To ask why sofas are so expensive?

[IsThisIt2021]

Looking for a new sofa for a house move. Extremely worried that I’m not going to be able to afford one. I’ve looked in places like British heart foundation, it’s cheaper to buy new! Looked on marketplace and it’s full of scammers. Cheapest I can find is about £700 😬 when did they become so pricey?!

My IKEA one was about £250 last year

I got one in 2019.( yes long ago)
Bhf shop
For 170 gbp

Looks new

Additionally - bought a soda bed double for guests last year for 300 gbp in xmas sale

IKEA Ektorp and it's fab.

Also have a second hand free on fb one which is fine I just bought a new cover as they're removable

I think it's dependent on quality really isn't it. You can get a cheapish one but it might not be great.
They're expensive as they are only an occasional purchase and the manufacturers know they. They think you'll spend a lot as it's a 'one off' purchase. Mine was 2k 10 years ago and hopefully has another 5 years in it.

We got a cheapish one last year from Dunelm? It’s a lovely colour and pretty comfy.

Try eBay.

There are plenty in our British heart foundation shop for £50-£200.

We got a new but ex display huge 4 seater sofa, two armchairs and big foot stool / ottoman from DFS 10 years ago for £800 - unfortunately their eBay outlet doesn't seem to do that anymore. Having recently looked up the price of replacing these, I intend to sit on them until I'm dead, and will refurbish them instead if needs-be.

DD moved in to a new flat last year and she got quite a nice sofa from Sue Ryder for £100

There are people genuinely selling second hand sofas on marketplace etc, could try freecycle. The new ones will be scams. Our last one we had was free from someone who just wanted it gone. In fact I’ve only managed to buy a new sofa in my forties before then they’ve all been secondhand and the most I’ve had to pay was £150.

Got mine cheap off ebay. There are bargains to be had

You can get new ones on interest free credit from most places, monthly payments can be really low. If not, you can get some great ones second hand.

Huh!?! A second hand sofa is so cheap!

Usually £100 to £400 BUT... you need to arrange your own van to collect it.

Try Gumtree too. FB marketplace has lots of scam furniture shops so you need to look for genuine sellers - the picture should make it clear if it's a genuine second hand one from someone's house.

Pay cash on collection.

Have a look at other charity shops too.

I bought one from a British Heart Foundation shop for £160 on Saturday! It’s not fancy, but it’s in decent condition and will be much better than my current (broken) one.

Where do you live? There are definitely brand new sofas available at a couple of places where they are returns (often don't fit in the house). Massive place in Birkenhead and Stoke from memory.

I got a half price John Lewis sofa for under £500 - 10 years later and going strong!

Ikea Ektorp, timeless, cheap, well made and you can buy extra covers.

It's worth going into furniture shops and seeing if they have any display models becoming available.

My DF moved last month and got a lovely one for half the retail price and it's in perfect condition.

Marks and Spencer are selling off sofas at 70% off if you have a large one near you. IKEA would perhaps also be worth a look.

Got ours on fb marketplace

Often sofas are often made to order. Even ones from DFS etc aren't actually made until one is ordered. They don't have a massive warehouse full of them to sell "off the shelf".
IKEA however are made in bulk amounts.
Generally that's why IKEA ones are cheaper.

They are crazy prices the one I have my heart set on is £2000! Granted it's mahoosive but still once I've saved and bought it I won't be replacing it ever! I've seen some cheaper ones advertised on eBay and Facebook but I've never heard of anyone buying a new one from either of those places so I wasn't sure it was some sort of scam they always seem to be listed by brand new profiles with no info too

I mean, yes you can buy cheap sofas from IKEA that "does the job" but we don't all want to live like that. So yes, sofas are expensive but I don't know why!

Even Ikea ones are expensive, I was looking for a 3 seater the other day and the one I liked was £800!

£700 for something that you'll use for 20 years + is pretty good value. It's like £35 per year.

You can get cheaper ones in IKEA. Look for other charity warehouses. There was a lovely sofa for £150 in one near me last time I went.