Yes, the prices are really better. My sister has purchased from Roses. She bought her dining table, 8 chairs, and a breakfront. She is a serious shopper and knew what was being quoted for the same furniture in the retail stores in her area. Roses was considerably cheaper even when you add shipping into the calculations.

I have purchased from Boyles. At various times, I have bought 2 bergere chairs with ottomans, a Whittemore Sherrill leather sofa, a Whittemore Sherrill leather chair and ottoman. For example, the sofa was $4200 at a local retailer, but Boyles had it for $2000. I have managed to hit "specials" where the shipping was free or very low.

I don't know if you will get the same deals and service at Boyles, that I got. It has been about 8 years since I bought anything. A Google search shows that they liquidated their business last year and are trying to make a comeback this year.

The only area I have physically visited was Hickory. I so wished I had had a truck. There were bargains to be had!

I tried Furnitureland South with disappointing results.

Boyles was good years ago...was able to order over the phone stuff I had seen/touched/sat in locally steeply discounted at Boyles. Recently found my mirrored coffee table steeply discounted at Goods in Hickory. Have you been to Green Front in Farmville, VA? Love this place!

Here is a link that might be useful: Green Front Furniture

My experience wouldn't be helpful as it is so dated...but 33 years ago, after we'd been married a year, we vacationed to Hickory NC specifically to shop for furniture for our home...we bought LR, DR and MBR furniture in one shot for a song. It was great fun too.

The place is so different now and so much of the furniture is sourced from overseas that I'm sure it's an entirely different experience now. Though I can tell you the gal who runs our local lighting store frequently shops there for her store and comes up with amazing things.

But thanks for triggering some fond memories for me.

If you like modern/contemporary decor, there is a place in Raleigh; Ambiente that sells some really nice home furnishings, and they always run some very good sales. We first went to visit the store on a lark during a family visit to Raleigh about5-6 years ago. We'd seen one of their ads in the newspaper one morning, and took a ride over to the store (more for something to do than anything else). We didn't buy anything during that visit though my parents did! They were very happy with their purchase--ordering, delivery process, etc.

Last year we were in Raleigh visiting again, and caught a really good "retirement" sale (owner was selling the business to one of the store managers). We were very impressed with them as well. We purchased a leather sectional and matching ottoman, at floor model pricing. They were extremely helpful with placing the order, as well as arranging for out-of-state delivery.

The delivery company they used was terrific. The delivery guys themselves were phenomenal--they came late on a Sunday evening, and despite the late hour, were beyond careful (and respectful of our home) while bringing in and setting up the furniture. Not only did they not rush, they really took their time to make sure everything was absolutely put together perfectly. And, they were adamant that we not lift a finger (to pick up any fallen bits of packing paper/plastic/tape)--"Oh no, that's our job ma'am. We will clean up everything when we are finished here," and they did.

Here is a link that might be useful: Ambiente

i've always shopped locally and then called the stores that seem to offer the best prices on furniture... i would call several places (not all in NC!) and would order from who gave me the best price on the brand i was looking for (all reputable dealers!)...
lots of savings to be had! and the shipping is really worth it when ordering multiple items!

I'm sorry to hear that Boyle's had to liquidate. I found them to be a terrific resource when I traveled to NC twelve years ago to buy furniture for my first house. The world is a different place today than it was even that short time ago.

You have to be careful when shopping here in NC. The furniture market is not like it used to be. Some mfg have gone out of business, others outsourced to China. Very little furniture is still actually made in NC. Wesley Hall is made here, check in Hickory, NC. We have a custom made sofa from them and love it. Price, quality is great. It is very sad the way things have digressed over the yrs.

We have purchased furniture from NC for the past 25 or 30 years, saving a lot of money during that time.

The company we dealt with for many years went out of business, so our last couple of orders (small, less than $3000 each order), I went with Furnitureland South, who was much cheaper than other NC stores I checked. Their service had always been wonderful.

However, we recently priced 4 outdoor chairs and a coffee table with them, and were prepared to order when I decided to check with Lexington Furniture in Lexington, KY. They were $275!!! cheaper for each chair, and $150 less on the table. They were incredibly easy to deal with (I know many on the furniture forum have had satisfactory experiences with them as well) and immediately responsive to any question I had. Our chairs should arrive in a week or so but I don't foresee any problems.

You do have to know what you want, though.
Dee

Thank you all for getting back to me. I definitely know what I want. One of my biggest fears is that I will get something else that will fall apart on me in a short period of time. Do the manufacturer warranties still apply on pieces purchased from the discount stores? Are there manufacturers I should try to find or stay away from?

@javachik, Green Front Furniture is much closer, and I read a few reviews and I was planning on checking them out on Saturday instead of the longer NC trip, but I gave them a call and the do not have anything in the size that I need.

@catmmom, thanks for the tip but Ambiente is a bit too modern for my taste.

I will try calling around to a few of the NC stores to see if they have what I am looking for.

like dee, i have also been pleased with LF in KY- price wise and service wise.

Another compliment Lex Furniture.
I actually had issues with one order but it got resolved and I did order from them again.

I also purchased from Boyles, no complaints.

In the last 20 years, I have purchased all my furniture from Hickory Furniture Mart, Boyles, Furniture Land South, and Rose. Some by phone but also I make it a road trip (from Florida) to go up to NC just for the fun of the hunt. I have never had an issue and I still have every piece I have purchased.

That said, I am aware that things have changed with outsourcing, closures, management changes. So I would be interested too in knowing the status of my old reliable furniture buying strategy.

I did buy from NC, over the phone years and years ago. It was a very positive experience. I may be planning a trip there to get some stuff for the new house at some point. This thread is helpful.

I am pretty sure I know what store you are referring to in your original post. I always found it interesting that every review was a 5 star glowing review. C'mon, nobody is perfect! Do they think we are all fools? What sofa did you buy? There is one that I have my eye on. Chloe is the grouping. Any chance that's it?

Thanks
Bee

Bee, yes. That is the company. I actually considered the Claudia, which is the same as the Chloe but in leather, when purchasing but went with the Blair instead since it was much more comfortable and better suited for everyday use. The reviews online are great and one of the sales people(not the person selling it to me) even told me that he had never had complaints in the many years that they have carried that line. That had to be a blatant lie. In less than a year I have gone through three of these sofas (my story with them is a loooong one) - three different issues. As I said, I did not expect the sofa to last me a lifetime, but I certainly expected more than six months of use from it.

I would not advise anyone to purchase furniture from this company. You may have a wonderful experience with the sofa, but you may also have a year of nightmares which will end in you having to find a replacement. I have found many sites with complaints about their furniture - after my problems began and I performed a search of course.

If you do decide to go ahead with the purchase and happen to have problems that the regular furniture and bedding customer service will not help you with, let me know and I will be more than happy to give you their corporate customer service number. Had I not called corporate, I would probably still be waiting on a replacement cushion on the sleeper sofa (same Blair group) that was originally purchased. The up-side is that I get to hang on to their dreadful sofa until the replacement is delivered.

I am scared of buying anything new regardless of the manufacturer, because you just never know. I am very tempted to buy an older (retro/vintage) sectional and have it reupholstered. I have seen a few that I like. My thought is that if it lasted for 20 years or more and is still in great shape, then it will probably last another 20.

Clearly my math is off today, that should have been 40 years not 20.