Art Van

The Art Van Furniture stores in Battle Creek and Portage are back from the dead.

Nobody expected this. Art Van, which has been experiencing financial difficulties for the past few years has announced it's going out of business. A liquidation sale begins on Friday.

After reports in Crain's Detroit Business that Art Van management was considering several options including bankruptcy, liquidation or a possible sale to its founding family, a spokesperson for Art Van issued a statement

Troubling news from Detroit; business news publication Crain's Detroit Business (paywall) is reporting Art Van management is considering several options regarding its operating future. Among the options are bankruptcy, liquidation, and a sale back to its founding family, the Van Elslanders.

Art Van Elslander took a single furniture store in 1959 and built it into an empire.

Michigan retailer Art Van Furniture spent a lot of money to purchase advertising time during Superbowl 50 and used it to solicit donations for the Flint water crisis instead of pitching home furnishings.

Michigan's largest furniture retailer is now maybe the largest collection point for water donations for the residents of Flint.

It's the place you've shopped for furniture for years. Could it be your next career move? Art Van is conducting a series of "career information sessions" on Wednesday evenings in April.