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Yikes, sorry to hear of your bad experience!! Hopefully it was an isolated event...I guess buyer beware always. Well, when we get the stuff in, hopefully it won't break down otherwise i'll be posting against BD!
I'm sure mine isn't the only incident, but there are probably more good experiences than bad ones. keep in mind, it is is a DISCOUNT store for a reason...
We are moving into a new house after 3 months of waiting so I have had a ton of time to do my research so I can share my experieinces both in the local area and shopping online.
Couches
Rooms Unlimited, Rte 112 in Medford
My experieince here was in purchasing a leather Italsofa (Division of Natuzzi). I found that they were much more willing to negotiate and offer their straight up best pricing almost immediately. Just let them know that you have visited the leather showrooms on 110 and they will know the deal. The couch we purchased was a 4 piece leather sectional and was listed at $3500 and we paid $2700 with delivery. I cannot comment on the service of this location as I ordered the couch at the end of May and it hasnt been delivered yet. I will tell you that they told us 8-12 weeks and we havent heard anything yet. I will give them to the beginning of Sept since the couch is made in Italy and their factories generally shutdown for the summer.
We also visited the big leather showroom on 110 and found the experieince to be extremely uncomfortable and sensed that they were shady. Plus, while we were there a very unhappy customer came in and we heard the details of their 3 month long ordeal with the company AND saw how they handled their upset customers. I wouldnt go back there.
Sofa Bed ETC (right next to Jennifers on 110)
We orginally walked into Jennifers to check out another sofa we were looking to purchase and found what seemed to be a good deal for a sofa w/ chaise and storage ottoman for about $3400. We werent sold yet and wanted a 2nd point of reference so we stopped at Sofa Bed ETC right next door and checked out what they had. The salesperson there was very honest, upfront, and helpful throughout the entire experieince and we were able to get the same exact couch as Jennifers but with the "deeper" cushions for $1450 delivered! Same exact couch for nearly $1000 less. We had trouble choosing between 2 colors so the sales guy went as far as to mail us a "sample" of the color we didnt choose a week later to make sure we made the right choice. I spoke with them late last week and will be taking delivery of my couch this week as expected.
Other Furniture
We only went to one store on 110 that we truly felt comfortable at and it was located pretty much at the end of the strip (if heading north) on the left hand side. It has a blue sign and isnt all that inviting looking but the saleperson offered a tremendous amount of assistance and education on what to look for in furniture without making us feel pressured. They are open to providing catalogs as well which we found was not the common practice at places like Raymour that "rename" all of their products to keep you from shopping around.
We found a bedroom set we liked and after doing some research online found that this store was only $200 more expensive then online with delivery added. We will forgoe the $200 savings to reward the saleperson for his help.
Besides this scenario, I would reccomend online shopping for furniture after you find what you like. Raymour carries a lot of furniture from manufactured by Global Furniture and Coaster Furniture. You can save a TON of money avoiding Raymour and shopping online.
My preferred sites are
furniturexo.com (no tax / free curbside delivery)
Lauters.com (no tax / free delivery / will locate furniture for you)
Mattresses
Sleepys
We went to sleepys and were sold by the whole body diagnostic system that they use to identify what type of bed you should buy. They sell a mattress that can be soft on one side and firm on the other for couples that do not have the same preferences as their partner. They are willing to negotiate and if you put a deposit down you can cancel at pretty much anytime. The salesperson will tell you that you have to cancel within 30 days but that is b.s.. I called to cancel and they wound up taking $100 off for me to keep my order and waive the cancellation timeframes. I still have a deposit down and its 4 months later.
Carpets
We've went to 2 different places and had 2 extremely different experiences.
Montauk Carpets on 110 next to Lowes
The salesperson here pissed me off the most out of any store we have stopped at over the last few months. Let me first paint the picture...my girlfriend and I are both 26 yrs old and look even younger but have solid careers with nearly 200k household income. After explaining that we are 1st time homebuyers and are looking to get a feel of what our preferences are, this guy greets us rudely like he was wasting his time by getting the "kids" and proceeds to bring us directly to the discount carpet rack. After explaining what we were looking for in terms of quality he goes, "okay, let me show you what something nice costs" and brings us upstairs to check out brand name carpets. He shows us some ralph lauren piece and said "you see what nice things cost...this is for when you really make it". I couldnt believe it! We left immediately.
Conversely...
Perrys Carpet, Franklin Ave - Franklin Square
The saleperson here was great. He treated us as equals and took the time to learn more about our preferences, the house itself, and the "life" factors that could impact a carpet choice. For example, we have a dog and my gf is allergic to dust so he pushed us into a shorter and tighter wound carpet type with special "pet" padding to avoid absorption of any accidents when we were orginally looking for something thick and soft. We will be purchasing carpet from him once we move in this week.
I hope this helps you avoid all the challenges we experienced...
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