Scott suggests, “When you have a great team of employees, hard working crews, and dedication, and you listen to what your customers are saying, you have staying power. You just keep plugging along, and find new things. You learn how to make the business grow and be more attractive to a broader base of customers.”
The learning curve that Scott refers to was actually a two way street, as he says, “I always told my dad, if you don’t change some of the colors and punch up the décor and design with some bright colors instead of wagon wheels and brown fabric, guess what, our customers are going to die off and so are we. You can’t just appeal to one segment of the market, you have to reach out to a broader range, and stock accordingly.” The new dog taught the old dog some new tricks and he’ll be the first to tell you, “We would butt heads now and then, but I also learned a lot at his knee.”
As he nurtured Schroeder Furniture through the years, Scott says he began to realize that, “For me the thing that is exciting about the furniture business is it’s really a fashion industry.” By way of explanation he points out, “Fabrics come and go. We see the avocado gold fabrics come and go, and it’s always evolving as colors change, styles change. It’s exciting to see the latest and hottest colors of furniture fashions and the way they craft things as traditional styles evolve into transitional styles, and I think my favorite part is seeing the new innovations that come out in the industry, how they build things, and change over the years. It’s interesting to see some things come full circle whether it’s a comeback color or something else that finds its way back into the popular trends. That’s why I call it a fashion business.”
Customers today have a great range of options, as Scott notes, “The beauty of today’s furniture market is you don’t have to be stuck with a cookie cutter selection. You can get what you want.” It’s important because, as he says, “People watch all the home makeover programming in the media and come in with great ideas on what they’d like for their own home, and our designers can help you to put it together and make it a reality for you.”
Another aspect Scott is particularly proud of is the fact that his team of design experts can help customers from every angle, from design to placement and layouts, to color matching or contrasting, and he says, “I think that potential buyer’s remorse comes from people who are not sure that something is going to work, but now we can pre-plan all of it to take most of the ‘what ifs’ out of the equation, and give each customer peace of mind that they’re going to get something that fits the room and its décor and turns into exactly what they dreamed of.”
Unlike many businesses that find themselves on the ropes, Scott says, “That’s how we’ve grown, because we’re not just a bunch of static displays. In a big box store you have to take what’s on the shelf, whereas here you can custom order in the color you want, the fabric you want, the style you want, the comfort-level you want, and then you get exactly what your heart desires. That’s a beautiful thing.”
As Scott and Dawn’s business has grown, they’ve advanced with the times providing kiosks in the store, capabilities for the design team to present digital plans for room layouts and design and even an e-commerce website that shows you what they can get from multiple sources rather than you having to buy things online from some out of town source before you’ve even had a chance to lay down on the mattress you’re searching for, or sit in the recliner you think you want. Furniture buying for most of us requires touch, feel, scope and scale and those are pretty hard to come by from some online company you know literally nothing about.
Celebrating 50 years this month, Scott will tell you, “It seems like just yesterday that I started with my father as a young 22 year old but I think over all that time while we got a few more grey hairs, we’ve also gained a tremendous amount of knowledge and we’re just trying to make sure that we’re going in the right direction that will keep us solid in this community.”
Proud of his team, Scott says, “Our staff is just phenomenal, and they really work hard to satisfy the customer and give them what they want. I think that will keep us rolling forward. It’s always changing and evolving, but that’s what I like about the furniture business is that it is always changing, and we go to the shows to get new ideas, and then transfer them back to our showroom and people who say ‘I just saw this great makeover show and I want this product,’ and we can offer it to them, so it keeps us on our toes, just like fashion.” Dawn adds, “We’ve worked hard to pour into our employees the knowledge we’ve gained through the years, so that even if they leave us, they’ve garnered some life-changing skills and insight that allows them to go out and make a difference in this world.”
Scott and Dawn are eternally grateful to the entire community-at-large, saying, “This community has been so good to us, and so incredibly loyal, so it’s imperative that we share that back with them every day that we are here,” and add, “The energy and potential in our region are truly amazing, and we hope the next 50 years are even more exciting!”
You can join the celebration at Schroeder Furniture with the team from the Southwest Michigan Regional Chamber this Thursday, July 17th, 2025 from 5 to 7pm. You’ll find Schroeder Furniture located in the Southtown neighborhood of St. Joseph at 1335 Hilltop Road, the corner of Hilltop & South State Street. You can reach them by phone at 269-983-7733 or online at http://www.schroederfurniture.com
