Who would have guessed that the little sign shop in Frankenmuth, which opened in 1945, would eventually become one of the top ten man-made attractions in Michigan? Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland now draws over two million visitors annually, arriving from across the nation and around the world!

In 1943, young Wally Bronner began painting signs after school in his parent’s basement, but he marked his official start two years after graduating. During the next several years, he developed his business skills, including doing window displays for local merchants. In 1951, he successfully took on the challenge of designing and creating the Christmas decorations for the community lampposts … and the rest of the story reads like a holiday “legend”!

That same year, Wally married his wife, Irene. By the time he and Irene constructed their first building in 1954, they were definitely in the spirit of Christmas—half of their sign shop was dedicated to Christmas decorations! After successively outgrowing three buildings in 1977, the company moved to a 45-acre tract of land where the current Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland stands.

That original “spirit of Christmas” kept expanding and now fills the world’s largest Christmas store, covering almost two football fields! Shoppers enjoy 350 Christmas trees decorated in religious, traditional, and toyland themes, showcasing over 6,000 ornaments. Many items are exclusive Bronner designs. Over 500 different nativities and 50,000 trims and gifts are displayed. Outside stands the picturesque Silent Night Memorial Chapel, a full-size replica of the one in Austria built on the church site where “Silent Night” was first sung in 1818. All of this is showcased with year-round lighted Christmas displays throughout the grounds!