Felpausch


Felpausch was a grocery store chain based in Hastings, Michigan, United States. The first store opened in Hastings in 1933, and the chain operated primarily in the southwestern quadrant of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Its 20 locations were sold to Spartan Stores, who largely converted them to Family Fare and D&W Fresh Market.

History

Felpausch was founded in 1933 in Hastings, Michigan. A store in Albion was built in 1954. By 1962, the chain was also in Eaton Rapids, Marshall, and Mason.
In 1971, the Felpausch chain expanded by buying former Harding's Market locations in Delton and Bronson, Michigan. The Bronson store was sold in 1982.
Felpausch was run by the fifth generation of family members, and had been operating as an associate-owned company since 1995. A year later, it bought locations from South Haven-based Village Markets in Dowagiac, Paw Paw, and Benton Harbor. The Benton Harbor store, originally built as Jewel, was closed after only 10 months.
A branch in Battle Creek was converted to an upscale prototype called Zucca's in 2004. Jackson, Michigan was reconfigured in 2006 to have an Ace Hardware franchise inside it. This store, also a former Jewel, opened in 1994 to replace two former Felpausch stores in the area: one on 20th Street and another on Goodale Avenue, both of which were previously Kroger and Hamady Brothers. The replacement closed in 2008.
In March 2007, it was announced that Felpausch was being purchased by Grand Rapids, Michigan distributor and retailer, Spartan Stores. Spartan re-branded most of the locations D&W Fresh Market or Family Fare. Charlotte was closed and converted to a health office by 2008. The original store in Hastings closed in 2008 and became an Ace Hardware, followed by the closure of Kalamazoo in 2009. Grand Ledge was shuttered in 2013 after a brief conversion to Family Fare. Mason became a Save-A-Lot which closed in January 2015.