"I can't buy anything unless i can sit on it first".

I hear this from customers both in the store and on the phone about four times a day, every day. In fact, its the most frequent comment I get, right up there with "if the price tag is missing it must be free?". And then customers often give me a look that says 'how are you going to solve this problem for me?". Well, I can't....plain and simple. My little store is 4,900 square feet. I have four makers of upholstery that together make close to 5,000 frames in over 5,000 fabrics and leathers. Thats 25 million combinations! I can put about 90 frames in my store and thats full-full-full, and a far cry from 5,000. There is no database of what dealer has what model like there is in the automobile industry. The only way to find out is to call around to each dealer and make an inquiry, and that can be quite tedious at best. The manufacturers do not have showroooms for the public, and don't keep stock, either. What's a consumer to do? Well here's a couple of tips....

On better lines, you will find that most furniture within a brand has a similar sit and feel. Why? because they pay attention to the design during the prototype phase and tweak it until its where they want it. Hancock and Moore is the very best at this, Jimmy Moore makes sure. I would say a line such as that is very 'safe' to buy sight unseen as most people will like the comfort level across the line. I know in the entire line they make of nearly 1,500 frames I find there are only 5 or 6 frames I don't care for the way they sit. Thats less than 1%. Taylor King and Jessica Charles are similar, Bradington Young not quite as good but pretty close to it as well. So if you can try out SOMETHING from that maker and you find you like it, then chances are you will be happy with a sight-unseen buy.

I used to carry Leathercraft furniture, and one of the reasons I dropped the line was inconsistency in the way the frames sat. Some were excellent, others were terrible and it was about 50/50 for me. That doesn't give you confidence to sell the line to someone in say Montana, because you want your customer to like it. With a line such as Hancock and Moore, that confidence level is 99%.

Now if you REALLY have to try it out, and are willing to go to North Carolina to do so, I frequently set up trips to factories for customers to be at the plant when the frame they want to see is coming off the production line. It has to be on a weekday and you have to realize that is someone else's furniture so they can only hold it a day or two - but its a way to try a specific frame if you are willing to make the trip (and get a tour of how they build it as well).

On occasion, I will order a piece for a customer to try out - but only if I can use it for floor stock. Right now I have a H&M Bohemian chair and ottoman being made up for a Texas customer who could not locate the chair anywhere and is flying into Hickory NC on Dec 3rd when it will be ready for him and he will also get a full tour with Jimmy Moore of the factory. He can buy that chair and ottoman if he wants, or else I will have it shipped to my store as stock if he doesn't want it. I can't do this for every customer of course, my store is neither big enough nor with unlimited funds to buy stock, but in this case I know that chair will sell off my sales floor so I was glad to do that for him.

Hope that helps answer this question!