Understanding the benefit of your purchase.

Here's a question I've heard a lot over the years:

"Why should I purchase my outdoor furniture from a retailer that only sells outdoor furniture? I can go to a big box retailer and get the same furniture for so much less money."

The short answer:

You get what pay for.

There is an associated benefit with any cost and it is almost always a proportional relationship. Market law demands it. I will try to explain why, on the surface, the offerings of a mass retailer may be hard to pass up but should be. High-end outdoor furniture companies do not exist in a vacuum. They exist because they offer a superior alternative to products that may cost less but are less than adequate for a long term investment. Let's begin with the quality angle.

Quality

Chances are good that the furniture you purchase from a mass retailer will be of lesser quality as is the furniture that is made by a company that specializes in outdoor furniture. These specializing companies stake their name and reputation on what hits the showroom. Trying to foist poorly manufactured furniture on unsuspecting customers would have them out of business in no time flat. Some companies, with whom I have worked, do manufacture indoor as well as outdoor furniture. However, the quality of the two always remains the same. These companies have (and earned) a reputation for making high quality indoor as well as outdoor furniture.

Product persistence and part replacement

Be sure that you are getting not only the best quality materials but the ability to add to your collection in the future. It has been my experience that mass merchandise stores don't carry the same styles or even companies from season to season. This constant product turnover makes it virtually impossible to add pieces or to get parts for existing furniture should you have the need.

If you purchase furniture that is less expensive and you end up replacing it after a few years you have caused yourself an unnecessary headache and wasted your initial investment. Finding something you love is hard work. More so, finding necessary parts when required. The high-end outdoor furniture companies have catalogs for replacement parts. Collections do fall out of style on occasion but the manufactures offering higher quality furniture will keep parts and cushion patterns in stock for years and years.

Choice

When you purchase from a mass retailer, you get what you see. If you purchase from a outdoor furniture showroom, you will be given choices. Most of the furniture will come with a finish and cushion that the retailer has chosen but that is not all they can offer. With a little patience, you can get the product on the showroom floor in many finishes and many fabrics. In fact, the fabric choices for outdoor furniture are staggering these days so you can truly customize the furniture you purchase to your individual taste.

Warranties

You are going to make a substantial investment in your outdoor furniture. With the mass retailers you will get a limited warranty. Here's an example:

Let's say two years down the road you notice the finish is starting to chip. Your natural instinct will be to call the company from whom you purchased the furniture. The retailer carries thousands and thousands of products. They get the best price from season to season on what they need and then move on for the next season utilizing the next vendor who gives them the best bulk deal on the outdoor furniture segment.

More often than not, the mass retailers will be unable to retrieve the vendors name from a lot sold more than a couple of years ago with out a great deal of time-intensive searching which they are usually loathe to do. Weeks can go before anyone gets back to you. You decide to investigate for yourself only to find that, in the end, your ultimately disappointed because the trail has gone cold. Why? Because you hadn't realized that the furniture you purchased was OEMd from a manufacturer now out of business.

Just because the chair say's "Acme" on the back does not mean that "Acme" made the chair. It could have been any one of a number of vendors. On the other hand, high-end outdoor furniture will usually be sold by a well known and established retailer who specializes in this niche. With few exceptions, they will have direct contact with the vendor. This direct contact with the vendor, in turn, will make the process of having your needs met that much faster.

Bottom Line

Chances are the financial commitment is going to be larger when you purchase furniture from a showroom that only deals in outdoor furniture. For all the reasons I have cited in this article and in the preceding Smart Buyers Series, at the end of the day you are going to have quality furniture that you desire. As well, you will have the peace of mind of knowing that the furniture is going to last, that you'll be able to easily access parts if needed and if there is an issue requiring the exercise of your warranty, it won't come up short. All these things, together, should enable you to enjoy your outdoor furniture investment to its fullest.