I sympathize with you in your irritation with sales people and the difficult search for good quality for value. However, if you want to buy inexpensive furniture, don't expect quality. Ashley will never ever come up in any search that you do for quality. It will come up for low cost. If you want quality, it won't quite cost you your firstborn, but it won't be a 2K Ashley leather product--or any other Ashley product. Craigslists everywhere are littered with only a couple of year old Ashley products that are already falling apart and that people still haven't paid for due to their "no interest" promos. The furniture is worn out before the bill ever comes due

You are asking for the impossible to demand good quality for little money. Good quality never comes cheap. You will either need to lower your expectations for your budget or up your budget. Or be on the lookout to buy second hand.

So sorry to hear about your experience with Ashley. Ashley Furniture is headquartered in Wisconsin and was actually featured in a local news report a time ago with regard to consumer complaints. Many of the cases I read or heard about seemed to involve an extreme delay in the delivery of the furniture and/or significant quality issues. If you do an internet search, you'll find out that you're not alone.

It's so sad the way that company is operating and taking advantage of people.

I hope you're able to get the matter resolved. Don't give up. We purchased some furniture from Stanley Furniture Co., and it is very good.

I certainly understand your frustration. My SIL purchased a leather recliner, chair, and sofa less than 4 years ago from Ashley, at the same time we purchased a full leather sofa and recliner made in NC. Her recliner no longer works and slightly tilts. The stitching on the back of the attached cushion sofa is pulled away. The whole set looks 20 years old. Ours looks new. When I researched her problem online, I saw that Ashley's typical response to complaints is that the customer has atypical wear and tear - not Ashley's problem. I hope you have better luck returning your sofa.
Dee

TRAshley furniture is bottom of the barrel GARBAGE! It makes me sick that they dupe the otherwise uninformed into buying their garbage with their fancy showrooms.

it's funny, I have an Ashley loveseat and chaise that we bought 9 years ago, from a "regular" furniture store, not an Ashley Home Store, and it has held up AMAZING....been moved 4 times, slept and drooled on by the dog, looks perfect.

Then I have an Ashley sofa bought 2 years ago from Ashley Home Stores and it's not great, not expensive, but fills a space. However, the cushions are already saggy.

We had a horrible experience with the second sofa with customer service and delivery and have vowed never again. But that first set of furniture has held up so well that is why we went back...

The sectional I have is Ashley. Bought it five years ago and having to replace. Wish I'd done more research before I purchased it.

There was an Ashley showroom in our community, they lasted a few years and left. I went in there once, found it was just a showroom and there would be long waits for any furniture. The furniture quality did not seem to be worth the prices they wanted.

Funny, my neighbor has Ashley bar stools and they absolutely love them. We were just discussing them the other day and she suggested that I buy them as well.

I have Ashley in my office, have had it for about 6 years and it was about what I would have expected for the price--equivalent to what I could have gotten from OD or Staples, but nicer looking, a bit better price.

I'm satisfied that I got my money's worth and it's held up okay, but even 6 years ago I wouldn't have bought anything upholstered from then.

We have a couch and loveseat from Ashley. When furniture shopping I went all over the place and what we bought was the only stuff I fell in love with (red paisley). My biggest complaint I have is the fact that you can't flip the cushions. The bottoms aren't completely covered in the same fabric. I think all their upholstered stuff is like this. I still will occasionally flip them and put a blanket down when nobody is coming over but I HATE how sloppy it looks.

We had a positive experience with customer service. For the prices, I don't think you can expect it to last forever.

I also want to note that I "don't want" my furniture to last a life time. My taste is still evolving and will probably continue to do so. I'll have a hard time convincing myself and DH to replace something we drop tons of money on.

Also, a relative bought leather furniture (or one of their fake leathers) at least 12 or so years ago and the stuff really looks great. Very comfortable and there are very few marks from the dog. I was totally shocked when she told me where it came from.

I also wanted to mention, if I had a bad experience with them I wouldn't be heading back. I also think it's good to share with others what went down that way they can shop at their own risk, you know.

We are very happy with the Lazy Boy furniture that we have purchased in the past few years. There has never been a problem with the recliners or the sofas that we have purchased from Lazy Boy. We will go back there the next time that we are looking for living room furniture. We also like the fact that everything that we bought there is American made and as a result will last a very long time!

We love our Lazy Boy furniture, too. It was a bit more pricey than Ashley, but the recliners (loveseat and sofa) work well after many years (7 on the loveseat and 4 on the couch) and the leather has held up remarkably well to babies, teens, and dogs.

If you want a reclining sofa, you can't beat Lazy Boy. My parents have an indestructible Lazy Boy Sofa, and they love it!

If you want a non-reclining leather sectional, try Dania if you have it. At our store, the downstairs part of the store is out of our price range (sofas are in the $3,000 plus range), but the upstairs section has lots of great leather sofa for less money. We bought a leather sofa, chair and two ottomans five years ago, and they still look brand new, even though they are used daily.

dianne47 is correct for the most part. I've been in the furniture biz for 30 yrs. All those manufacturers still produce & have plants in the US. Most of the foreign aspect comes in with the parts - for instance, manu. will send US materials overseas to make parts of the furniture then ship it back for assembly in their (mostly) NC or VA plants. If more than 50% of the labor/materials is overseas, they legally have to say it was made in China, Thailand, VietNam, etc. Most have their own plants there & do not include sweatshops. Most textiles have moved to China & Canada, unfortunately. There are, I think, only 2 mills left in the US. A lot of upholstery is "cut & sewn", meaning that the fabric is produced & sewn in China, then shipped to the US where it is then upholstered on the furniture.

This manufacturing process has changed because Americans no longer wanted to pay for US made prices, in general. Competition is incredible, & US freight costs account for the majority of overhead costs. If a furniture STORE nets 2% a year, it's doing well - so much for that perception of a ridiculous mark-up in furniture. That's why so many have fallen to the wayside. The manufacturers who have tried mightily to stay 100% US made...are no longer in business. Every manufacturer has a "good, better, best" category. The "best" will be all American made. La-Z-Boy & Ethan Allen is THE ONLY furniture manufacturer I know that is still run on their own, not by a conglomerate. Furniture Brands Inc owns I think EVERY manufacturer other than Ethan Allen & La-Z-Boy than dianne mentioned. Even Stickley has 30% of it's line is foreign. I have worked for EA & LZB & they are EXCELLENT & UPSTANDING companies. Bassett is another fine company. Ashley...not so much. I would NEVER buy a stick from them. They are shady & shoddy.

I could talk for HOURS about the furniture industry - it's very fascinating. I went to High Point twice a year for years & have been to many manufacturing plants up to 2 yrs ago. I was weaned on Furniture Today (industry publication) because my father was in the furniture biz for 30 yrs before me. I seriously read every copy that he brought home - it was one aspect of how I came to be a designer.

Sorry for the rattling on.

~Jeana