Leather manufacturer rankings - Flexsteel Latitudes line

[mbenjami1]

Previously I remember Duane saying that the rankings here: http://www.onlyleather.com/showroom/...urer_rank.html looked fairly accurate. That was several years ago. It appears since then they've added manufacturers to the list and updated/tweaked some of the rankings. One thing that stuck out to me was that they seem to have recently changed their rankings of the Flexsteel Latitudes line, like within the past year. It used to be ranked significantly below the domestic Flexsteel line, but now it is shown to be on par with the domestic stuff. I am curious if anyone is aware of any recent quality changes in the Latitudes line that would justify this change.

I am currently in the market for midrange furniture with a nice balance of price and quality as I just purchased a home that is twice the size of my old one. So i have a lot of furniture needs all at once to avoid empty rooms. I would love to fill my home with Hancock and Moore pieces but it's just not realistic even if I tried to stretch it out over many years. Previously I purchased domestically made Flexsteel sofas and was happy with the quality/price ratio. I had planned on looking hard at more domestic Flexsteel sofas/chairs, but if the Latitudes line has increased quality to an acceptable level that would be good to know. I like the styles they produce, just was always wary of the quality since they are built in China.

[drcollie]

I'd not give you two cents for that Leather Shoppes ratings sheet as it now is written. Its obviously biased towards the product lines they sell.

Would I buy Flexsteel Lattitudes for myself? Absolutely not. But I don't think you would necessarily have issues with the product if you did choose to get it.

Look at it this way.... do you want to avoid a McDonald's Hamburger at all costs? No. Its safe to eat, has nutritional value and is inexpensive. Are you going to rave about how great it is? Probably not, its just filler food. But that doesn't mean you should avoid it.

Flexsteel Lattitudes is the furniture version of a Big Mac.

[mbenjami1]

I'd not give you two cents for that Leather Shoppes ratings sheet as it now is written. Its obviously biased towards the product lines they sell.

Would I buy Flexsteel Lattitudes for myself? Absolutely not. But I don't think you would necessarily have issues with the product if you did choose to get it.

Look at it this way.... do you want to avoid a McDonald's Hamburger at all costs? No. Its safe to eat, has nutritional value and is inexpensive. Are you going to rave about how great it is? Probably not, its just filler food. But that doesn't mean you should avoid it.

Flexsteel Lattitudes is the furniture version of a Big Mac.

Yeah, I understand the Latitudes line is not the greatest thing out there. However, neither is the Flexsteel domestic line. But, I have found Flexsteel domestic to be a nice ratio of quality to price. In fact, I have not found any other line of furniture that balances quality and value quite as well as Flexsteel domestic in my limited furniture shopping experience. I would liken them more to a Five Guys burger (not sure if you have those out in your neck of the woods) rather than a Big Mac. The domestic Flexsteel sofa and loveseat I purchased 3 years ago are in great shape today. The upholstery has worn well, the cushions have stood up to heavy use and are still firm, and the units still sit comfortably for a guy with a bad back. The only quibble I have is that the sofa has one spot that has a little bit of a squeak when you sit on it.

Anyway, the point of the post was that I had always heard that the Flexsteel chinese stuff was significantly lesser to the domestic line so I never considered it. But, with these revised rankings, I wondered if perhaps the quality of the chinese line had caught up to the domestic stuff. If it has improved to that level, I would consider it for my situation.

[drcollie]

It all depends on how much faith you want to give weight to on those Leather Shoppe rankings....if you're happy with them, then go for it.

Flexsteel IS McDonald's though. Bradington Young is 5 Guys!