First time buying nice furniture - where to begin?

[Jenny]

Hello everyone, my name is Jenny. I've been living the life of a poor student for ... the last 7 or 8 years, and only last year did I graduate (finally) to a decent paying job. I looking to replace my junkie college furniture for some great stuff that lasts, and after visiting many furniture shops and doing some research online, it seems to me like I'd rather be spending a little more for H&M than pricey mid-quality Pottery Barn/Arhaus/Restoration Hardware stuff.

I'm very excited to be starting my new life, but at the same time, very intimidated. There's only one H&M dealer in the area where I live (Minnesota). And that's Gabbert's Furniture, this very fancy, very snooty furniture store. I've been there a couple of times, and mostly get very mediocre service from uninterested sales people.

I'd very much like to buy a H&M sofa in leather, with down cushions, but I'm afraid to ask how much they are, and I can't figure out the pricing for the life of me. Advice? Help?

[Jenny]

Also, I want to mention that I found this sofa at Arhaus, called the Hadley Sofa: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LylcFdvqj08

It's on sale right now for $3,799 - $4,199 depending on color. The style is nice, but really I just loved the feel of it. The cushions had that sink into them and never get up feel (which I've been told is the down), and the letter feels think and soft. I was wondering if it was any good.

[sstarrx2]

Jenny...this Hadley looks nice and from the description seems to be made ok. I will be interested in what Duane has to say. For a full aniline leather it appears to be less costly a unit that what you would probably pay for H&M. I do not know anything about this company but Duane probably does. I found his comment about the leather being thicker interesting. Do they only use certain parts of the cow? I think I would take that comment with a grain of salt as a sales pitch.

[Jenny]

The leather feels nice, I don't know compared to H&M but certainly better than the sofas I've felt in those big box stores like Slumberland or Schneiderman's. I don't know how to describe it really except that it feels heavy while being very soft. That could also be the full aniline though. I've been mostly flying blind on these things

[drcollie]

You know, I'm 61 years old now. I started buying nice, good furniture when I was 27. It was expensive then and it's expensive now. My wife and I didn't rush the buys, we would try to get two or three nice pieces every year rather than furnish our place entirely with cheap stuff. So we had hand-me-downs and college stuff for many. many years. But over time, we have amassed a really good houseful of fine furniture and because it is made well and proper, you buy it once and don't ever have to replace it. Many of my customers over the past 30 years did likewise. It's a slow way to do it, but a practical way.

My wife and I moved our daughter into a new apartment today in downtown DC from her old one. She was 23 first moving into a new apartment and is now 25. I gave her a brand new Bradington Young Tappan Sofa in a GR 5 aniline leather as a 'independence present' and now two years later when we moved it today - it was trashed. It's had a very hard life, too many parties on it and too many foster dogs, and too many friends over that didn't respect her furnishings. Someone even managed to rip the leather on one cushion. I have had the same B-Y pieces in my house now and some are close to 30 years old (raised my daughter on them!) that are in much better shape than her 2 year old piece. What's the story here? You can buy high quality but if you use it hard and don't care about it, then it's not going to hold up. Lifestyle. maintenance and some common sense go a long way.

One of the things when furniture shopping is throw out the 'sale' prices. In this industry is always 'on sale' so don't get taken in by that. Rather look at the bottom dollar price and say "What else can I get for this price?" That's how you shop. And don't listen to salesmen, 95% of them don't know furniture. Sad to say but they do not. Do you research and learn what makes a good piece of furniture and trust your own eyes, ears, touch and common sense.


Arhaus is just OK. It's not terrible, but it's not upper tier, either. It would not be a bad buy - if you like it, get it! However, for that money you CAN get Hancock and Moore in the Town and Country promotion from an aggressively priced dealer such as myself. Looking at that video of the Hadley, I can seen multi-piece panels on the seat and back cushions, with two seams per cushion. That's a shortcut, single panel leather pieces is what you want ideally. When they mention 8-way hand-tied suspension, they show you a inner spring inside a cushion, not the deck suspension. Why don't they show us the base construction? Thickness of the leather is a non-issue, thicker leather does not drape as well, its not really an asset.

[Jenny]

Thank you Duane! That's such good advice, especially about the lifestyle - I really appreciate the insight. I'm at the stage where I'm transitioning away from the college parties to (I hope) having people over for dinner etc. With that said, I'm definitely taking it slow. I have no good pieces right now, and I haven't really found a "style" for my rooms. I'm still trying to develop the artistic eye for it.

This is my plan for now (and let me know what you think). I want to buy good quality big pieces that are comfortable and durable. I bought my first decent mattress about six months ago, and it's been definitely worth the money. Now I want to do the same with seating. The rest, side tables, etc. I'm planning to get lower quality, cheaper stuff with the knowledge that my taste may very well change as I go.

I went out to my local fine furniture store yesterday, and still found it confusing. They quoted me a price for their cheapest H&M sofa, with the lowest grade/category of leather, and it was still over $5,000, before tax and delivery. Is that normal? Also, they didn't say anything about Town and Country (although I've read about it on this forum).

[sstarrx2]

Jenny, I know your questions are for Duane, but I am going to add my two cents. I find it surprising that this store did not even mention T&C. When I decided the model I wanted for my recliner that was the first thing my dealer said he was going to check for me without prompting, to make sure he could at least offer me the best available price if I chose to go that route, or offer an alternative if the chair I had chosen was not included in the program. That quote seems pretty high to me. If it were me I would pick out several models of H&M sofa that you like and get quotes from Duane. I do not think you are going to find a better price on the same sofa from the store you are dealing with. I would look at the T&C sticky on this forum and look at all the sofas available in the program to see if one fits your needs and tastes. My recliner was in the T&C program, but I chose to not go with the married leather and choose a nicer Grade 2 leather that added about $500 to the cost. Whatever you do, getting on this forum was a good move. There is a wealth of information on here and Duane will not steer you wrong.

[drcollie]

Not every dealer is a Town and Country store, it requires a substantial buy-in to the program and floor space commitment, so I would guess only half the dealers are in the program. Stores have pricing all over the place as well. Some are higher than others.

Here's a fact - I have more Hancock and Moore customers in the states of Texas and California than I do where my store is located in Virginia. Now, they are not buying from me because I'm a nice guy - so it must be on price. I don't actively seek that long distance business as I don't want to encourage folks to use another dealer's store assets to buy from me, that's unethical - however neither am I going to turn any orders away. Bottom line, shop around the prices if you find a frame and leather you like.

I don't know which model H&M sofa you were pricing out, so I can't tell you if that quote was high/low or just about right, but the two least expensive sofas in the H&M line are in The Town and Country Program, the City # 9840 and the Ricki # 5831-3 and in the program leathers you can land them at your home in MN including delivery (all-in) for a bit under $ 3,300 from my store. One that is a little more money (but not a lot) that I think is a great piece is the Claudette Sofa # 5161 as well. Not many people buy it, but it sits great and has a but of flair to it with the curves, etc.

[Jenny]

Great, I'll check these out. Also, as a side note, I just read your sticky about window shopping locally and then ordering online. I just wanted to say I admire the stance you take on it, especially since you're taking the time to help/educate people across the country about good furniture whether or not they buy from you. I've gotten more useful, straightforward information from these few posts than I have over several trips to the stores around town. Thanks for taking the time.