| Product: |
Laura Ashley Design Service |
| Date: |
08/07/02 (1370 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Professional Advice, fee is recouped
Disadvantages: 3rd party suppliers may not always be the best value
I had been looking for a new sofa for months now, to no avail. Finally, I found a few I liked in Laura Ashley, at my local Homebase in Ayr. I spotted that they did an interior design service, and I thought this would be a good way of trying to create the room I wanted, with all the little touches and the desired ambience. So I decided that I would ask them to come out to my home.
Their design service is £50, and this covers you for up to three rooms. You do get the £50 back if you place an order with them, and I therefore figured this was a reasonable deal. I called the number shown on the leaflet and they gave me a local number to ring and make an appointment. For larger projects, i.e., more than three rooms, there is a £100 charge, again fully refundable against a purchase.
I rang my local number (Glasgow) and I made an appointment for a few weeks time. I gave my credit card details over the telephone, to pay the £50. I was given the name of the designer who would be coming out to my home.
The designer arrived on time. She brought masses and masses of samples in from the car. These included carpet, fabric for furniture, fabric for curtains, wallpaper, fabric for bedding etc. She also had booklets containing curtain designs and their catalogue.
I told her my main requirement was for my lounge, but I also wanted her to look at two bedrooms, (Might as well get my money?s worth, I figured). The bedrooms included a downstairs bedroom, which we intended to use as a guest bedroom, and my own bedroom, which was upstairs.
We started in the lounge, and she asked me questions regarding the ideal ambience, and the intended use of the room. These questions I duly answered, and we started to look at some of the colours and fabrics open to us. She was also mindful of the decor in the rooms adjacent to the lounge, i.e. the living room, and the hall.
She was here for about three hours in total, doing all three rooms. I se
lected all my carpets, curtains, sofas, pouffe, lighting, bedding wallpaper, the works for all three rooms.
From here she advised me that she would go away and put a colour board together for each of the three rooms, and then price up my selection, including all the little finishing touches like cushions etc. They then send out the colour boards, with options on how to pay, and the pricing. She would also send me details of the stores close enough to home, where we could go and look at the sofas we had selected. She left me with a catalogue to browse through.
There is no pressure to place an order immediately; quite the opposite in fact, LA do not even finalise the pricing for you, while they are at your house. This gives you time to consider the options and change anything you are not certain about when you get your colour boards. The designer that comes out, then sources all the furniture and other products for you, and manages it through to completion.
A few days later, the designer rang to check whether we had received the colour boards. We had not, presumably down to the Christmas Post. She advised that they had been despatched by Parcel Force, and they duly arrived on the 24th December. She also advised us by telephone, that the Made to Order sofas had a 25% sale starting on the 26th December, for one week only.
Included in the parcel we received were colour boards for each room, and generous samples of the wallpaper, carpet and fabrics that we had chosen. There was also an estimate, for each room, which she had not totalled up, presumably so I wouldn't get an instant fright! There was also a card with a unique design service number, which I should quote when placing any order, so that they can track its status for me. She also included details of recommended tradespersons, for the various jobs such as carpet fitting, and wallpapering. These tradespersons are not guaranteed by Laura Ashley however they are of good qu
ality overall.
Payment options available are the Laura Ashley Credit Card, which has a rather hefty APR when compared to a regular loan, but you do get 4% back in Laura Ashley Vouchers. Alternatively you can have 12 months interest free credit, or a loan. You can also pay with good old-fashioned cash of course.
I was delighted with the way my lounge and guest bedroom turned out, but I don't think I have quite achieved what I wanted with my Master Bedroom. However, if I telephone my designer we can work through it some more, to tweak the design.
The designer will also advise you on which stores have the furniture on display, and also which stores may be selling a display version, which could be helpful in trying to reduce the overall cost. As well as the Laura Ashley Stores there are branches in some of the Homebase stores. We visited a Homebase and they advised us on a 10% Homebase Sale day, (next one 11th January), Laura Ashley also reduces their prices for the day, meaning we can reduce the prices of the items not in the sale already.
Laura Ashley does sell carpet, however they do not include fitting. As the carpet retailers generally include free fitting on a good quality carpet, I will likely not order a carpet from Laura Ashley, but from someone else.
Delivery is typically four weeks for curtains and eight to twelve weeks for furniture.
Ordering was easy; I just telephoned my designer and advised her on which parts of the design I wanted to order right away. A 25% deposit is needed, and she sends the paperwork out for me to double-check before it goes ahead. She also gave me my delivery dates and details of the couriers who would be sending the goods.
Overall I was pleased with the service from Laura Ashley.
My curtains arrived within the allocated time, and my sofa's arrived ten days early, delivering them at at a time to suit us. Our pelmet still needed to be fitted by a s
upplier. Laura Ashley gave us a quote, but we managed to find a local supplier for about £100 less, and it is worth shopping around to find alternative suppliers.
All in all my lounge looks fabulous, and I have had a gallery in to complete the look with some artwork. We are part way through the second bedroom, having wallpapered in the Laura Ashley design which is absolutely fantastic. We will get the bedding and carpet later this year, and we will have a great room for guests this Christmas (sorry for saying that word! )
Helen Bradshaw
July 2002
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