Few of us city dwellers, especially professionals on the move, want to strike deep roots in a place like our previous generations did. Gone are the days when people were tied to ancestral homes and heirloom furniture that lasted generations. Our busy and itinerant lives necessitate choices that offer convenience, variety, as well as economy. Furniture choices conform to the statement. It is not surprising therefore to see a rise in the number of online providers for sale and purchase of pre owned or factory seconds furniture. Such furniture is available at a fraction of a price of showroom pieces. You can now do a home makeover by picking new furniture that is cheap, yet classy.
If you still curl your lip or raise your eyebrow at the mention of economical or pre-owned or seconds furniture, think again. Here is busting some myths and highlighting some benefits that may help change your mind if you are a non-believer :
Myth 1 – Economical = Poor quality
Most online providers of pre owned furniture check, classify and certify products for quality before putting up the piece for sale on their website. Price is determined based parameters such as condition,brand , material and make of the product.
Myth 2 – Pre owned = Run down, Hidden faults
Most stores worth their salt offer transparent disclosure of any product defects , rather highlight the same in product photographs. Products are classified under categories such as Unboxed, Almost New, Gently Used, Heavily used based on their condition.
Myth 3 – Seconds = Second hand
Factory Seconds furniture is unused and includes Factory Seconds, Surplus Stock, Slow-moving Inventory and Returns from other online retailers. Such furniture has fairly minor defects which often can’t even be noticed by the casual eye but are otherwise in mint condition.
Myth 4 – Refurbished = recycled , inferior quality
Such furniture though previously used, has subsequently been restored to a fully functional, and nearly perfect aesthetic condition.
Myth 5 – Not store bought = No redressal/ return/ replacement
Many online stores have robust policies around return, replacement etc. They have a reputation to protect and seem sensitive to online customer feedback.
Beyond just being budget friendly, some accompanying benefits include:
Wide variety to choose from – Designs in furniture stores are dependent on the latter’s brand and style guide and hence have limited variety. Pre-owned or seconds furniture stores have inventory that is almost crowdsourced, thereby giving you a wider array to choose from.
Easy home makeovers – Thanks to a wider variety and pocket friendly prices, you are not stuck with a piece of furniture for ever. You can resell the furniture and buy new pieces more frequently to suit your changing needs or give your home a quick make over.
Free home delivery and assembly – Many furniture stores charge extra for these services which are mostly free when using the online providers.
ALSO READ:Why buy when you can rent furniture – Aamir believes it, why not we?
So if you are a convert now , here are a few providers to choose from :
www.getmycouch.com – Plus – Mostly factory seconds furniture from other online stores such as Urbanladder and Pepperfry ; clear photographs and dimensions of products available on site; fixed prices with transparency on retail and discount, Free delivery . Minus – sold out stuff not removed from site, slow churn in product variety
www.gozefo.com – All the pluses of GMC plus more. Factory seconds as well as pre-owned refurbished products; clear and fair assessment of product quality, upto 70% buyback guarantee for the sold product for a year.
www.usedfurnitures.in – features similar to above.
olx.com and quikr.com are well known. These however are not dedicated to furniture shopping alone. While they connect the seller and buyer directly there are several downsides as well such as – too many items for sale hence difficult and time consuming for buyer to choose; no assessment of product quality ; poor quality of photographs and limited information on dimensions; buyer and seller have to negotiate and arrange for product delivery (though Quikr Doorstep is a feature that takes care of delivery in certain areas)
