Jordan Beck | Daily Press Renee Richer sits on the front porch of the Farmhouse, her Gladstone bed and breakfast. The Farmhouse is located on a working farm which primarily produces hay.

Editor’s note: The Daily Press features a profile of an area business each week. This week’s featured business is The Farmhouse in Gladstone.

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By Jordan Beck

jbeck@dailypress.net

GLADSTONE — People who are looking to visit Delta County or who just want to get away from everyday life can do so by spending a night or two at Gladstone bed and breakfast the Farmhouse.

Owner Renee Richer said her family has long owned the building the Farmhouse is based in.

“It’s been in our family since 1908,” she said. The building was originally constructed as a boarding house in 1888.

In 2005, the building was converted into a bed and breakfast. Richer helped to open the Farmhouse before leaving the country for awhile.

“I (had) been working abroad for about 20 years,” she said. She came back in 2014; at this time, she re-opened the Farmhouse and started actively promoting it.

Richer said the public reception to the Farmhouse has been positive since its re-opening. Much of her business has come from people who found the bed and breakfast online.

“We get roughly 50 percent of our business, if not more, from Airbnb,” she said.

The Farmhouse has been featured in print media, as well.

“We’ve recently been highlighted in Michigan Home and Lifestyle Magazine,” Richer said. It was featured in the publication’s Summer 2018 issue.

According to Richer, the Farmhouse is distinguished by its long, rich history.

“It maintains much of its original character,” she said. The house’s original furnishings, light fixtures, and wooden floors are still intact.

However, Richer said this does not mean the house has not been upgraded to meet present-day standards.

“At the same time, it’s been updated to include all the modern amenities,” she said.

Richer also said the Farmhouse is not just her bed and breakfast’s name — it is located on a working farm.

“Largely, what we produce is hay,” she said. This hay is sold to other local farms.

Richer (who is a Harvard-trained botanist) is a professor of biology at the University of Wisconsin — Marinette.

“Our busy time is in the summer, when I’m not teaching,” she said of business at the Farmhouse.

She has been able to use her area of expertise in the Farmhouse’s operations.

“We try to incorporate a lot of that,” Richer said. Much of the food served at the Farmhouse comes directly from the farm’s garden, and other ingredients (including dairy, beef, and pork) are sourced from area suppliers. Additionally, the bed and breakfast fulfills 90 percent of its energy needs with recently-installed solar panels.

In the future, Richer plans to continue increasing the Farmhouse’s profile and making more people aware of the opportunities available there. It currently hosts a variety of events — including, but not limited to, weddings.

“We often host weddings in the barn,” she said. Along with this, Richer plans to increase animal production, make improvements to the farm’s orchard, and provide more local services and educational opportunities for the community over the next year or two.

Richer said the Farmhouse is an ideal place to enjoy the natural beauty of Delta County.

“It’s a very relaxing place to be,” she said.

The Farmhouse rents out two rooms and can accommodate up to six people at a time. For more information, visit thefarmhousebandb.com.