Do You Remember Vandervoorts Sporting Goods?

When I was very young there was only one place I wanted to frequent, and that was Vandervoorts sporting goods store. I remember I was in sixth grade at St. Gerard school. One day my dad came home and in his gym bag were a pair of the coolest shoes I had ever seen. They were Adidas Superstars. I had never seen a pair of gym shoes like that. I always had heard of Vandervoorts but never in my wildest dreams did I think this store would impact my life growing up.

So, my dad Ed DeMarco had a pair of these shoes. I said, "Dad, where did you get these great looking gym shoes?" He told me Vandervoorts. He said if I saved and worked around the house he would take me there to get a pair of my own. So I said heck yes I’m in for that!

One week later I had the money and he took me to one of the coolest places I can remember growing up. Vandervoorts was the mecca of sporting goods stores. After that first time going there, I was hooked. Vandervoorts became my special place to go.

When you first walked it had distinct aroma. It was a scent of leather, wood and just a great sports smell. I would always go there and buy my baseball bats. They had a great choice of Louisville Sluggers and Hillerich & Bradsby bats. Vandervoorts was just an iconic facility for great sport equipment. They were the suppler for MSU athletics too.

Now, the Vandervoorts I was talking about was in Lansing across from the Olympic Broil. Not the one that was in East Lansing . My old baseball coach who is now deceased Cal Wagner would take me there and buy me baseball bats if I played well. Let’s just say he took me there many times. So, if you’re in your 40’s, 50’s, 60’s, or70’s, I know you remember the iconic sporting goods store named Vandervoorts in Lansing. Everyone loved and would go to that perfect store.

Enter your number to get our free mobile app